Remember when the internet lost its mind because Meghan Markle, a human person who happens to be married to a prince, closed her own car door upon arriving at an event? Yes, this was an actual thing.
“A princess who still takes the time to shut her car door. Well done Meghan!” wrote The Sun.
“First time I’ve seen an on-duty princess shut her own car door…” tweeted another user.
Now, it turns out, that Markle’s days of car door closing (at least at official engagements) might be done—and it’s reportedly due to safety concerns. The Sun cites sources who state that royal protection officers have warned the Duchess of Sussex to stop this seemingly harmless behavior due to threats.
The reasoning seems to be that they may need to get her back into the vehicle quickly, and if the doors—which are self-locking—are closed there could be an issue. “Nothing is more important to these guys than protecting the Royal Family,” says The Sun‘s source. “Meghan and Harry like to meet the public as much as possible and make contact with the crowds that come to see them. And although having a car door closed might seem like a trivial thing, it could be the difference.”
“God forbid if anything did go wrong arriving at a royal engagement, but security need to be able to get them back into cars in seconds if needs be. If they’re closed and locked, it’s impossible.”
Markle seems to be heeding the warning: She’s been spotted at several recent engagements leaving the door open and available for others to close on her behalf. While, of course, safety is of the utmost importance, here’s hoping she can still hang onto at least a few normal-people tasks while performing her royal duties.
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