Small, coastal Canadian community abuzz over possible move there by Harry and Meghan

[webfact]

Small, coastal Canadian community abuzz over possible move there by Harry and Meghan

By Chad Hipolito

 

FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, leave Canada House in London, Britain January 7, 2020. REUTERS/Toby Melville

 

NORTH SAANICH, British Columbia (Reuters) - Towns on the southern end of Vancouver Island on Canada's west coast are abuzz with interest over the possibility that Britain's Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, will become semi-permanent residents there.

 

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex sparked an uproar on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean when they said on Wednesday that they would be stepping back from their senior roles in the British royal family.

 

The couple's stated intention to spend more time in North America has led onlookers to suspect they will make a home in Canada, which recognizes Harry's grandmother Queen Elizabeth as its head of state.

 

On Friday, Reuters reported that after just a few days back in the UK, Meghan had returned to Canada to reunite with the couple's 8-month-old son, Archie.

 

According to media reports, she has gone back to the Saanich Peninsula, a part of Vancouver Island just north of British Columbia's capital, Victoria, an area where the family took a six-week vacation at the end of last year.

 

"I wouldn't call myself a (royal) follower until they come into town, and then of course it piques our interest," Joan Wilson, a resident of Sidney, on the Saanich Peninsula, said.

 

Towns on the peninsula, which has long been popular with retirees thanks to its laid-back pace of life and proximity to ferries to the British Columbia mainland, mostly have fewer than 20,000 residents and are filled with ocean-themed gift shops, boutiques and fish-and-chip huts.

 

The couple have captured residents' fascination since their vacation in the area, which has "a really interesting mix of very wealthy people and middle-class people," said North Saanich resident Beth Doman. "There's a lot of hidden mansions, so we were all trying to figure out where they were staying."

 

Despite the curiosity, locals are determined to give them privacy.

 

"The last thing they want is mobs of people coming around and taking their picture," said Ron Buschgens, owner of Lolly Gobble Sweet Shop in Sidney. "That would start to settle down as people got used to the idea of them being here."

 

Many residents declined to speak to reporters on the record, saying they wished to respect the couple's privacy.

 

"Harry's mother died because of all the attention that was on her and it was very tragic," Sidney resident Lynn Salituro said, referring to the late Princess Diana. "I'm sure they just want to break away and have a safe haven and somewhere they can live a normal life."

 

Queen Elizabeth has summoned Prince Harry, as well as his father, Prince Charles, and elder brother Prince William, for a crisis meeting on Monday at her Sandringham estate to discuss future arrangements, a Buckingham Palace source told Reuters.

 

(Reporting by Chad Hipolito in North Saanich, British Columbia; Additional reporting by David Albright in North Saanich; Writing by Moira Warburton; Editing by Peter Cooney)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-01-13

Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking Thailand news and visa info

 

[vogie]

I hope they are as much abuzz when they find out they have to fork out £10 million a year for their security.

 

Harry's mother died because of all the attention that was on her and it was very tragic," Sidney resident Lynn Salituro said, referring to the late Princess Diana. "I'm sure they just want to break away and have a safe haven and somewhere they can live a normal life."

 

Harrys mother died because their chaffeur was drunk!

[sandrabbit]

Well that's the local residents lives turned upside down, will no longer be a small coastal community.

[Basil B]

Make him the Governor General for Canada.

 

Salary £170,000 ????

[marko kok prong]

Butlers,maids ect,get your cv's in now

[BonnieandClyde]

5 hours ago, sandrabbit said:

Well that's the local residents lives turned upside down, will no longer be a small coastal community.

Harry and Meghan will become the main industry in the little town.

Hordes of paparazzi following the royal couple wherever they are.

Security agents omnipresent when these celebrities are in residence.

There's money to be made off people in high places.

[Mansell]

11 hours ago, vogie said:

I hope they are as much abuzz when they find out they have to fork out £10 million a year for their security.

 

Harry's mother died because of all the attention that was on her and it was very tragic," Sidney resident Lynn Salituro said, referring to the late Princess Diana. "I'm sure they just want to break away and have a safe haven and somewhere they can live a normal life."

 

Harrys mother died because their chaffeur was drunk!

Just heard on the Beeb it was 600,000 pounds a year for security.

And look at your number of 10 million pounds a year....that averages out to 27,000 pounds a day.....total nonsense. At my figure it would be around 1,666 pounds a day....much more realistic.

