Growing mystery as pictures of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry at high-profile Netflix event vanish

A beaming Prince Harry and Meghan Markle looked perfectly loved-up in pictures taken at a Netflix event at the weekend. 

The Sussexes were among the high-profile guests attending the streaming giant’s BEEF Season 2 Montecito Tastemaker event, held at a private residence in their hometown of Montecito, California. 

But just days later – and as they begin a whirlwind tour of Australia – official photographs of the couple appear to have been taken down. 

On Friday night, dozens of stunning photographs of the couple were uploaded to Getty Images, which provides stock photos and event photography to media outlets around the world. Wearing a stunning chartreuse Heidi Merrick gown and Jimmy Choo heels, Meghan was seen embracing Nicole Avant, wife of Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, and posing for snaps with Harry. 

But now only one picture of Meghan and Harry remains on Getty, which provided the event’s official photography. It shows the couple with Ted and Nicole, who is holding hands with Meghan. Meghan is also seen in the background of a wide-angle shot. 

Pictures of other stars such as Carey Mulligan, Katy Perry, Justin Trudeau, Oscar Isaac, Charles Melton, and Nick Kroll have remained on the platform, and it’s unclear why pictures of the Sussexes have been removed. 

The removal of the pictures has sparked confusion among royal fans online, with one person noting: “The latest pictures of Harry and Meghan with Ted Sarandos and other celebrities for a Netflix BEEF event in Montecito have been deleted from Getty Images.”

“They’re all deleted from Getty,” another person commented. HELLO! has reached out to Getty Images and representatives for Meghan for clarification. 

Mystery over the Kardashians’ deleted photographs

It’s not the first time pictures of the Sussexes have mysteriously vanished. In November, the couple attended Kris Jenner’s 70th birthday party at Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’s house. 

© Getty Images for Netflix

There, they posed up a storm with Kris and her daughter Kim Kardashian, who shared pictures of the party on social media. 

Meghan was stunning in black with a thigh-high skirt split and statement gold earrings, while Harry looked suave in a suit and bowtie. Kris had originally included a photo of her with the royal couple in an Instagram post from the event. Meanwhile, Kim had posted a picture of just her and Meghan smiling for a snap together.

No official reason was given at the time, but a source later told PEOPLE magazine that “there were no consent forms” for photo release. 

In the end, the reason behind the deleted pictures was simple. In January, Kim said the photos had been released as the party was on the same day as Remembrance Sunday in the UK.

© Getty Images for Netflix

Speaking on her sister Khloe Kardashian’s podcast, Khloe In Wonderland, she said: “I think they realised, like, ‘Oh, this was so silly.’ It was really innocent, which is so crazy. Mom and Meghan have been friends for some years now, and they have a really sweet relationship.” 

Day one Down Under

It comes as Meghan and Harry kicked off their four-day visit to Australia on Tuesday, starting their travels in Melbourne. 

The couple spoke to children and posed for photographs with patients as they were cheered by large crowds gathered along the walkways of the Royal Children’s Hospital, before taking part in a garden therapy session with patients, smelling plants and flowers. Asked if he would like to take some gumtree home, Harry, wearing a navy jacket, white shirt and metal bracelets, joked: “I would, but I think I’d probably get arrested at some point.”

© Getty Images

Meghan, wearing a Karen Gee navy sleeveless dress, asked the patients: “Do you find that different stories and memories come out that you weren’t expecting?”

Following the Royal Children’s Hospital visit, the Duchess visited a women’s refuge in Melbourne. Meghan donned an apron and served frittata to people at the centre, run by McAuley Community Services for Women, which supports women and children experiencing family violence, homelessness and related challenges.

Following their visit to Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital, Harry and Meghan changed into matching olive green outfits as they stopped at the Australian National Veterans’ Art Museum on Tuesday afternoon.