Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have landed in Sydney ahead of the final engagements of their pseudo-royal four-day tour of Australia.
The couple smiled broadly and waved as they came off a Qantas jet after spending time in Melbourne and Canberra since landing Down Under on Tuesday.
Meghan and Harry looked delighted to be on the ground after taking the evening domestic flight following a day of highly-personal comments about their lives.
The Duchess of Sussex said she was ‘the most trolled woman in the world’ on social media before her British husband said the death of his mother made him realise he no longer wanted to be a member of the Royal Family.
‘It killed my mum’, he said.
But despite their emotional comments in Melbourne, they were all smiles as they landed in Sydney. The Sussexes came off the plane with other passengers but were allowed to avoid the jet bridge and exit via the Tarmac and into a waiting car.
Meghan made her husband smile as she grabbed his hand before both waved enthusiastically to fans.
On Friday, Meghan will make a money-spinning appearance at the women-only ‘Her Best Life’ retreat at a five-star hotel on Coogee Beach in the east of Sydney.
Tickets for the weekend cost up to $3,199 AUD (£1,400) with those who paid the extra £264 for a ticket allowed the chance to have a table photo with the Duchess. Meghan’s fee has not been revealed but has been described as a ‘fat one’, and is apparently in the region of $250,000.
Meghan Markle waves and Prince Harry smiles as they land in Sydney
The couple held hands as they walked across the Tarmac towards their vehicle
Meghan gripped Harry’s hand as the prince happily chatted followed by two bodyguards
The Duchess pulled back her hair and Harry waved happily to a well-wisher
The couple have been accused by critics of using their royal links to cash in on Australia and using the country ‘like an ATM’ – because of the mix of charity events and private, money-making engagements they have planned.
Away from commercial events in Sydney, the couple will join Invictus community members on the water in Sydney Harbour and meet past competitors.
The visit will conclude at a rugby fixture between New South Wales Waratahs and Moana Pasifika at the Allianz Stadium on Friday. They are expected to depart from Sydney back to Los Angeles to be reunited with their children Archie and Lilibet over the weekend.
Their arrival in Sydney came hours after Harry declared that he never wanted to be a working royal because it ‘killed’ his mother after his wife, Meghan, told Australian fans she was ‘bullied’ online for a decade and became ‘the most trolled person in the entire world‘.
The highly personal and emotional comments came on day three of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex‘s Australian tour.
Speaking at the $1,000-a-head InterEdge Summit in Melbourne Park, Harry said he had felt ‘lost, betrayed, or completely powerless’ during his life.
The duke claimed he had his ‘head in the sand for years and years’ until he quit his role as a working royal and moved to the US with Meghan, suggesting that it is also what his mother, Princess Diana, would have wanted for him.
‘After my mum died just before my 13th birthday, I was like: ‘I don’t want this job. I don’t want this role wherever this is headed, I don’t like it,’ he said.
‘It killed my mum, and I was very much against it, and I stuck my head in the sand for years and years. Eventually, I realised – well, hang on, if there was somebody else in this position, how would they be making the most of this platform and this ability and the resources that come with it to make a difference in the world?
‘And also, what would my mum want me to do? And that really changed my own perspective.’
The couple left the plane and then out via a different exit to the other passengers
They were allowed to skip the jet bridge and exit via the Tarmac and into a waiting car
A member of airport staff accompanied them
The Sussexes were then led towards a waiting 4×4 as ground staff watched and chatted
Harry chatted happily to his bodyguard as Meghan grinned
Harry grabbed his travel luggage while Meghan had a handbag
The entire Sussex team looked thrilled to be in Sydney
The couple are expected to have one final day in Australia on Friday
Earlier in the day, the couple spoke to students at Melbourne‘s Swinburne University of Technology about the dangers of social media and its impact on mental health, urging them to be ‘strong’.
‘And I can speak to that really personally, which is why I like to listen, because it rings true for me in a very real way,’ Meghan said.
She added: ‘For now, ten years, every day for ten years, I have been bullied and attacked. And I was the most trolled person in the entire world.’
‘I’m still here.’
The outpouring came shortly after her protective husband looked annoyed after her path was blocked by a reporter asking for a selfie on Melbourne’s famous Scar Tree Walk.
The couple had been attending an event honouring Aboriginal culture when the TV presenter asked for a picture with Harry.
During the same university group discussion, Harry said Australia’s ban on under-16s using social media was ‘epic’ from a ‘responsibility and leadership standpoint’.