And if Diana’s car wasn’t being chased by the goons on motorbikes the driver wouldn’t have been speeding and probably wouldn’t have crashed. And you have no idea of what his capacity for alcohol was....each person is different. He wasn’t staggering or slurring his speech.....so how drunk was he?

[allen303]

1 hour ago, Mansell said:

Just heard on the Beeb it was 600,000 pounds a year for security.

And look at your number of 10 million pounds a year....that averages out to 27,000 pounds a day.....total nonsense. At my figure it would be around 1,666 pounds a day....much more realistic.

And if Diana’s car wasn’t being chased by the goons on motorbikes the driver wouldn’t have been speeding and probably wouldn’t have crashed. And you have no idea of what his capacity for alcohol was....each person is different. He wasn’t staggering or slurring his speech.....so how drunk was he?

He was three times the French legal limit, he was doing 70MPH in a 30 Zone. He had been out bar hopping before the accident. So, you or anyone else don’t know his driving ability drunk. But we do know he can’t drive at three times the limit or think logically. So, drunk French drive, not wearing set belts, doing 70 in a 30 zone, that sums it up.

Edited January 13, 2020 by allen303

[VocalNeal]

37 minutes ago, allen303 said:

He was three times the French legal limit, he was doing 70MPH in a 30 Zone. He had been out bar hopping before the accident. So, you or anyone else don’t know his driving ability drunk. But we do know he can’t drive at three times the limit or think logically. So, drunk French drive, not wearing set belts, doing 70 in a 30 zone, that sums it up.

Easy to say.....

[vogie]

3 hours ago, Mansell said:

Just heard on the Beeb it was 600,000 pounds a year for security.

And look at your number of 10 million pounds a year....that averages out to 27,000 pounds a day.....total nonsense. At my figure it would be around 1,666 pounds a day....much more realistic.

And if Diana’s car wasn’t being chased by the goons on motorbikes the driver wouldn’t have been speeding and probably wouldn’t have crashed. And you have no idea of what his capacity for alcohol was....each person is different. He wasn’t staggering or slurring his speech.....so how drunk was he?

What a load of nonsense, are you trying to justify the actions of a intoxicated and drugged driver?

One thing is for certain is I will never argue with someone who considers it ok to drive while being sloshed. 

 

"While Princess Diana and Mr Fayed ate dinner between 10 p.m. and midnight, Paul ordered two drinks at the Ritz's Vendome bar. To have reached an alcohol ratio of between 1.75 and 1.87 grams per litre of blood, confirmed by three blood tests, he must have consumed the equivalent of at least seven glasses of whiskey earlier in the evening.

Witnesses give contradictory testimony as to whether Henri Paul was visibly drunk when he left with the princess, Dodi and his bodyguard, Trevor Rees-Jones. Alexander Wingfield, another Fayed bodyguard, claims Paul appeared sober. A jerky security camera video is inconclusive. But Ritz employees have said he was "drunk as a pig". When Paul went out to the front of the hotel several times to joke with waiting photographers, one asked out loud: "Is he drunk or what?"

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/princess-diana-s-driver-takes-many-secrets-to-grave-1.108077

[Scott]

Please stay on topic. 

[bendejo]

I would have thought they would pick somewhere with better (read warmer) weather.  If staying in the Commonwealth is a priority I'd have guessed Oz or NZ.

Kind of an odd spot in that it is practically swimming distance to the US (NOTE: this is a deliberate exaggeration).  Beautiful part of the world too.  I would think they could find a secluded enough area that could provide for a security zone several miles deep.

 

 

[gk10002000]

oOne of my best friend's retired and moved from the USA to Egmont, BC.  Another moved to Revelstoke BC (inland).  Both bought and ran hotels/lodges.  Egmont and the sunshine coast area really is pretty.  Must be nice to have fully funded lifestyle without having to work.

 

  What does the average UK citizen think about that facet of the royalty?  Paying for their lifestyle?

[faraday]

Why, if they are 'not royals' anymore, should their security be paid for by anyone else except themselves?

 

And, because it is on topic & mentioned in the opening thread, I will comment on this.

 

 

"Harry's mother died because of all the attention that was on her and it was very tragic,"

 

Don't think a real comparison can be made; the circumstances were/are completely different, which was exacerbated by the Charles having boom- boom with Camilla. My guess is that this is a deflection.....

 

 

 

 

[bendejo]

1 hour ago, faraday said:

Why, if they are 'not royals' anymore, should their security be paid for by anyone else except themselves?

Well, he did not abdicate his position, which means the day may come when he's called upon to wear the crown.  Fate has a knack for disturbing plans for succession.