Scobie: The royals are doing more harm than good with their royal tours

Omid Scobie has written a new column for Yahoo News, in his new capacity as the Yahoo News’ Royal Editor. The piece is “Why tone-deaf royal tours have had their day” and Scobie has a lot to say about the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s sad Flop Tour of the Caribbean in March, and how badly the Earl and Countess of Wessex did during their Caribbean Tour a month later. Scobie’s not spilling any tea, really, he’s just providing analysis for why the model of royal tours is desperate for a revamp, because the old way of doing things just isn’t cutting it. Some highlights:

The Flop Tour: But as the Cambridges’ ill-fated tour of the Caribbean in March proved, these trips no longer do. Billed as a “charm offensive” to shore up support for the monarchy across the islands, the colonial throwbacks and poorly advised photo-ops ended up having the opposite effect on the Bahamas, Jamaica and Belize (who have all individually expressed the desire to become republics). Damage control began before the wheels of William and Kate’s plane had even hit the tarmac in the UK, with Kensington Palace aides eagerly briefing journalists that lessons have been learned and next time the itinerary will be more mindful.

The royals are the problem, not the tours: But while a revised line-up of engagements may help the somewhat tired formula of royal walkabouts, ceremonial welcomes and cultural events, it doesn’t solve the other problem affecting the monarchy on tour—the royals themselves.

The Wessexes’ sad Flop Tour: Any hope that Edward and Sophie (or at least their advisors) had learned from the Cambridges’ problematic Caribbean travels quickly went out of the window. Instead, the trip—once filled with potential to show that the firm could be empathetic and move with the times—became a series of pretty photographs as the couple smiled, waved, and danced their way across the islands. Their lasting impact being the framed portrait of themselves (a bizarre custom on royal visits) gifted to a seemingly unimpressed prime minister of Saint Lucia.

Why the royals don’t want to talk about slavery & colonialism: For the royals to engage in conversation about the issue would be to also acknowledge that the family’s empire came to power and wealth, in part, by enslaving Africans and forcing them to work in colonies. It also means that the Windsor royals would need to acknowledge that their very existence is, also in part, the result of over 300 years of devastating atrocities led by some of their predecessors. But, as people across the world continue to learn about the importance of dismantling structural racism, it’s essential that these uncomfortable conversations are had by all.

Imagine if the royals were actually good at soft diplomacy: Imagine how different these tours would have looked if the two couples arrived proactively looking to meet with and learn from those leading demonstrations instead of ignoring them. Imagine the lasting impact it could have had, not just on each country but on his legacy as a king in the making, if Prince William had gone a step further than saying slavery “should never have happened” and actually expressed remorse for colonialism, slavery and the destruction of Black families.

More harm than good: The purpose of these visits, particularly in the Commonwealth, is often to strengthen relations between Britain and the host countries. But as more members of the realm announce plans to make like Barbados and divorce the crown (Saint Kitts and Nevis being the most recent to announce plans to “review its monarchical system of government”), it’s time for other travelling members of the family to realise they might be doing more harm to the royal establishment than good. And for palace officials, it’s time to accept that the royal tour as we know it is in dire need of a trip to the drawing board.

[From Yahoo News UK]

One of my favorite moments about the Cambridges’ Flop Tour was the feeling as they left the Bahamas that William and Kate were basically storming out of there in a rage, still huffy about how they had been received in Jamaica and Belize. That was front and center when William issued that angry statement through his staff, without the input of Clarence House or Buckingham Palace. I also loved how immediately the first thought from the palace was “well damn, we need to do fewer tours” as opposed to “we need to stop being so neo-colonialist.” The larger problem is that the Windsors find it so difficult to change. Most of them can’t, they’re incapable.

Photos courtesy of Instar.

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59 Responses to “Scobie: The royals are doing more harm than good with their royal tours”

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  1. Martha says:

    Omid is so right, great article

    • BothSidesNow says:

      Yes. I am looking forward to Omid’s continuing article regarding the BRF and their inability to become modern. Their incompetence is astounding and they should look into reading how insightful and on-point Omid is in his article.

