Real reason Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will likely skip the Grammys

04 February 2024 , 18:19

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Trevor made the joke about the couple last year

The real reason Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will be skipping this year’s Grammy Awards could be down to a brutal joke by host Trevor Noah.

The Daily Show presenter has helmed the ceremony, dubbed the Oscars of the music industry, for the last four years, and will be returning on Sunday to host once again. It was widely speculated that Harry and Meghan would be attending the Grammys as part of their attempts to improve their public image after a year of controversy and bad press, but the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are thought to be skipping the bash.

While the couple might prefer to have a night in with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, rather than rub shoulders with music royalty in Los Angeles, it has been suggested Harry and Meghan are avoiding the ceremony as they fear they’ll be the punchline for host Trevor’s jokes. The South African comedian cracked a joke about the couple during last year’s awards, and there are rumours Harry and Meghan have declined to attend the Grammys over his brutal dig.

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Harry and Meghan are skipping the Grammys this year (Getty Images)

Last year, just after Harry’s memoir Spare had been released, Trevor joked about one of the stories mentioned in the book, as the prince had revealed he suffered frostbite on his penis during a trip to the North Pole in 2011. Introducing fellow Brit and comedian James Corden to the stage at the Crypto.com Arena, Trevor told the celebrity audience: “(He) is living proof that a man can move from London to L.A. and not tell everyone about his frostbitten penis.”

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Just a few months before making the Sussexes the punchline of his joke, Trevor appeared on Meghan’s Spotify podcast Archetypes, and unknowingly was the final ever guest on her show as it was eventually cancelled when the couple’s deal with the streaming giant collapsed. In the interview, Trevor spoke about his mother Patricia, and the life lessons he learned from her during his childhood.

Trevor is known for his cutting comments (Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

“I remember my mom saying to me when I was very young, she said; ‘Remember, you can be the head of your household as a man without earning a cent more than your woman, you can earn nothing,” he explained. “‘Being a man has nothing to do with how you wield your power in the household. It's just how you fulfil your role.”

His appearance on her podcast caused controversy, as he made negative comments about her father-in-law, King Charles, and launched into a tirade against colonialism during The Daily Show. “You can say 'hey, this is my queen, I still love what she represents.'" he said. "That's your queen but don't expect everybody else to now adopt... because basically what you're doing is recolonizing the people and saying 'this is who you support, this is who you cheer for.' No, you do your mourning and they'll live their lives.”

Emma Wilson