Guests cash in on Royal Wedding souvenirs

Some of the souvenir bags, which were handed out to guests including the 2,640 members of the public who were invited by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to watch the wedding within the grounds of St George’s Chapel in Windsor, have been selling for thousands of pounds on online auction site eBay.

The 600 guests invited to the ceremony inside the castle, such as members of the royal family and celebrities including Idris Elba, David Beckham and Oprah Winfrey, were not given goody bags.

The brown and blue canvas bags, personalised with Harry and Meghan’s initials, and the date and location of the wedding, contained a souvenir order of service, a welcome letter from the couple, a pack of shortbread, a commemorative magnet, a bottle of Windsor Castle water, a large chocolate coin and a 20 per cent discount voucher for the castle shop.

One seller from Bracknell listed their goody bag for sale, but the reserve was not met when the listing ended at £1,120 on Monday. The item has since been relisted.

Other sellers have been seeing huge sums offered for their souvenir bags, with some bids reaching in excess of £65,000.

Dozens of goody bags have flooded the auction site since the Duek and Duchess of Sussex’s wedding on Saturday, May 19.

One of the listings read: “Buy a piece of history and memorabilia to celebrate a momentous special day for Britain’s (sic) and the royal family.

“Don’t miss out on this limited once in a life time opportunity to have a piece of royal history.”

Some sellers claimed that they would be giving their profits to charity.

Of the people invited to watch the wedding from within the castle’s grounds, 200 were from charities associated with Harry and Meghan; 100 local schoolchildren; 610 residents from Windsor; and 530 members of the Royal Households and Crown Estate. A further 1,200 people were invited by the nine regional Lord Lieutenant offices.

Kensington Palace has declined to comment on the story.