  2. Snuffles says:

    Omid, if you are reading this. Your royal reporter future shouldn’t be acting as their unofficial PR like the rest of the royal rats. It should be more pieces like this. Analyzing the royals in a historical context and they fail to navigate modern times. You should be cataloging the fall of the British Empire and the royal institution. You are one of the few who are willing to acknowledge it.

  3. SophieJara says:

    Of course they can’t change. Changing doesn’t mean becoming more sensitive and benevolent oligarchs, it means giving the money back. And, whether polite or rude, subtle or brutal, keeping and growing that money has been the singular project for many hundreds of years.

    • GR says:

      @sophiejara
      Totally agree – it’s all about the money, in the UK and here in the US. A lot of rich families and companies would have to write some big checks for reparations.

    • Bisynaptic says:

      EXACTLY.

  4. Jay says:

    This is why the recent stories of KP desperately trying to add more people of colour to deliver their message as a “fix” is literally a band-aid for a bullet hole.

    It’s not the messenger, dude.

  5. Loretta says:

    That Flop tour has shown not only how modern William and Kate aren’t modern but also how they are unable to carry the monarchy into the future.

    • Colby says:

      To be fair to them, monarchy is fundamentally incompatible with modern society. Even Harry and Meg couldn’t stop this. They would have been better at the tours, no doubt, but monarchy is a relic and needs to go and the commonwealth nations know that.

  6. Eurydice says:

    It’s like asking dinosaurs to evolve into birds – it took 10’s of millions of years.

  7. Shai says:

    The BRF has had years to change and just refused to. It’s not even just the tours, it’s the way they conduct themselves in general, it’s all tired and old. You can change the itinerary all you want, but if the person going on the tour hasn’t changed their mindset then it’s all the same.
    You’re right Kaiser, Scobie isn’t spilling any tea, but he’s just reading the writing on the wall the Windsors and their supporters refuse to pay attention to.

  8. Concern Fae says:

    Let’s be honest. Part of the reason that they aren’t apologizing for colonialism is that the Tories are in power at home. The Tories have wrapped themselves in monarchism and the royals are realizing who butters their bread.

    It really does crack me up that Edward and Sophie thought their tour would go so much better just because they aren’t William and Kate. No need to change anything, just don’t be them.

  9. MeganC says:

    Royal tours should be about what the royals can do for the host countries and not the other way around. Both Caribbean tours were basically site seeing trips for the royals.

    • ArtHistorian says:

      The very concept of the royal tour within the BRF is based on British colonialism. During the colonial era, royal tours were simply surveying the imperial domains. This becomes very clear when you compare royal tours to official state visits. In short, the tours of the BRF are colonialist remnants – and that became crystal clear during these recent Caribbean tours.

      So I think the question really is: can you really re-invent a practice/tradition that in essence is an expression of colonialism?

      • tamsin says:

        Absolutely the case, ArtHistorian. The Brits seem to not have realized that they no longer have an empire. They have to quit doing these “royal tours” because they have no empire to survey. No other royal family does these kind of tours because they didn’t have an entire empire of colonies. I’ve noticed that when members of other royal families do “soft diplomacy” they accompany their government ministers on trade or fact finding missions. I read that Princess Victoria spent a year or two doing hiking trips all around Sweden to highlight and encourage physical activity as well as the country. In the future, George will probably be king of England, period. The Windsors for now should just focus on the UK. Really, even Charles’s visit to Canada seems a waste of time for everyone. I realize that the end of royal tours would of course put a whole group of people out of jobs.

      • KFG says:

        Seriously! The non-white commonwealth countries were still segregated until they were fully independent, with the British aristocracy requiring that any place they stayed be whites only. This went on until the 1970s in most of the Caribbean. At no point in time were royal tours or tourism anything more than neo-colonialism. It was a way to make the royals and white people feel superior to the black and native people they deigned to acknowledge. These tours were always bad for the host countries economies and were always cringy. It’s just that in the current times, BIPOC communities aren’t taking the ish lying down and are calling it out.

