Despite all of the theories floated around, I still have zero clue as to why Amal and George Clooney were invited to Prince Harry and Meghan’s wedding, and why they were given such prime-location seating. Some of you suggested that Meghan and Amal know each other from their work at the United Nations… which, no, I seriously doubt that. Some suggested that George was invited because he spoke out against the tabloid press in the 1990s. Which would be a really weird reason to invite someone to your intimate wedding. I did enjoy the theory that George and Amal donated some major money to one of Harry’s big patronages, and in exchange, they got the invitation that way, a sort of tit-for-tat, pay-to-play thing. That makes more sense than anything else. But here’s another theory, one that I just came up with: what if George was invited as some kind of liquor sponsorship??
Having George Clooney at your party is always a good way to liven things up. The two-time Oscar winner isn’t just a great actor, a talented director, a dedicated father and a passionate humanitarian — he also knows how to pour a mean drink, which is apparently a skill he showed off during the exclusive royal wedding reception.
A source tells ET that the 57-year-old movie star briefly served as a bartender for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry at the star-studded reception, held at Frogmore House in Windsor, England, on Saturday evening.
“George hopped behind the bar and was actually bartending for a bit,” the source said. “He poured Casamigos drinks and shots and got everyone dancing!”
Clooney and longtime friend Rande Gerber — husband of Cindy Crawford — co-founded the Casamigos Tequilla brand in 2013, before recently selling it to English Alcohol company Diageo last year for a princely $700 million.
It’s just too much… and if it was done with Harry and Meghan’s knowledge, this is tacky AF. You don’t shill your tequila brand AT THE ROYAL WEDDING. Why was Casamigos even on hand at the bar? It’s Windsor Castle – surely, the liquor on hand would have been British-labeled whiskeys and gins, maybe some good-quality vodkas. But seriously, imagine that: imagine that George and Amal were invited to the wedding because of some kind of tacky Casamigos sponsorship of the wedding after-party. Here’s another wrinkle: Princess Eugenie’s fiance Jack Brooksbank is an “ambassador” for Casamigos. What if all this time, George and Amal’s tenuous connection to Harry and Meg wasn’t some high-minded UN program or charity, but a connection to the fiance of Prince Harry’s cousin, whom they pay to shill Casamigos in the nightclub he manages?
Photos courtesy of WENN, Pacific Coast News.
Trashy.
I honestly don’t know what to make of this. The article says Clooney recently sold Casamigos to Diageo, an English Alcohol company. But If he was still owner at the time the beverage contract for the wedding was made then, yeah, this is tacky AF. Well, actually, it’s tacky AF either way. Was hoping there was more to his attendance with Missy Strut Her Stuff than just alcohol.
I read that each partner (3, incl. GC) received 200-250 million: and will divide approx. 300 million (from the company that purchased Casaamigos) based on how the sales go.
At the time of the sale, it was reported George would still have involvement with marketing. He was likely promoting the brand. As I half-joked yesterday, he thankful he didn’t wear one of those tequila t-shirts he used to wear.
Still strange that they got such prime wedding seats, though.
Olenna, he has an incentive clause in the sale contract for the next decade. If the brand does well for the first post-sale 10 years, he gets extra, a bonus.
Marketing, promoting, incentive clauses…well, damn. Where’s the dignity in that? Dude is too old and too rich to be hustling liquor, but I guess one can never have too much money.
Doesn’t Eugenie’s finance have some sort of “ambassadorship” alliance with Casamigo? I could’ve sworn I read about it somewhere (or maybe it was just on “The Windsors” wedding special lol).
it’s literally in the post. You read about it two seconds ago in the post.
Basically, Geroge and Amal are going to BOTH royal weddings in the span of less than a year.
The thirst is real y’all. (Insert Nene GIF).
Haha! Kaiser, that cracked me up!
LOL @Kaiser, that was too funny.
