Royal news: William and Kate announce Earthshot Prize winners as trip overshadowed by palace racism row

Netflix has released the first trailer for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s exclusive documentary series.

Here’s what we know so far:

The scandal around Lady Susan Hussey’s interaction with Ngozi Fulani is not the first time the Palace has been embroiled in a racism scandal, writes Zoe Tidman.

The first teaser for the much-hyped new documentary has dropped amid one of the biggest racism scandals the royal family has ever faced. Meghan Markle has been vindicated, writes Louis Chilton – and this time, people may have no choice but to listen to what she says.

The Prince and Princess of Wales have expressed their gratitude to an eight-year-old boy who dressed as one of Buckingham Palace’s Royal Guards to greet them during their tour of Boston.

Chelsea Ritschel has the story.

The Prince and Princess of Wales’s final afternoon engagement on Thursday involved learning about the significant climate challenges that Boston faces. William and Kate travelled to east Boston to see the changing face of the city’s shoreline as it contends with rising sea levels.

At Piers Park, the royal couple are being shown the past, present, and future of Boston’s waterfront as guests of Mayor Michelle Wu. They are joined by representatives from key environmental organisations including Boston Harbor Now, Stone Living Lab, the Trustees of Reservations, and The Harborkeepers.

Innovative climate resilience solutions are being deployed to protect East Boston, an environmental justice community, from rising sea levels. Members of the community shared their experiences of the neighbourhood’s vulnerability to climate change-caused flooding and storm surges.

One aspect that was highlighted to the prince and princess is how transformative projects along the shoreline can best mitigate the risks of climate change while promoting equity among the diverse residents of east Boston.

Boston Harbor Now’s Stone Living Lab, which researches and tests nature-based ecological restoration solutions around Boston’s waterfront, is announcing an ambitious collaboration with Earthshot 2021 Finalist, Living Seawalls.

The company designs panels that mimic natural habitat formations like rock pools and mangrove roots that can be fitted to new or existing waterfront infrastructure to promote marine biodiversity. Two sites along Boston Harbor will have such panels installed in the coming months.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have divided fans with the timing of the release of the first trailer for their tell-all Netflix docuseries.

On Thursday, Netflix released a first look at the forthcoming series, Harry & Meghan. This coincided with a race scandal at the Palace and the Prince and Princess of Wales’s first foreign tour since being bestowed with their new titles.

Chelsea Ritschel reports.

William and Kate strived today to turn the spotlight back onto the overarching crisis of climate change, and away from the latest round of royal scandals which threatened to engulf their first overseas tour since the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

From the moment the Prince and Princess of Wales touched down in Boston on Wednesday, their trip has been overshadowed by a new racism scandal out of Buckingham Palace, followed by Netflix’s slickly-timed drop of Prince Harry and Meghan’s Netflix show teaser.

Louise Boyle, senior climate correspondent for The Independent, reports on how the royal couple soldiered on with their planned engagements in Boston.

An estimated 23 million Americans tuned in for the royal wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales, only for them to be booed at a Boston Celtics game. Meredith Clark writes about whether US fascination with the British royal family has come to an end

The Earthshot Prize is awarded to five winners each year for their contributions to environmentalism. It was founded by the Prince of Wales to inspire a new generation of climate innovators.

The first prize was awarded in 2021 and is planned to run annually until 2030.

Each winner receives a grant of £1 million to continue their environmental work.

Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas are among the stars who will perform at this year’s Earthshot prize.

Alongside the sister-brother duo, performances will come from the likes of Chloe x Halle, Annie Lennox and Ellie Goulding.

Megan Graye has more details.