King Harald: The Geiranger wedding was better than expected

– It was absolutely fantastic. It was better than I thought it would be, the king told NTB on Tuesday in connection with the awarding of the Kavli prize in the Oslo Concert Hall on Tuesday.

– What was good?

– Everything, almost. Yes, it was a little late, then, replied the king.

The king is referring to how the actual wedding ceremony in Geiranger, which took place in a tent a stone’s throw from the Hotel Union, was almost an hour late on Saturday. The bride arrived at the tent almost an hour late, hidden by a sea of ​​white tablecloths.

When asked by NRK whether it is time for another talk with Märtha Louise about the agreement with the Royal Palace, the king replied:

– We have already had that conversation.

Sold the wedding rights

King Harald and the rest of the royal family were present in Geiranger at the weekend to celebrate Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett’s wedding. The royal family stayed on the royal ship Norge, which was anchored in the fjord.

The royal family reserved exclusive photo arrangements during the princess wedding. That is to say, the royal family refused to allow themselves to be filmed and photographed by the media, who were given exclusive rights during Märtha and Durek’s wedding.

It is the British weekly magazine Hello! who had the image rights to the princess wedding.

In addition, a Netflix documentary is currently being made about Märtha and Verrett, and a TV crew followed the wedding closely in both Ålesund and Geiranger.

Commercial criticism

Märtha Louise has previously garnered criticism for mixing up commercial interests and the title of princess.

In November 2022, it was announced that Märtha Louise retained the title of princess, but ended her official duties for the royal household. Already in 2002, she renounced the title “Her Royal Highness”.

Earlier this summer, some royal house experts advocated that Märtha Louise should be stripped of the princess title. The background was, among other things, the much talked about wedding gin, where the princess title was initially used commercially on the label before it was later removed.

“When the agreement is not respected, it is time to strike Märtha Louise’s princess title before King Harald’s life’s work takes further damage,” wrote historian and royal house expert Trond Norén Isaksen in a chronicle in Aftenposten.