The events Thursday began with a visit to the Community Recording Studio, a youth and community charity in Nottingham that Harry has visited before, including just last year. They were greeted by a cheering crowd, filled largely with young children.
Harry and Meghan, who wore a long burgundy coat, stopped to take selfies, give hugs and shake hands. They also spent a few minutes talking to members of the public and the children.
The couple were also due to visit the region’s biggest food bank, Himmah, and Epic Partners, which offers disadvantaged young people mentoring programs, sports and education.
Noting that the couple will be visiting a charity Harry has a “long history with,” Nash said they were certain to “get a warm reception” given their “long connection with it.”
But they have not always received such a warm welcome since their return to the U.K. with Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5.
Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet in England, in a video posted by Meghan to Instagram last month.@meghan / via Instagram
The couple remain locked in a public row with Buckingham Palace about their status and their lack of publicly funded police protection.
A letter sent on behalf of King Charles III to senior government and military officials confirmed Harry and Meghan remain nonworking members of the royal family. A spokesperson for the couple told NBC News they were “surprised” by the letter, though they accepted that status when they left Britain for a quieter life in Montecito, California, an affluent coastal enclave in Santa Barbara.
Their relationship with the royal family has been strained in the years since, with the couple leveling explosive allegations of racism and bullying in their Netflix documentary “Harry & Meghan” and in Harry’s memoir, “Spare.”