Prince Harry and the Spice Girls go way back. The British royal was the envy of every other 13-year-old boy when he met the girl group during a trip to South Africa in November 1997.
Clad in a suit and tie, Harry and his father, Prince Charles, posed backstage with Geri Halliwell, Mel B, Emma Bunton, Victoria Beckham and Mel C before the entertainers performed at a charity concert in Johannesburg during the teen’s first official overseas engagement.
BBC News reported at the time that Bunton (a.k.a. Baby Spice) held hands with the young prince and gave him a kiss on the cheek. The royals and the pop stars also met with Nelson Mandela, who was the president of South Africa at the time. Halliwell (a.k.a. Ginger Spice) later told the BBC, “There’s a speech that Nelson Mandela did … in which he mentions, ‘Never suppress yourself, never make yourself feel small,’ and that’s what girl power is all about. I think we are all on the same level!”
Two decades later, the Spice Girls are set to perform at Harry and his fiancée Meghan Markle’s May 19 wedding — or at least that’s what Mel B (a.k.a. Scary Spice) claimed during an appearance on The Real on Tuesday, February 27.
“I’m going. I’m not sure if I should have said that!” the 42-year-old singer told the show’s cohosts Loni Love, Adrienne Bailon and Jeannie Mai. “Us five Spice Girls. Why am I so honest?”
The America’s Got Talent judge wouldn’t comment on the actual invitation, though. “That’s getting too personal if I actually describe it,” she said. “It was proper. I’m not saying anymore. … I’m gonna be fired!”
The Spice Girls reunited at Halliwell’s home in London with their manager Simon Fuller on February 2. They also released a statement saying that they are exploring “some incredible new opportunities together.”
