Maggie

Shame on some so-called Royal Rota reporters who seem determined to turn King Charles’s visit into a story of protests and rejection. If we go by Chris Ship and some of the headlines leading up to this tour, you’d think the King was walking into a hostile country where nobody wanted him there. For weeks, we were told this could be the riskiest royal tour of his reign, with the focus on reparations demands, protests and diplomatic controversy before his plane had even landed. Then came Nassau. The King received a ceremonial welcome, attended a youth rally at Clifford Park, the very place he stood in 1973 for the Bahamas’ independence celebrations, and met young Bahamians. There were cheers, applause and cultural performances. The public welcome was there for everyone to see. Thirty people with banners, and suddenly that’s the story of the King’s visit. Somehow that becomes secondary. Chris Ship and the rest of them spent weeks building up the prospect of a disastrous tour, and now they seem determined to make a handful of protesters the headline rather than acknowledge what actually happened in Nassau. The footage speaks for itself. People turned up, the crowds cheered, children screamed with excitement when the King arrived, and the welcome was there for everyone to see. But apparently, thirty people with banners make a better headline than an entire crowd showing up for the King. So much for reporting what actually happened. Perhaps Chris Ship should focus on reporting how Meghan Markle is feeling instead. Is she collapsing into someone’s arms crying “I tried so hard,” sobbing on the floor, or staring out of a window wondering why nobody has asked if she’s okay? There’s plenty of dramatic material in Harry & Meghan news to keep him occupied. The King deserves coverage of his actual engagements, the public welcome and the people he meets, not a running commentary that makes controversy the centre of every story. A royal correspondent is supposed to report what happens, not spend weeks predicting a disaster and then make a handful of protesters the defining image of the visit.