Sorry, Kaiser! My eyes literally must’ve skipped over it. Apologies! 🤪
Just watched the video of them walking and he straight up SHOVES an older lady out of the way so she won’t be in their pictures. Awful
I watched that portion of the walk more than once. He says something to the older woman (who had been occasionally chatting to them), and she sort of nods her head and quickly moves forward.
It’s obvious it had to do with the older lady being in their pap photo frame.
These two are getting more repulsive by the day but to me it looked like he was trying to be gentlemanly and friendly with his hand close to her back. They were walking and it didn’t seem to be about getting her out of their picture frame.
Reminds me of George and Amal’s wedding and how hard they pushed Casamigos with Rande Gerber practically bringing cases via gondola to make sure the press got lots of shots of it.
Really interesting point that Jack Brooksbank works for Casamigos now. Maybe Jack and Eugenie will start to join George/Amal/Rande/Cindy on their Mexico vacays. Hey they could invite Thomas Markle too…
Can’t stand G and A but George has really done exceptionally well with Casamigos. Rande and George each put up just $600K each and within 5 years have sold it as a billion-dollar company. Wouldn’t mind those returns.
With the cost of things…income streams from different sources ain’t a joke….so I’m not mad!
Oh, ick (waiting for the Gossip Cop retraction)
Have had the Repesado Casamigos, awful swill.
Had heartburn for hours.
(were there any photos of the couples speaking to each other?
still think this was all pay for play on the Clooneys’ side)
Supposedly, Clooney danced with Kate and Meghan… and FERGIE TURNED HIM DOWN! 😂
How can this guy dance, he can barely walk…
@homeslice This haha..
I don’t think this is true. Rebecca English one of the royal reporters said Fergie was not even at the reception (as it was reported ahead of time also, that she was not invited to that).
Did he only pour his own brand? Or did he accommodate other requests?
Honestly, I don’t get it either. But there must have been some connection, somewhere, sometime.
I’ve been pretty neutral on these two, they never really bothered me one way or the other. And I never got all the breathless adulation of Amal. But that video of them walking to the chapel; just no. I don’t think I’ve ever been so turned off by one person than I was by her. The strutting, the look at me vibe coming off of her. It felt to me that she really set out to upstage the bride and I really hated that.
Yes omg her strutting was hilarious. The woman thinks she’s the queen. Very off putting
I’d never paid much attention to the “thirsty” comments about Amal until I saw her strut. I rolled my eyes so hard I gave myself a headache. She was strutting so hard George couldn’t walk properly, she kept bumping into him. LOL
(I’m still a George fan, I think he’d be fun to hang out with)
YES! I actually posted something about her preening in the feed! She literally did everything but have trumpets blaring announcing her arrival. I cannot stand Amal… so much smug and thirst in that one!
Im baffled by the dislike bordering on hate for Amal. She is by all accounts an intelligent and accomplished woman, and she has real tangible achievements to show for it.
Yet, we are so petty that we are turned off by the way she walked and looked at cameras? Does this minor point really overshadow who she is as an individual? She looked great, was wearing a pretty dress, had georges clooney on her arm and was going to a royal wedding, frankly some people strut their stuff for far less.
I feel like a woman must project humility at all times lest she incurs the wrath of other women.
I don’t dislike or hate her. As I said, I’ve been neutral on the both of them. Not expecting her or any woman to feel like they have to display “humility “ in public. I was simply turned off by her obvious preening and strutting for the cameras. Could care less that she has George Clooney on her arm, I would have the same distaste for anyone that appeared to be showing of when on their way to a wedding. This day wasn’t about her and imho she could have been gracious enough to downplay it a little bit. I find it tacky for anyone to appear to be trying to upstage the bride. Sorry not sorry if this particular criticism is about Amal. I would feel the same about anyone else in attendance.
MRSBUMP, thank you. Agree 100%.
Agree
Meghan was the most photographed woman on earth Saturday, and you believe that Amal upstaged her ??A royal bride upstaged ?
We must not have seen the same wedding broadcast.
