Meghan Markle Reads Poem at First Christmas Carol Concert With Prince Harry

Duke of Sussex also made a speech and praised his wife during it

By Lena Grossman Dec 04, 2018 11:46 PMTags
Prince Harry, Meghan MarkleBeretta/Sims/REX/Shutterstock

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were both visions in blue while attending a Christmas carol event in London. The carol concert was tied to a charity called The Henry van Straubenzee Memorial Fund, which raises money to "improve the quality of education in impoverished rural Ugandan schools by investing in buildings and providing hygienic and educational resources."

Meghan showed off her baby bump in a navy blue dress, while the Duke of Sussex wore the same color coat and pants.

While attending the event, which was held at St. Luke's Church in the Kensington neighborhood of London, both the Duke and Duchess of Sussex made speeches. Meghan reportedly read from the poem "Our Deepest Fear" by Marianne Williamson. The former Suits star decided on that poem because "it sums up he spirit of what the Henry van Straubenzee Fund does to empower young children."

Prince Harry then spoke about the benefits of the charity and managed to slip in a praise to his wife while he was at it. 

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According to People, Prince Harry discussed the charity's impact on female education, a cause that Meghan has been an avid supporter of. "As my wife said many years ago when working on menstrual health and health education, this is not about periods but potential," he said at the concert. She wrote about this exact topic in an essay for Time

The charity is named for Henry van Straubenzee, who was killed in a car crash when he was 18 in 2002.  van Straubenzee attended school with the Duke of Sussex and the two families still remain extremely close. Prince Harry called him a "very special friend of mine" in his address. According to the site, Prince Harry and Prince William have been patrons of the charity since 2009.

Mark R. Milan/GC Images

Prince Harry and Meghan weren't the only people in the royal circle in attendance that evening. Kate Middleton's sister Pippa Middleton and her husband James Matthews attended the Christmas Carol ceremony, too. Pippa wore a knee-length maroon coat from French Connection. According to Daily Mail, she also wore it to the same concert back in 2015. The two of them welcomed their first child together just under two months ago: a little boy reportedly named Arthur Michael William Matthews.

While Meghan and Prince Harry were at St. Luke's Church, Prince William and Kate Middleton were at Queen Elizabeth's Diplomatic Reception held at Buckingham Palace. The Duchess of Cambridge wore Princess Diana's Lover's Knot Tiara to the event, which she also did in October at a state dinner.

Despite some feud rumors about Meghan and Kate, the two families will be spending Christmas together at Sandringham. Kensington Palace asserted that the rumored "explosive row" between the two Duchesses before Meghan and Prince Harry's wedding "never happened."

In other Meghan news, she and former First Lady Michelle Obama had a secret meeting after Obama's book event in London. On Monday, she shared some tidbits of advice she would give to the Duchess. "Like me, Meghan probably never dreamt that she'd have a life like this, and the pressure you feel–from yourself and from others–can sometimes feel like a lot," she said in a feature by Good Housekeeping. "So my biggest piece of advice would be to take some time and don't be in a hurry to do anything."