After a week fuelled by family drama and last-minute changes, we finally saw the Royal Wedding come together on Saturday morning. It went off without a hitch and it was apparent that the The Firm was not interested in addressing any previous missteps of the week before.
If it’s in good taste to err on the side of caution, the Royal Wedding dove right in, resulting in what could only be described as, underwhelming. And that my friends, is exactly what they were going for.
If the wedding was meant to be Meghan’s fairytale moment, the week prior played out in typical style with her family of stepmonsters doing everything in their power to keep her from being with her true love. From her father hosting TMZ on speed dial (while in the hospital no less) to her half-sister and nephew trying to secure TV spots, this family scrambled to capture any last-minute attention they could leading up to Saturday.
Because of this PR mess there was no room for shock, pomp, and pageantry. I honestly felt for Meghan as I can only imagine how difficult these final days must have been. Beyond the stress of a wedding with the world watching, you then added her father’s health conditions and her family’s incessant need to make it about them. You can start see why her dresses didn’t fit.
The only word that comes to mind when you think about this family is disappointment. Thank goodness Doria Ragland was there, and has always been there, because this glimpse into Meghan’s “family” life was enough to make you appreciate the worst of relatives. Based on what we saw play out in public and can only assume what the Royal communications team went through to juggle the narrative, an understated, easy flowing wedding day was just what needed to happen.
Now let’s break down that dress. Because I know the internet did not love the dress. It was the most underwhelming piece of the wedding day puzzle. There was no gasp when she emerged from her car, and people wanted the gasp. And when you consider how Kate came out in 2011 for her nuptials, we were expecting much more here. But you know what? I need to highlight that this dress was completely appropriate for what Meghan represents, so I believe she hit the mark on what she was going for.
Let’s recap: Meghan is a 36 year-old divorcée. She is not going to be the future Queen of England and she is an American commoner entering into the British Monarchy. To put it lightly, she has enough attention on her and work to do, both from inside the Royal Family and in the eyes of the outside media. Any attempt at glamour or a Wow factor would likely have been frowned upon. She just couldn’t win here. I know the dress was less than exciting, but I think she achieved what she needed to by letting her tiara, borrowed from the Queen herself, literally shine. She forced the media to focus on that gorgeous veil with an important nod to the 53 countries in the Commonwealth. The dress needed to be understated and was appropriately conservative to allow for the rest of the service to be front and centre.
And that’s what we got in the end, isn’t it? A ceremony that wasn’t actually about Harry and Meghan at all, but was a sneak peek into what their partnership moving forward will represent. It was about the speakers, the choirs, and the words and music being played. It was a showcase for how this modern union will navigate their way, kicking things off with a service that screamed, THINGS ARE ABOUT TO CHANGE AROUND HERE.
For me, the day was perfectly executed and left us forgetting all about the mess leading up to it. And if you watched Harry and Meghan interact for any 0.02 seconds during the ceremony, you know that it did not matter what dress she wore, which family members were invited, or who was or wasn’t paying attention during the vows: they only had eyes for each other. What we witnessed was the beginning of a true partnership forming. One that’s built on strategy, love, and, as Reverend Michael Currey put it best, “Fire”.