100% agree, Mrs. Bump
MrsBump. I completely agree!
Yes. Amal didn’t pull focus from Meghan. Kate didn’t pull focus from Meghan. Meghan looked gorgeous, she shone.
MrsBump. Good point. Women need to support each other, this is so petty.
MrsBump, it’s a long-established history of this type of behaviour. I think people have been generous with her actually. She doesn’t have to be modest or falsely humble, but if you’ve been following the Klooneys from the start as I have, you’ll realise she’s way on the other end of the spectrum. It’s funny people are just calling her out for this attention-seeking-when-inappropriate stuff now because she’s always acted like that. Catch her earlier videos, like at film festivals and premieres and whatever.
the way she was looking around for cameras was irritating
Yes, I like Amal but she’s becoming very thirsty, very obviously. That said – her outfit was the best of the day to me.
I wondered if maybe she was having trouble walking in her shoes? (am I too nice?)
It seemed to me that most of the women had trouble walking in their heels. They looked uncomfortable & ridiculous & off balance ~ not attractive.
That would be more in those shoes. I would’ve looked like I was trying to do the hustle down the sidewalk.
She’s always strutted like that. Look up video footage of her couture-featuring pap walks. It’s funny people are just noticing it now, probably because the Royal Wedding is the first time they’ve seen her moving.
@Azurea, @Bumble – I once tried on a pair of shoes with heels that high and could barely take ONE STEP. And I am a woman in her late 50s!! I have no idea how these women manage it. Which is why I give anyone walking anywhere in shoes like that my pity and a break. If strutting helps maintain balance, strut away. I believe that is one of the purposes of shoes with heels that high anyway, isn’t it? To make a woman’s butt and breasts pop out and distort her natural profile?
Bella-yes, that’s exactly what they were invented for! Probably Amal’s tall shape exaggerates the effort to balance..
Bumble = Baria. Bella Bella = Tala.
How was she supposed to walk? Crawl on her hands and knees? She’s a confident woman. If a woman “strutting” is attention-whoring you need a new definition.
Stella McCartney. Lainey had the most believable theory I’ve read so far.
I believe our girl Meghan is strategizing her future and I love her for it.
Explain? Did Lainey explain Amal’s presence in her podcast? If so can you summarize here, thanks!
I’m not sure about Lainey specifically, but the general Stella McCartney angle is that she used Stella to meet celebrities like Oprah and Amal. Meghan’s second dress was Stella and Oprah and Amal were both dressed by her for the wedding. She knew Stella McCartney had a lot of A list celebrity connections, so she networked through her.
This explanation does not make sense to me. Meghan does not have to use anybody to get in contact with celebrities. It is her that everbody will be seeking contact with, she does not have to move a little finger to meet any of them. I believe, that Baria got in contact with the Kensington Palace and said, that her daughter and son in law would like to contribute a large sum to the charities of Harry and Meghan, but would like in return to attend the wedding. Then they negotiated a little bit and maybe they agreed that for the sum of 100.000,- Pound to each Charity they could sit in the choir section of the Chapel. I think 700.000,- Pounds are justified for giving the illusion that you move in these circles. You also have to think about the future of the Clooney kids, best to get these connections as early as possible.
I think she means prior to the engagement/wedding?
I don’t think that Meghan was of interest to the Alamuddin Clan prior to the engagement.
seriously ? Baria, a little known newscaster got in touch with Kensington Palace on behalf of George Clooney ??
why must it always be the women who are conniving social climbers? I’m sure that if George wanted to attend, he would have had his own people make the phone call.
How about this conspiracy theory : Meghan and Harry were too cheap to buy their own booze and wanted George to supply it for free 🙂
OR … how abt that Meghan and Amal met each other and got along like a house on fire and since Megs had plenty of seats available since her family are jerks, gave Amal an invite ? too far fetched for you ?
Can I just say I find George Clooney to be absolutely juvenile? He’s always pulling “practical jokes” on his friends and I hate his constant mugging. Why must he always make faces? He just seems to me like he never really outgrew his adolescence.