      • BeanieBean says:

        Tamsin: well, actually, yes, other royal families come from countries that had colonies. Belgium & the Netherlands come to mind, Spain. They apparently smartened up & stop doing such tours, though.

  10. Gwendolyn says:

    I wonder who the BRF could have sent on these tours that could have related to the citizens of these island nations? Been empathetic because of a shared history and shown as being part of the BRF, like these nations are part of the commonwealth family they were truly beloved members?

    Wonder where these nations got the idea from the BM coverage or the BRF that they really not valued?

    Barbados actually pointed to the treatment of Meghan as one of the reasons they were leaving. H&M already showed they could make a connection talking about issues with the colonial past in a way that commonwealth nations felt heard and were/are mocked for it.

    At some point someone in a palace is going to have to buy a clue, that this course isn’t working. They can’t rely on a couple cosplaying like it’s 1953 as the future and it’s costing them a lot more than tabloid mentions.

  11. Lucy says:

    Very sensible take, although it doesn’t go far enough. He avoids mentioning why they have such a hard time with the idea of changing how they handle tours.

    Surprise! It’s the racism! And they have an incompetent racist staff!

    I know he’ll get dragged to hell by the RR who are jealous he has a steady gig. I really really really can’t wait for whoever starts the real reveals on the Cambridge s and the whole rotten system.

  12. Lady Mcbeth says:

    Yes, it’s so obvious. I have watched documentary films on the tour made by Elizabeth and Philip during the late 40-50s and you’d see a million people cheering them. It’s as if the place thinks history will repeat itself. It’s so dated and comes off horribly in todays culture. I hope they learn that these royal tours need to stop.

    • SueBarbri says:

      Absolutely. That’s one of the things that was so striking and tone-deaf about the Land Rover ride. In the original photos you can see huge numbers of people cheering for Elizabeth and Philip, but it appeared there was no local interest in Will and Kate at all. I realize that palace and their bots explained away the absence of people by pretending it was something to do with Covid restrictions, but the optics weren’t good. That had to sting. Also, did we ever hear anything else about their glamorous scuba diving trip? Weren’t they going to make a documentary about it or something?

      • Margaret says:

        I noticed that about that photo of William and Kate standing up in the Land Rover compared to the one with Elizabeth and Philip: there were no crowds there to see them, which almost (almost) made me a bit sad for them, because I thought they just looked foolish. I cannot imagine what possessed anyone to think it would be a good idea for William and Kate to recreate that moment from nearly 70 years ago when all the people who lived in the now-Commonwealth countries were still British Subjects.

        A lot has changed since 1953 yet the royals and/or those who advise them seem unwilling, or unable, to comprehend that fact and appreciate the need for changes to be made to the firm’s image and in how it operates. Or maybe that it’s time the firm just shut up shop, its members became private citizens living private lives more suited to their personalities and the public assets were put in the hands of appropriately qualified people rather than people of limited ability who have the job merely because they were born into it.

        More of this stuff please, Omid. 😀

  13. Lizzie Bathory says:

    The institution is resistant to change, but Omid nails the real problem–they can’t change who the principals are. No matter what the palace aides do (even if they were competent), William & Kate in particular are racist, incurious & apparently incapable of not causing offense whether in public or in private (see, Turnip Toffs). Being merely dull would be an improvement on the situation.

    I wonder now if William & Kate’s short public visits aren’t just laziness but a concession to the fact that they’re a liability in public. I’m guessing the royals will focus on visits in the home counties with strategically placed people of color, plus “big projects” for William & Kate that allow them to be out of the public eye for long periods of time.

  14. Becks1 says:

    Yeah, the royal tours are problematic and honestly, just stupid at this point. who else does this? Do other royals? do Felipe and Letizia go to Mexico or Colombia and go on “tours” like this? (I know they visit other countries, i’m specifically curious about the nature of those visits.)

    also, they’re just not needed at this point in many ways and they make the royals look small. Looking at pictures of Will and Kate laughing as they play some drums is just….well, stupid, lol. Are their lives so small that this something new and earth-shattering for them? Have they never traveled outside their privileged and pampered bubble? Do people need to see pictures of Will and Kate with a statue of Bob Marley for reggae music to be well known?

