Meghan Markle is currently in New York for her baby shower with 15 or so close friends. Royal reporter Omid Scobie has the details for Harper’s Bazaar - she flew in on Friday, is staying five nights, and there will be another shower in England at some point too. 

American outlets scooped British outlets on this, just like PEOPLE had the exclusive with five of Meghan’s friends speaking out on her behalf a couple of weeks ago. As I wrote last week, the UK press has not reacted positively to it. And this won’t help either. In a piece for the Guardian published on Saturday, Catherine Bennett wrote that “tormenting the Duchess of Sussex has become a national sport”. 

Which is going to make next weekend very, very interesting. Because many of those press members, the ones fomenting the rumours and at the same time insisting they aren’t biased, will be on tour with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in Morocco. What’s that going to be like? Harry is known to be moody and he can’t be happy lately with all the sh-t that the UK media has been stirring about his pregnant wife. What usually happens though is that if he gives them any attitude, they’ll end up attributing it towards her. Looking forward then to this weekend’s headlines. Now that they’ll get some facetime with Harry and Meghan, how will the British press respond?  

As for the Moroccan itinerary, they arrive at Casablanca Airport on Saturday and on Sunday will visit with Education For All, meeting with female students from rural parts of the country. Meghan will be hanging out with teens for a henna ceremony. As my friend said this morning, imagine the heads that will explode if they henna her baby bump?! Good lord, if that actually happens, think of what those belly-cupping shots will look like. I am already practising self-care.  

After that there’s a secondary school football game and then a meeting with young entrepreneurs. On Monday they’re scheduled at the Moroccan Royal Federation of Equestrian Sports supporting a new program for children with disabilities. From there they’ll head to a cooking demonstration working with kids from disadvantaged communities and then, finally, they’ll stop at a market for young entrepreneurs. As usual with the Sussexes, it’s an ambitious schedule – and this is what I meant last week when I wrote that this is what will be unimpeachable where Meghan is concerned as she battles the British press: so far they haven’t been able to call her out for the work because she always shows up. You know how much they love dragging Will and Kate for being “work-shy”. This opportunity hasn’t yet presented itself with Meghan. But they’re definitely waiting.  

Attached - Prince Harry visiting the ‘Fit and Fed’ half-term initiative in Streatham today.