Oh I hope this is the case of alcohol that sparks some controversy! I’ll lmao with every written word. Their sanctimony is overwhelming and this tacky move is perfection.
She’s so thirsty for attention. I get the feeling Clooney made a huge mistake here. Everything happened so quickly. I wonder if he regrets his choice in wife
He’s crazy about her and proud of her. When people talk about having a baby and that love you have that you’ve never felt before, I liked what George said. David Letterman brought that up to George, about the feeling he had when Harry was born and being a father and did George feel like that. George agreed about that love you feel when your child, in his case children is born, but he added that he felt that way about Amal also.
That was pretty darn sweet.
I don’t believe anything these celebs say. Remember the greatest love story: Brangelina? We all thought they were solid
Besides, what is he supposed to say? Of course he’s gonna compliment her in public. I don’t know…i get the feeling he’s made a huge mistake. I like Clooney, but she comes off as thirsty.
No one knows what will ultimately happen to *any* couple. I have a friend from college whose marriage looked completely solid on social media and from what I have heard from mutual friends, so we were all quite surprised when they got divorced. It is unfortunate, but it happens. If someone says they are thrilled with their spouse, then just keep in mind they are saying it in the moment.
I totally think they have a contract (as George did with all his “girlfriends”), I don’t believe she carried twins (surrogate) and I don’t believe they are his bio kids . Sorry, not sorry, can’t stand either one.
Yeah, this is the same man who swore six ways to Sunday he would NEVER marry again, he wasn’t the marrying type, etc. And yes, I know things can change in an instant if you “meet the right one”, but this was just waaaaay too fast and convenient.
Homeslice- you are wrong. That is all.
Juana you are correct. They are head over heels about one another. And it’s very real. I suppose it’s normal people suspect celebrities to have contracts, bc some have done that, no?
But not these two. The read deal.
She seems a bad match for Clooney, good in terms of her public veneer but a bad match ultimately. There is something fundamentally unlikeable about her (not being hateful or bitchy, there just is.) She is not someone you warm to. That doesn’t take away from her accomplishments but plenty of people have done a lot of good but aren’t very likeable or charismatic. Amal simply is icy and seems self-involved.
I don’t think he regrets it, he seems gaga over her.
Homeslice, I agree with everyword you said, thankyou.
Clooney has just as much thirst as she does. It’s one of the things they have in common. He loves being the King of Hollywood or whatever they call him.
He is king of hollywood no longer, all his films have been flops in the past few years, and now he is going back to tv for his latest acting gig, which I am sure will be another flop.
Am I the only one who still thinks this is a contractual agreement between the two of them? He has never looked smitten to me. They have never looked at each other the way, for instance, Harry looks at Meghan. I just don’t think he’s that into her. It’s a show.
Completley agree, still think he is a closet case, there is something very fishy about him, always has, and he always looks so uncomfortable around her, not real.
Promise you it’s not a show
Friends in ATL strongly agree 🕶with Bella Bella and homeslice
I agree. It’s a shomance. Amal makes G ‘look good’ in terms of her accomplishments but her personality is distasteful and that rubs off a bit badly on G who is ultimately more likeable I feel. I think A likes the celebrity she gets from G and G likes that A legitimises him in spheres beyond his celebrity.
If it’s true, it’s a very tacky move for a couple who wants to be seen as above it all. Lmao. Also, can we stop with the “intimate wedding” nonsense? JFK Jr and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy’s nuptials in front of 35 guests were intimate, Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, Brangelina… yes.
But this was a 600-person wedding with three different events that was shown worlwide on live TV and social media. This is not intimate by any means, except if you consider the Brits have an intimate knowledge of it, having paid part of it.
It’s all relative. None of the couples you mention are anywhere near of national interest or relevance, while this is a royal wedding, no matter what you may think of royalty.
Compared to a royal wedding in London at Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace, this was intimate.