He then went on to make remarks about himself at the InterEdge Summit in Melbourne on ‘leadership, psychosocial safety and human connection in the workplace’, with the duchess watching on in the audience.
Harry told those present in the Centrepiece conference venue that there was a ‘lot in the world right now leaving us feeling anxious, stressed, helpless, powerless and completely overwhelmed’.
Wearing a jacket and white shirt, Harry said: ‘When I was invited to speak at this summit, I wasn’t sure whether I was expected to speak as someone who, despite everything, has their s*** together.
‘Or as someone who, despite what it may look like, actually doesn’t have his s*** together.
‘But I was struck by something quite simple – that while my experiences may be unusual, the feelings that come with them are not.
‘In my experience, loss is disorienting at any age.
‘Grief does not disappear because we ignore it. Experiencing that as a kid while in a goldfish bowl under constant surveillance, yes, that will have its challenges. And without purpose, it can break you.’
Harry continued: ‘There have been many times when I’ve felt overwhelmed.
‘Times when I’ve felt lost, betrayed, or completely powerless.
‘Times when the pressure – externally and internally – felt constant.
‘And times when, despite everything going on, I still had to show up pretending everything was ok, so as not to let anyone down.
‘For many years I was numb to it, and perhaps that was easier then, but I also didn’t yet have the tools to deal with it.’
Prince Harry left Melbourne after giving an emotional speech to a summit of business leaders, worth $997 per ticket, admitting he never wanted to be a working royal because it ‘killed’ his mum
Meghan meets students at Swinburne University of Technology, where she told students she was the most ‘trolled person in the entire world’
The Duchess of Sussex hugged one young mental health advocate at the event earlier today
Harry looked annoyed when a reporter asked for a selfie as they left Scar Tree Walk in Melbourne, getting in Meghan’s way
The Duke said becoming a father changed his approach because you ‘start to notice the ripple effect more clearly’.
He added: ‘When a parent is overwhelmed, children feel it. When someone is supported, families feel it.
‘For me, one of the biggest shifts came when I realised that asking for help isn’t a weakness. It’s very much a form of strength.’
After the speech, Harry took part in a discussion with Australian business leader Brendan Nelson, where he admitted he didn’t want to be a working royal after his mother died, claiming it ‘killed her‘.
A profile of Harry on the summit’s website said that he has ‘dedicated his life to service and uplifting communities, while emphasising the importance of our collective mental health in his philanthropic and advocacy work globally’.
The duke also discussed regional differences in mental health support with the young people, telling them: ‘I’m not a city person, my mental health could not stand living in a city – no way.’
Other speakers at the summit include former Australian tennis professional Jelena Dokic and American social psychologist Amy Cuddy.
It was the couple’s last day in Melbourne today before they head to Sydney.
Amid her deeply personal comments about trolling, all Meghan’s outfits from her tour continue to be uploaded to the OneOff website – described as the ‘Spotify of fashion’ – where Meghan will take a percentage of any sales.
Earlier in the day, Meghan was spotted wearing a ‘Mama’ t-shirt designed by her best friend, Kelly McKee Zajfen, while on the Scar Tree Walk in Melbourne with Harry.
The $40 white tee with a red heart is now for sale on Meghan’s OneOff page along with the $169 blue jeans, $599 trench and $298 trainers she wore with it at the event honouring Australia’s Aboriginal culture.
The dress, tights and jewellery she later wore to the university were also immediately available on OneOff to fans who want her ‘look’, in return for thousands of dollars.
Earlier in the day, Harry looked miffed when he was cornered by a television reporter for an awkward selfie.
The duke appeared to prod Paul Dowsley out of Meghan’s path when he asked for a picture before later brushing off the incident and telling the Channel 7 reporter they were ‘still friends’.
Meghan and Harry meet representatives from the Koorie Heritage Trust before heading to the Scar Tree Walk
At the same time the duchess’s outfit was uploaded to her OneOff page where fans could buy her ‘look’
Meghan meets advocates during a visit to a mental health engagement programme Batyr in Melbourne
Her outfit, including a Cartier love bracelet worth $7,950 and Natalie Marie earrings priced at $1,245, was again put on OneOff
The OneOff site allows you to click on and buy Meghan’s Australian outfits immediately after she has worn them
The duke and duchess have long campaigned to raise awareness about the harms of social media.