    I know people insist these tours are about “soft diplomacy” which I guess is just a way of saying there are no expectations for them?

    • Snuffles says:

      Excellent question. Do the other royals do these type of tours? I don’t follow them but it doesn’t seem like it. It seems like their focus is on their own countries.

    • Amy Bee says:

      @Becks: Felipe and Leticia do these types of tours in Latin America. Felipe visited Puerto Rico some months ago and said that Spanish colonialism was a benefit to Latin America. So they’re just as bad as the British.

    • Eurydice says:

      Well, the royals of other countries don’t have a Commonwealth of Nations. That Commonwealth structure has the Queen at the head and Charles coming next. Within that are the Commonwealth Realms that have the Queen as head of state. And there are viceroys and governors-general and plain old governors and who knows what and who else. She’s not just the monarch of the UK, but of all those other 14 countries, so it would be right for her or her representatives to visit those countries once in a while. It’s not right for those reps to be lazy, entitled racists and if the monarchy isn’t doing anything to actually help those countries, then why keep the monarchy at all.

      • Kitt1 says:

        This arrogant excuse that QE2 is queen of 14 Commonwealth nations so she has a right to visit these countries as their Queen is exactly the problem. The world doesn’t owe a thing to the BRF. Stop asking these poor countries to fund these stupid, expensive PR tours. These people want the title, but none of the responsibility or hard work to actually make people’s lives better.

        The fact that Edward couldn’t engage in a serious conversation about reparation and other serious issues with the cabinet and PM of Antigua & Barbuda without cracking an offensive joke and rudely dismissing their concerns said everything. For Edward and Sophie and their aides, this was a vacation PR tour. Their behaviors show these royals are not serious people. They are expensive dilettantes.

        A queen or king in this day and age is supposed to serve the people, not exploit them. Given how much the Windsors like to crow about service and constantly awarding themselves flashy medals and honors for it, how about actually paying back for all the wealth they received from their family’s exploitation?

        Enough of this forelock tugging. People are no longer their slaves or serfs. If these people want to be queen or king, then step up to shoulder the responsibility that comes with the title. That means pay up or shut up.

      • Becks1 says:

        While I agree with what @Kitt1 says, I think there’s generally a difference between visiting a country and this colonial mess that we see on the commonwealth tours. When Kate and William went to Paris a few years ago, or Germany and Poland, yes there were receptions for them and the like but I don’t know, the vibe felt a little different. (not hugely different, just a little different.) Heads of state visit other heads of state all the time. These “tours” are different than an official head of state visit in their very nature. When Dr. Jill Biden goes to another country, I don’t expect all the outfit changes and such that we see from Kate or all the “listening and learning” etc. A royal tour is a different thing than an official HoS visit (even though they try to act like its the same thing) and maybe they need to work on changing that mindset.

      • Eurydice says:

        @Kitt1 and Becks1 – the world doesn’t owe the BRF anything, but the 15 nations (including the UK) have chosen to keep the Queen as head of state. Now some of them are deciding to break away, and good for them – but a head of state has the right and the obligation to either visit in person or to send a representative. That’s one part of the story.

        The other part is that the BRF, as it exists today, has no reason other than cultural sentiment to be head of state of any place, not even the UK – they know that and everybody else knows it, too. The Queen’s on her last legs, Anne potters around in the background doing her little things, Charles and Camilla are on their second-to-last legs, Andrew’s a criminal, Edward’s an idiot – which leaves Will and Kate, who are lazy and uninterested. It won’t matter what kind of tour these people make – it’ll be a disaster because they’re a disaster.

