Editorial: Royal fan gets treated like royalty

Mark Dawson, editor of Wanganui Chronicle

Fame is fleeting ... maybe 15 minutes, maybe not even that.

But Whanganui woman Marie Sheppard has made the most of her dart into the national spotlight.

Marie is the unabashed Brit who wrote to Buckingham Palace asking for an invitation to the wedding of Prince Harry and his American fiancee Meghan Markle.

A bit cheeky? But ... hey, why not? As Marie told Hilary Barry on television's Seven Sharp on Tuesday night: "If you don't ask, you don't get."

Unsurprisingly, Marie joined Donald Trump, Barack Obama and British Prime Minister Theresa May in NOT being invited to the May 19 nuptials.

But she has a letter — the politest of rejections — from the Queen's deputy correspondence co-ordinator which, complete with its royal seal, she will frame. And she has had the attention of New Zealand's media.

Seven Sharp's rival, The Project, also tried to woo her, and she's been interviewed on national radio — as well, of course, featuring on the front page of the Chronicle when we broke the story.

She confessed that with all the media attention she had an inkling of what it was like to be a famous royal.

And Marie's brief turn centre stage has also been a lovely promotion for Whanganui across the nation's media.

"I'm doing this for Whanganui because this place deserves to be in the spotlight," she said as she prepared to face the TV cameras.

"We love it here and the people are genuinely nice."

So maybe not a Royal wedding guest, Marie — but top of the list should Whanganui decide to appoint an ambassador.