Meghan Markle and Prince Harry made 'deliberate choice to control narrative'

Harry and Meghan did not bring Archie or Lilibet to Nigeria
Getty
Dorothy Reddin

By Dorothy Reddin


Published: 01/06/2024

- 10:00

Misan Harriman accompanied the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to West Africa

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry made a "deliberate choice of photographer" in Nigeria, a royal commentator has claimed.

Misan Harriman, a good friend of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, accompanied the former working royals to West Africa.


Harriman, 46, took to social media with personal photographs of Harry, 39, and Meghan, 42, throughout the three-day tour.

Although the couple stepped down as working royals in 2020, the duke and duchess were invited to Nigeria by the country's chief of defence staff, General Christopher Musa.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry enjoyed a three-day tour of Nigeria

Getty

Musa stressed they were invited in a "personal, not official capacity".

Royal commentator Gareth Russell spoke exclusively to GB News, about Harry and Meghan's choice to bring Harriman as one of their photographers to Nigeria.

He said: "The Sussexes have shown themselves to be very concerned with controlling the narrative.

"Taking their own photographer allows them a great deal of control over what images are circulated on images they choose.

Misan Harriman

Misan Harriman took many photographs of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in Nigeria

Getty

"I do think the choice of photographer was a deliberate one."

On May 10, Harriman took to social media to share a black and white photograph of Prince Harry meeting a Nigerian veteran.

He captioned the post: "A profoundly powerful moment today at the Amputee hospital in Kaduna.

"The Duke of Sussex with a Nigerian military veteran. Photographed by me."

Prince Harry

Prince Harry photographed with a Nigerian military veteran

Misan Harriman

Meghan Markle and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

Misan Harriman shared this photograph of Meghan Markle and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

Misan Harriman

The photograph received 21,000 likes, with many royal fans claiming it was reminiscent of the late Princess Diana comforting Aids victims in hospitals during the 1980s and 1990s.

Meghan moderated a panel screening for Harriman’s short film The After last year, where she explained how the photographer bonded with her son Prince Archie.

She said: “The inspiration runs deep. Misan was showing him how to do photography the last time he was with us.

“I bought Archie a camera, and he said: ‘But it’s not a Leica like Misan.’ I said: ‘You are not getting a Leica! Not even for Christmas.’”

You may like