      • Kitt1 says:

        @Euridyce (love the handle and reference), I get your point, but to hang the crown on a colonial relic is foolhardy and lazy. This queen thing is a bygone leftover and these days, countries have bigger problems to deal with than spending money and time to rid itself of such anachronistic designation. The BRF took advantage of this situation by constantly harping on how the Queen is queen of 14 (or 15) countries. The royals don’t give anything to these countries except bills for their royal tours (& evidently photos of themselves). The claim that the royals bring tourism is nonsense. Another PR trope in which the royals trying to claim undeserved credit. People have vacationed and will continue to vacation in the Caribbean because of the sun, sand, food, people and surf. Not because it comes with a royal seal of approval.

        The whole arrangement toward these poorer countries has been very one sided and one of racist exploitation. Given the Windrush generation and how their children (who are citizens) are treated in the UK, it’s no surprise these countries want to change the exploitative relationship. The BRF needs to show leadership and thank the Windrush generation for immigrating to the UK to fill the labor shortage post WW2 to help rebuid England. That is the news that should be filling up the pages of the Daily Mail and the Telegraph.

        https://www.bl.uk/windrush/articles/how-caribbean-migrants-rebuilt-britain

        Instead of listening like a good monarch, leaders of these Caribbean nations are dismissed and disrespected. In contrast, there’s a huge difference in the respectful care that goes into the European tours or richer Commonwealth countries like Canada. The sad part is it was the predominantly brown and black countries that provided much of the wealth that made Britain and the royal family so wealthy today. Not Australia, New Zealand or Canada.

    • Kitt1 says:

      I think Becks1, it’s about respect. And racism.

      When the British royals visit Europe and countries like Canada, they are respectful. When they visit predominately black and brown poorer countries, there’s little respect. Instead the world gets their contemptible arrogance that expect these poorer countries to exhibit due deference and gratitude toward these lazy white royals. Which explains the ridiculous need to foist the tone deaf Jubilee celebration in places where reparation money would make a huge difference.

  15. Colby says:

    Look, monarchy is on its way out. It’s not compatible with modern society, period. Especially in the commonwealth nations, and especially especially in CWNs made up of majority BIPOC.

    It certainly doesn’t help that the Windsors, by in large, are a vacuum of charisma and empathy, but even Harry and Meghan couldn’t (and frankly shouldn’t) stop what’s coming.

  16. ArtMaven says:

    The entire premise for their existence is an anachronism. There in nothing they could do to make their tours not an irrelevant anachronism as well as they suffer blows from modernity as they go. They are comic/tragic figures

    • TurquoiseGem says:

      The entire premise for their existence is an anachronism.

      Exactly that.

      The British monarchical model isn’t fit for any real, beneficial-to-others, substantive modern day purpose. If anything the tours have helped to make this abundantly clear to many who might otherwise not really have given the matter a single thought.

  17. Elizabeth Kerri Mahon says:

    Changing the royal tours would mean that William and Kate would have to work, research, and read the briefings instead of treating them like vacations with a few ‘soft’ events thrown in. I couldn’t help thinking about Prince Harry’s last tour of the Caribbean when he dated Meghan.

  18. Debbie says:

    The very fact that no member of the British royal family could bring themselves to say “Black Lives Matter” after the past few years we’ve all lived through tells me so much about them. Also, the fact that they’ve still kept the queen’s odious provision, preventing the Windsors from having to comply with (what I’m sure are fairly weak) laws against discrimination and neither the BM nor British legislators have sought to eradicate those exceptions, again tells me that they can’t make the meaningful changes until they make the relatively smaller ones.

    Since I can’t stop shaking my head, I must add that it takes a lot of nerve to bring a framed picture of yourself to host countries.

  19. KASalvy says:

    I was rewatching the Crown the other day and got to the episode where Elizabeth tells her children why Philip has to travel for so long on tour: to remind those other little countries to not think about the silly notion of becoming independent.

    How tone deaf that sounds now and they still tried.

  20. Amy Bee says:

    The time for royal tours has come to an end and there must be reckoning within the Royal Family about the role they’ve played in slavery, colonialism and white supremacy.

    • BothSidesNow says:

      Excellent point @ Amy Bee, but that would require the BRF to acknowledge the history of their ancestors those countries. Once the BRF acknowledges their role, it would open the flood gates for REPARATIONS.

