Under the beating sun, outside the Sydney Opera House, thousands waited.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were late, but it didn’t matter. The just-released news that Meghan was pregnant appeared to create an atmosphere of forgiveness.
No matter the sunburn, or the sore feet, or the rapidly dwindling phone batteries, no matter that rumour that spread after about an hour of waiting – that the royals were using up their precious public time in conversation with people at the front of their walkabout – they stuck it out.
People were there on their lunch break, because the weather was good, because their office or apartment was nearby. Because they just happened to be walking past and saw the crowds and the police and the snipers on the Opera House sails. They were there because it would make a good Insta story. They were there because they were American tourists who had just finished an Opera House tour. Because their cruise ship was docked nearby. Or because they were English and they felt the pull of some deeply submerged form of duty and kinship even on this far side of the commonwealth.
And, finally, there was a small segment who were there because they really, truly, LOVE the royals.
These monarchists don’t care if it’s Princess Eugenie’s wedding or the birth of Prince Louis or a visit to Sydney by Meghan and Harry. They will turn out. They will represent.
Mary Brigden and Marilyn Morgan – both English but latterly of Newport on Sydney’s northern beaches – were dressed as the Queen and Prince Philip.
“I love the royal family. I love to dress up,” said Brigden, who appeared as the Queen. “We had a royal wedding party at my house. We’ve seen Kate and Wills. The news yesterday about Meghan was fabulous.”
But they surveyed the swelling crowd with disappointment. “I thought there would be more people here. They’re just not publicising it. We only found out at the last minute.”
The first full day of the royal tour was nothing if not precise. The couple, who woke up to pregnancy headlines in the Australian papers including ‘Heir Dinkum” and “Royals land with a bump”, began with a visit to the governor general and his wife on the harbourside.
Sir Peter Cosgrove handed over a a soft kangaroo and joey to the couple.
“Our first baby gift!” Meghan said while Harry was handed a pair of Ugg boots, which he described as “awesome”.
From there it was to a zoo where they met two koalas named after them and more pictures.
And then it was on to the Opera House, where the forecourt had quickly filled out with the hope of a royal greeting.
There strangers talked to each other about the royal pregnancy: “It’s good she’s into clean eating and broccoli and stuff. Harry likes his pizza,” said Dulcie Davis of north Sydney. “They’ll be great parents.”
As a police motorcade drove past there was a quick flurry of excitement and, in what looked like an eerie piece of choreography, everyone held up an arm with a phone or an iPad.
“You get excited to see a fellow ranga,” said one office worker, referring to Harry’s red hair.
But, in the end, those in the downtown end of the crowd didn’t even get a glimpse of Harry’s hair.
Instead they resorted to searching for mentions of the royals on hashtags posted by those at the front of the procession. “She’s wearing white … apparently,” said one man looking at his phone.
Others fretted about being away from the office for more than an hour. What if their boss gets suss? Should they cut and run now, or wait and maybe get a glimpse of the royals?
The closest anyone down this end got was selfies with two central coast 12-year-olds who had taken the day off school and were wearing Harry and Meghan masks. They walked around arm in arm and posed for photos with strangers.
Abigail Sharpe and Jamiliah Widmer looked only slightly creepy in their masks and gave their answers in unison.
“They’re really cool!” said the girls of Harry and Meghan.
But why? Why are they cool? “They’re the royal family!” they answered.
In the end, they all stayed. They had invested all this time. They had got sunburnt and also felt vaguely foolish having spent so long waiting for a glimpse of these glamorous strangers without really understanding why it was they were there.
“What a waste of time,” said one disappointed man with a pram. His daughter wanted to see the royals. “We’ll have to watch them on television,” he said.