Uh, what? JFK Jr and Carolyn Bessett Kennedy definitely had the national interest/relevance that this couple have.
JFK Jr. was as well-known in the US as Diana or any Royal ever was.
What?!! JFR Jr was as big as Diana back in the day. Look at the paparazzis that were waiting for them when they came back from their honeymoon and the photographers that were constantly following Carolyn after her wedding (way more than Meghan or Kate during their courtships). That’s actually the reason why they had such a small, private wedding in a remote island off Georgia.
And whatever you think of them, from a strict level of public interest, I think Brad and Angelina were very close to Harry and Meghan.
I really enjoyed the wedding, but I’m not so naive to think the business of being royals doesn’t include supporting British brands wherever they can. It’s no different than wearing british designers, etc. It seems tacky since it made the “papers”, because Clooney. Or, rather, the tacky is revealed.
Yes, George likes jokes but he’s also very loyal to his friends. Not too long ago he had a lunch for 10-12 old friends, some from decades ago, & gave each $100,000 with taxes prepaid. Just sharing the good fortunes.
Not $100k, a million
That’s called paying for keeping your mouth shut.
Exactly.
Indeed.
You didn’t name the one I read, which rings true. Amal and Meghan were introduced by a mutual friend. They hit it off and became friendly enough that it was Amal who recommended her hairdresser to Meghan. Meghan is new in London. Maybe out of all the people she met , Amal was someone she clicked with. I bet George and Amal have had them over to their home, etc. George is a lot of fun, so Harry would get along great with him. George is someone who is very gracious and shows interest in people he’s just met, which would make Meghan feel at ease with them as a couple. Plus, George is American, so there’s a familiarity. Hell, I would love to be George’s friend. There’s never been one person who hasn’t said what an amazing friend and/or host George is.
I get it. Obama and Michelle are friends with George. Obama even went to George’s home in England to see the babies. Obama and Michelle I think are pretty discerning in the type of people they enjoy spending time with. That’s another connection. Harry/Michelle and Obama, Obama/George..
It’s hard as a couple to find another couple you click with. Meghan clicked with Amal and luckily George is someone easy going enough that he and Harry get along Bingo. Couples dates. Plus you add in the humanitarian portion of it.
Sounds plausible.
This is the most logical theory which is probably why nobody is repeating it. Not salacious or crazy enough to be perpetuated in the celeb gossip world. Also, I wanna hang out with the Obamas 🙁
I thought Meghan was a regular visitor to London? She has British friends, it’s not like she doesn’t know anyone!
This seems like a stretch…
Much as I dislike the Clooneys and their vulgar attention-seeking ways, I very much doubt this theory.
What is possible though is that Clooney, possibly as a wedding gift, gave the newly weds a couple of crates of Casamigos for the evening reception.
I can see this. I can see him bringing them Casamigos and serving up shots of it probably solely so he could leak it afterwards for publicity. The sales determine part of his cut, so he’s still pushing it despite having sold ownership. He waited a few days to be respectful and then had his people call up Entertainmet Tonight.
KBB, +1. Looks like this is his midlife crisis (for relevance) playing out and it seems to be at an excruciatingly slow speed.
Their car was kept waiting at the gates to Frogmore for ten minutes before being allowed in (so says the Daily Mail). It tickles me to think they bluffed their way in to both the ceremony and reception. I know, I know, there is no real-world way they could have done it, but still.
They were probably supposed to ride the bus, but drove because the had a truck full of tequila, and the are entitled.
Could you see Amal huffing and puffing in the car while being kept waiting…lol! I’m sure she spat out a Reese favorite…”don’t you know who we are”???? Priceless!
Their invite is so weird to me because it was such a PRIME invite. And they were invited to the after party as well – with only 200 people? I cant see Harry and Meghan giving up a spot that could be taken by a friend or family member for George to pour tequila at a private event.
I doubt this is the reason, but I don’t have a better explanation.
