(NewsNation<\/a>) \u2014 Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are heading to Australia next week for what their team is billing as a mix of business and charity<\/a>, but royal watchers say the couple could not have picked a worse moment to touch down, given their popularity in the country has cratered since their celebrated 2018 tour.<\/p>\n Shauna Kay, an Australian royal commentator and host of The Vintage Read Show,<\/a> said the announcement<\/a> itself got off to a stumbling start.<\/p>\n Prince William reportedly reached out to Andrew after royal titles removed <\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt was announced as if it were some sort of pseudo-royal tour,\u201d Kay said. \u201cThey quickly walked it back because of the public backlash and pretty much very quickly put out a statement that it was purely a private visit and also for their commercial ventures.\u201d<\/p>\n The pivot in messaging, Kay said, reflects a broader problem: Australians have simply soured on the couple<\/a>. \u201cThe public mood is on a scale of disdain to disinterest, honestly, there\u2019s not a lot in between, because people are really sort of quite jaded about them now.\u201d<\/p>\n Much of that jadedness traces back to what happened behind the scenes during their 2018 visit, when stories began leaking from the tour about staff mistreatment. Kay said reports from reputable royal journalists painted an ugly picture.<\/p>\n \u200b\u201dThere were stories from really reputable journalists \u2014 cups of tea being thrown in frustration\u2026 a payment made to a member of staff at Admiralty House that was actually injured by that cup of tea that went flying through the air.\u201d<\/p>\n ROTORUA, NEW ZEALAND \u2013 OCTOBER 31: (UK OUT FOR 28 DAYS) Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex visit Redwoods Tree Walk on October 31, 2018 in Rotorua, New Zealand. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are on their official 16-day Autumn tour visiting cities in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand. (Photo by Pool\/Samir Hussein\/WireImage)<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA \u2013 OCTOBER 27: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex attend the wheelchair basketball final during the Invictus Games at the Quay Centre on October 27, 2018 in Sydney, Australia. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are on their official 16-day Autumn tour visiting cities in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand. (Photo by Karwai Tang\/WireImage)<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n Those accounts eventually triggered a formal palace review.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was the reports from the Australian tour that prompted the palace to conduct that review into the alleged bullying of staff by Meghan and, on the periphery, Harry<\/a>,\u201d Kay said. \u201cAnd of course that review was buried. We never got to see that. It\u2019s in a locked safe somewhere in the palace.\u201d<\/p>\n On this trip, Harry is set to speak at the InterEdge Psychosocial Summit on mental health<\/a> in the workplace in Melbourne, a booking that has raised eyebrows.<\/p>\n Kay didn\u2019t mince words. \u201cHarry is actually a keynote on mental health in the workplace because he has never held a conventional job. I think the only experience he has is probably trauma, his own trauma, and how to monetize that trauma. Now, if there was a keynote on how to monetize trauma, I think he\u2019d be absolutely excellent.\u201d<\/p>\n Prince Harry and Meghan hit back at petition over Australia trip funding <\/a><\/p>\n There have also been social media jokes, Kay noted, about Harry\u2019s unique qualifications on the subject of workplace bullying<\/a>. \u201cA few funny comments have been going about on social media about the fact that, well, he\u2019s quite familiar with bullying in the workplace because he works with Meghan.\u201d<\/p>\n Beyond the jokes, Kay said there is something deeper driving Australian skepticism. \u201cHarry is not an admired figure in Australia because he\u2019s seen as betraying his family. And that\u2019s actually a trait that not many people admire here.\u201d<\/p>\n From Hollywood to the royal family, \u201cThe Scoop\u201d delivers smart, insider revelations on celebrity news, scandals,\u00a0style\u00a0and culture with Paula Froelich.\u00a0<\/em>Subscribe to her newsletter here.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.<\/i><\/p>\nPalace reviews alleged incidents from 2018 tour<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n
<\/div>
Prince Harry to speak on mental health<\/h2>\n