The BBC’s Right Royal Send Up
You may have seen the previews of BBC Three’s programme ‘The Undercover Princes’. It claims to be a documentary that takes three royal princes out of their privileged environment and into a shared house in Brighton, all in an attempt to help them find true love by the British seaside. It looks quite hilarious and kind of romantic. There’s just one problem though – are they really princes, or is someone winding us up?
According to the BBC, the three brave bachelors are: India’s Crown Prince Manvendra – hmm, interesting; South Africa’s Prince Africa Zulu of Onkweni Royal House, Zululand – woah! Prince Africa of the what-the-who-now?…and then there’s Prince Remigius, of Jaffna, Sri Lanka. This is when alarm bells started ringing in my head. One small detail, my blog-reading friends, this just happens to be the Motherland of your dedicated TVGuide.co.uk blogger. I therefore happen to know there is no royal family in Sri Lanka. Come to think of it, why would there be one in India or South Africa? Hang on, who are these people?!
Having done a bit of research on the old internet, I have discovered these men claim to be descendants of their country’s royal family from hundreds of years ago. That’s fair enough – but come on now Remigius, are you really? The royal family in Sri Lanka died out in the early 1600s – so we’re talking about someone who claims to be a descendant of a family dating back over 400 years! What poor unsuspecting BBC exec fell for this? I bet some window-cleaner from Colombo turned up in a rented period drama costume, claiming to be a prince that’s unlucky in love. Fast-forward several months and the BBC are paying his way in a house in Brighton and sending him off to local bars and speed-dating. Boy, that’s one lucky window-cleaner! Ok, so he might actually be a really, really, really distant relative of a royal. Maybe. Or possibly he’s just a techie who knows how to create a website, with an impressive knowledge of royal ancestry to boot. Or maybe he’s just a window-cleaner.
I’m sure this programme provides much entertainment for the viewer, but take it as just that – entertainment. I for one won’t be losing too much sleep thinking of these poor “princes” (using the term loosely) not being able to find love in their home countries – maybe they would get more ladies if they stopped wearing those outfits and calling themselves princes when they live in a republic! To sum it up, I’d say these ‘Undercover Princes’ are probably more undercover than you think!
haha! jokers in costumes
Right royal treatment for 'Prince HRH?' Remigius! Who is he kidding?
this programe was quite good but i can believe they aren't really princes. none of those countries have a monarchy anyway
Quite amusing, although sometime degrading themselves without knowing it!
Do your research guys…Manvendra is well known worldwide as a Prince..ie son of a Maharajah…& Zulus in South Africa have a large & well known Royal Family. Sadly you are all doing nothing other than displaying your ignorance about the rest of the world.
mr p they're talking about the Sri lankan guy not the others- read it properly!
er no the guys who wrote the review said India doesn't have a Royal family or South Africa.
Manvendra really is a prince…. he may have shamed his family in being gay (his father seems to have disowned him or something over it ) but nevertheless he is royalty. As for the other two i dno the Sri Lankan prince…. is a descendent of the Sri lankan royal family but his position is clearly not as high as Manvendra and as he is making out to be….. and as for Africa zulu of zululand….he overseas a royal house and does have 10 million subjects but hmm…
You are right there is no prince in Sri Lanka and he is just a nutter who has made a impressive web site and top this he is also married. I know loads of his secrets as I know the person who he is married and him as well very closely. I of course have no contact with him now but I still have contact with his wife who is seperated from him and living in UK. The BBC have not researched him at all.
I doubt very much that there will be a fairy tale ending to this!!
nooo actually yeah if u watch the series it said that the royal family of sri lanka got ran out agess agoo and now there royal house if in holland noww and if u dnt beleive me watchh the last episode
Those who joke by saying they arent real Princes are complete idiots. India, as well as South Africa and Sri Lanka havent alsways been one country so the old individual nations within such as Java and the Zulus used to and still have monarchs, even if one of them has been in excile it doesnt change anything. There are still thousands of princes out there, just because you havent heard of them doesnt mean they dont exist, you fools.
My mother is a Sri Lankan historian with a PhD from Oxford university. This is the first time she has heard of a “heir to the Sri Lankan throne” or the Jaffna Royal household!
But sure, the BBC would have done their research because we pay them our hard earned cash in License fees! This is a joke!!
I agree with anyone who says there is no Royal house in Jaffna. This guy who claims to be a prince is truly a nutter. Wonder if BBC should have contacted his wife before broadcasting this programme.
Well BBC have not researched this programme, as they have not got a clue about the sri lankan so called prince. They should have contacted his wife who lives right here in England and London of all places.
I am a fellow Lankan and was a little taken a back when I saw the 'Prince of Jaffna''…..you have now made it all clear! lol
I am from Sri Lanka and was there for 35 years. I can't say anything about the other two countries, but this is the first time I heard anything about a sri Lankan prince.
All I want to say is BBC must be very desparate for a story, specially to get a wanker like Remigius. Who the hell is he kidding about royalty. Dont' BBC check the credentials of this guy properly. He is a good con artist who created a well informed web site with fancy logos and royal honours. I have been to Jaffna myself and spent months on holidays, never herd of this guy even existed. Possible he could be one of Prabakarans commrades who escape when he was captured. Remigus go and get a life you con artist you are nothing but a bullshit artist who is a embarasshment to the tamil people.
Hey remigus I actually was shocked when they announce your name on lifestyle channel. I have to keep pausing several times to make sure I heard it right. I still am in a shock that you could pull a stunt like this? really who do you think you are? definetly not prince of Jaffna. What does your family thinks of you? knowing tamils they must so ashamed of you?
Remigius is a disgusting self opiniated load of slimy vomit, pompous stuck up piece of shit
Yarga you discribe the so called “bullshit prince of ……” perfectly, he is nothng but a con artist. Prabakaran use force and weapons to kill his own people Remi uses is mouth to destroy his people.
H,
you may have either misheard your mum or are misinterpreting her words or possibly asked her the wrong question….this remi dude may or may not be a royal..but there are several royal families from the jaffna and vanni kingdoms..in fact…there are so many kingdoms throughout the island before the brits decided to make it a whole country (that was never whole in the first place)
there are numerous royal blood lines in that island…some who lived in the island long enough to be considered indigenousness–though who are we kidding indigenousness is a problematic term– and though this particular jaffna line may or may not be ‘real,’ its quite ludicrous to suggest that there aren’t royal lines in the long history of that island….
and yes…zulu was a kingdom (though africa is a concept invented by the imperial, colonial and slave trading forces–nodboyd in “africa” thought themselves african until, very, very recently in the long geological time line of human migrations.