I do, however, think the invitation was last minute, based on the fact that Clooney was wearing a regular suit instead of a morning coat. If the invitation had been in the works for months, surely he would have been appropriately dressed.
Either George wasn’t aware a dark suit was required, or he wanted to stand out. I chose the later.
In fact, the invitation said “Dress: Uniform, Morning Coat or Lounge Suit.” Many men including Prince Charles wore a grey suit.
The idea that Harry and Megan would use this as a reason to be unkind to anyone is such a commoner fantasy. As is the idea that George Clooney doesn’t know how to dress. (And, trust me I’m not a fan.)
https://www.today.com/video/see-prince-harry-and-meghan-markle-s-wedding-invitations-1193342531842
My 2 cents. George worked in the Sudan for years, until Amal made him stop going because of the danger. The care and concern for Africa is a strong bond to Harry. Amal has always represented the underdog. She has always given back. Couple that with Meghan’s habit of collecting rich and powerful friends with each new phase in her life, it makes sense. Plus, George gave Eugenie’s intended a great job. As a brand ambassador he’s out of the bar in a cushy job. All that got them a inner circle seat. IMHO.
Oh dear. The Clooney spin continues.
THIS!!!
@maryrose
Have Baria give it a rest.
Whatever the reason, it was not a good decision. Amal and whatshisname made this look budget.
I finally figured out who Amal looks like/reminds me of- Alaska the drag queen! I was getting especially strong vibes based off on how Amal walked/posed during the royal wedding. Now I can’t unsee it!
She even walks like a drag queen.
You’re on to something
Eh they went because Amal is thirsty as is George. Amal reached out to Meghan simply for this reason: score an invite.
Finally saw the video of Amal walking into the church. So embarrassing. What was with that strut as if she were the one who was royal. I know a lot of top knot has professional women in their field and she is an embarrassment to them.
where did you see the video?
She’s always strutted like that; see her pap walks. People are only noticing it now because the Royal Wed’s probably the first time they’ve seen her in video.
It’s not even a strut, she just looks clumsy. Like her shoes were too heavy or something!
I can’t believe all the traction George and Amal are getting for being at the wedding.Their is no theory to speculate about here. They are both friend of the couple so they got an invite.
Oh hells bells, this was not an invite about liquor! Of course Meghan has had plenty of opportunities to network in her new home country. Yes, through Stella McCartney and probably many others. George is a fellow expat over there and he is a real “get” if you want to have a fun party. His Lake Como parties, Cabo parties and his guest-lists are the stuff of legend. (See his story about getting Walter Cronkite, David Gergen, Charlie Rose, Evan Rachel Wood & Marisa Tomei to skinny dip one time at Lake Como.) He is connected in ways we are not going to know about or will ever know about. He likes tequila enough to bottle his own recipe but he sold the brand for a pile of money – but it’s still the recipe he liked enough to distill it on his own. For people like George and Oprah and Serena, this party was a “get” for them too. None of them were doing it for money, they have enough and are not going to sully any of their brands.
According to Page Six 🙂 you nailed it.
This wouldn’t surprise me. The party planner for the Queen gave an interview on Sky News, and when the interviewer said “the evening reception is being paid for by Prince Charles” the woman remained silent but made a face that indicated that wasn’t really the case. She declined to elaborate out of discretion. The recent bio of Charles covers the many, many times he gets others to pay for things — he’s basically a “pay to play” kinda guy– he sells access to himself, seats at his table or next to him at events, etc to the highest bidders. He even sold seats to William’s wedding. So him having the Clooney’s “donate” to Harry’s wedding would not surprise anyone.
That dress color is so bright that George’s face and suit are partly yellow. Yuck!
If it’s true that this was a brand thing, it is incredibly tacky.
I am so glad others are talking about A at the wedding as my sis in law told me off for pointing out that A looked snarky and unapproachable. She seems utterly full of herself and very pompous. It’s odd that I have such a strong reaction to her, but I can’t STAND her and for me, that’s not common.