      The Windsor’s refuse to acknowledge their past actions not only due to their inability to look into what they ancestors did but also because they do NOT want to be held ACCOUNTABLE for their past. They are perfectly happy for other countries paying their taxes, as they deem it as a “privilege” to be associated within the Commonwealth of The Crown. Unfortunately they are not the benefactors NOR does The Crown reciprocate their associations.

  21. Bookie says:

    I wish H&M could think of a good reason to visit Jamaica, Belize, or the Bahamas so they could humiliate W&K. H&M would do it right.

    I’m very petty. 🙂

    • BothSidesNow says:

      No worries @ Bookie, as I am just as petty ☺️ I would LOVE to see the Duke and Duchess of Sussex show Baldimort and CopyKeen how incompetent their Charmless Tour was. Furthermore, show how incompetent and clueless Bitter Brother is as the FFK of The Crown!

    • equality says:

      Maybe they could do a documentary in Jamaica about becoming a republic.

  22. Dee Kay says:

    I’m so happy Harry and Meghan don’t have to do these stupid colonialist tours anymore and represent the institution that enslaved and oppressed millions of Black and brown people for centuries. They are putting forward an entirely different concept of soft power global leadership, which is inclusive, empathetic, informed, sensitive, and generous.

  23. Julia K says:

    Break ups are always hard. Hearing ” we don’t love you anymore” takes a long time to sink in and finally accept that there are terms that must be met to finalize the end of the relationship. I really do hope this can end well.

  24. MerlinsMom1018 says:

    I detect no lies here.

  25. Plums says:

    I don’t know why they can’t just be chill figureheads like the other european royal families. Accept your role as national mascot who occasionally does ceremonial and/or soft power diplomacy stuff, work with some variety of home grown non-profit organization if you’re looking for more active usefulness, but otherwise just be normal people who happen to live in a fancy historical house.

    tbh, the UK maintaining the House of Lords was such a mistake. That sort of ingrained classism has done them no favors. They’re the only constitutional monarchy with an aristocracy that retains some semblance of governing power, and they also have the messiest, most dysfunctional and self-important royal family in Europe (excluding Monaco, I guess. But they’re basically a trashy casino resort disguised as a state). I’m sure the two are connected.

  26. Mark says:

    The funniest thing is to see Tina Brown praise the Cambridges after this fiasco making it clear how much tone deaf she is.

  27. aquarius64 says:

    This was a good read and the conversation on Omid’s Twitter on this subject was lively. Someone put up a link of the Sussexes’ Fiji link of the tour, where its president bend the knee literary to H & M, an attempt at hypocrisy. I imagine this had to look weird to Meghan, as an American, a WOC, and as the wife of the 6th in line to the throne. The Fail is trying to make a thing that Meghan hated the Australia leg of their tour. A week and a half long tour while in the early stages of pregnancy; you’d be cranky too.

  28. Lizzie says:

    I wonder if modern isn’t the right word. I think they are insular and entitled. Part of the problem is Bill and Cathy believe they are beloved and deserving of accolades. Therefore, they don’t see themselves as needing to endear themselves to the public. I’m sure they thought everyone would think it was the most clever and charming thing ever for Bill and Cathy to dress up and ride in the open top jeep like the queen and Philip and for Cathy to put on a fashion show worth a fortune . Like I said, insular and entitled.

  29. JFerber says:

    Thank you, Kaiser, for the chain link fence and jeep pictures. They are key visual evidence in why this whole monarchy has to go.

  30. Robin Sanuels says:

    Wiliam and Kate are not leadership material; the media and palace staff have pampered William, for which Kate benefits. They live in an imaginary world, and both must take full responsibility for that fiasco. It was another vacation with light royal duties.
    Sophie and Edward are more of the same.
    The love affair is over. Millions saw their behavior at the Commonwealth Day Service in March 2020. they proudly demonstrated their dislike for Meghan, and the FFK was part of that disgraceful event. They forgot they were on national television. Rupert Murdoch is not the friend they believe him to be.