Prince William and Prince Harry both put a spotlight on World Mental Health Day, each in their own way, which caught the attention of one royal expert, that the battling brothers still have something they agree on.
Jane Barr, a lawyer who doubles as a royal writer, turned to her royally-infused Substack, From Berkshire to Buckingham, to share her thoughts on the matter.
Barr found it interesting that both royal couples, the Sussexes and the Wales, consider mental health an important issue and something they help bring awareness to.
Barr said: “It was interesting to me that the couple chose to appear on World Mental Health Day-a day that (in the royal watching world, which the Sussexes very much inhabit) William and Kate mark because of the royals’ work on mental health.
“After all, before he left, Harry would mark Mental Health Day with the then-Cambridges, as he was part of the royal trio.”
And while William and Kate didn’t step out on World Mental Health Day, the Palace shared a video to coincide with the launch of the Royal Foundation’s National Suicide Prevention Network.
Barr described the video, saying: “It featured William in an emotional conversation with a widow whose husband committed suicide after the loss of the couple’s young child.”
She added, “Kate does not always undertake an engagement on World Mental Health Day, although she often does. So this year was certainly a more low-key one for William and Kate.”
Harry and Meghan spent World Mental Health Day at Project Healthy Minds’ all-day festival, which hosted three talks in partnership with Archewell, where both Harry and Meghan spoke.
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According to Barr, the Sussexes’ trips to New York City are usually about Meghan, but it seemed like Harry had a stake in this visit and came across as more invested than usual.
She said, “Usually, I think of these New York jaunts as endeavors that are most important to Meghan. But this event felt like something that Harry was probably very enthusiastic about, too.
“As Harry mounts an affirmative campaign to return to his royal roots, marking World Mental Health Day is probably something he feels is important.
“In some sense, their two days in New York together represented a rare endeavor for the couple where they both seemed equally invested-Meghan, because she was in New York with a mic in hand, and Harry because he was back in his royal element.”