Speaking in a classroom at Melbourne’s Swinburne University of Technology, Meghan said social media companies were ‘not incentivised to stop’ online trolling.
She said: ‘And when I think of all of you and what you’re experiencing, I think so much of that is having to realise that you know that industry, that billion-dollar industry, that is completely anchored and predicated on cruelty to get clicks – that’s not going to change.
‘So you have to be stronger than that.’
Harry then backed Australia’s ban on under-16s using social media, calling the policy ‘epic’.
The duke told the young people gathered that social media had ‘led to so much loneliness for so many people’.
Wearing a blue shirt and jeans, the duke said: ‘Australia took the lead.
‘Your government was the first country in the world to bring about a ban.
‘Now we can sit here and debate the pros and cons of a ban – I’m not here to judge that.
‘All I will say is from a responsibility and leadership standpoint – epic.
‘Because so many countries have now followed suit, but it should have never got to a ban.’
Harry later said: ‘It should have never, ever got to a ban. And now that the ban is in place, now what follows?
‘Because the companies themselves have to be accountable, and there’s no way that young people should be punished by being banned from something that should be safe to use, no matter what.’
Elsewhere, discussing the benefits of therapy, Harry said: ‘I waited until I was literally in the fetal position, much older, lying on the kitchen floor. Until I was like, ok maybe this therapy thing – maybe I should try it.’
As they left, people began chanting ‘Harry, Harry’ and calling out Meghan’s name.
Some members of the crowd asked if she would return to Australia, to which the duchess responded: ‘Oh gosh, I’d love to come back. It’s brilliant.’
Meghan told crowds she would love to return to Australia again after a ‘brilliant’ trip
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex leave Melbourne’s Swinburne University after their visit
Meghan talks to young advocates during a visit to Batyr and described her own experiences
The duchess poses for a selfie at the Scar Tree Walk in Melbourne earlier in the day
The couple stopped for selfies with fans as they went along the path
Harry and Meghan were happy to pose with members of the public
But the duke looked less happy when an Australian reporter asked for one
Batyr is a preventative youth mental health organisation, which delivers peer-to-peer programmes in schools, universities and workplaces and ‘uses lived experience storytelling to spark conversations around mental health’.
It is hosting a two-day workshop in Melbourne to address the challenges faced by rural and remote young people, ‘being left behind by a crisis-driven mental health system’.
Batyr was founded in 2011 by Sebastian Robertson, who decided to share his experience of mental ill-health to ‘normalise conversations and provide hope to young people going through tough times’.
The organisation, named after an elephant in a Kazakhstan zoo which was claimed to be able to use more than 20 human phrases, works to address a ‘youth mental health crisis in Australia’.
Meghan is now making money out of fans buying her clothes after putting details of her wardrobe online following a deal with an AI-powered fashion website.
The duchess has become a participant and investor in OneOff so she can promote the outfits she has worn during her tour of Australia.
At Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital on Tuesday, Meghan wore a $1,250 ‘Priscilla’ dress from local designer Karen Gee, with $780 ‘Puffy Hearts’ stud earrings by Real Fine Studio and $120 ‘Iridescent’ Christian Dior leather pumps.
Later at the Australian National Veterans Arts Museum, she had a $1,000 St Agni suede ‘Utility Cocoon Bomber’ jacket, an $890 suede ‘Column skirt’ by the same brand; a $220 ‘Annie’ top by PJ Femme and ‘Purist’ 105mm pointed-toe pumps by Aquazzura which are sold out in the US but cost £479 ($904) in the UK.
OneOff, an American firm based in Los Angeles, also features photos of Meghan from previous events and at her home with options to buy the clothing she is wearing.
The Sussexes posed for a photo along the Scar Tree Walk as they honoured Aboriginal culture
Harry then went to deliver the keynote speech at the InterEdge Summit in Melbourne Park on day three of the royal trip
It came as it was revealed that Meghan will be guest-starring on the new season of MasterChef Australia – but fans of the beloved series are not happy.
Channel 10 took to Instagram on Wednesday evening to make the announcement, alongside an image of the Duchess of Sussex smiling proudly alongside judges Jean-Christophe Novelli, Poh Ling Yeow and Sofia Levin.
‘We’re welcoming someone SUPER special into the MasterChef Kitchen,’ the caption began.
‘Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, makes a special guest appearance this season as she returns to Australia for the first time since 2018,’ it continued.
MasterChef Australia also shared footage of the moment Poh introduces Megan to this year’s cast.
