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15 Sep 2024 3:15
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  •   Home > News > International

    How Princess Märtha Louise's wedding to a US shaman has stirred up controversy among Norwegian media

    Learn all of the controversies surrounding the newest Norwegian royal couple, before they tie the knot this weekend.


    Today, in an opulent three-day celebration, Norway's royal princess will tie the knot with her American fiance in a royal wedding that is already causing controversy.

    Princess Märtha Louise, 52, will marry "celebrity shaman" Durek Verrett in the Norwegian village Geiranger.

    The couple have made headlines since they got together in 2019 due to their claims and comments about alternative medicine and Mr Verrett's career as a "shaman to the stars". 

    In 2022, she dropped her duties as a working royal to focus on the couple's commercial interests. 

    Now, the country's media is levelling its focus on the couple for a different reason — its lack of access to the country's first royal wedding in 22 years. 

    So what is going on and how did we get here?

    Who is Princess Märtha Louise?

    Märtha Louise is the daughter of King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway, and the older sister of Crown Prince Haakon, the heir to the Norwegian throne.

    She is the fourth-in-line to the throne after her brother, Crown Prince Haakon, niece Princess Ingrid Alexandra and nephew Sverre Magnus.

    The princess made headlines in 2020 when she relinquished her royal duties after the Norwegian media accused her of using her title for commercial gain.

    She faced several other controversies in the past, promoting alternative medicine and claiming in a book that she could "speak with angels".

    She lost her title "Her Royal Highness" in 2002 when she chose to work as a clairvoyant. 

    A statement from the palace said she relinquished her "patronage role" to "distinguish more clearly between their (her and her fiance's) activities and the Royal House of Norway".

    In 2022, Norwegian public broadcaster NRK reported that the princess stopped undertaking all royal duties. 

    The king said he was "sorry" the princess would no longer represent the royal family.

    The princess was previously married to Norwegian author Ari Behn and they have three daughters.

    They divorced in 2017.

    He took his own life in 2019.

    Who is Durek Verrett?

    The 49-year-old American is a self-professed shaman and author who has worked with celebrities including Nina Dobrev and Gwyneth Paltrow.

    The couple met in 2019 and got engaged in 2022.

    According to Macquarie Dictionary, a shaman is a medicine man and priest who works with the supernatural.

    On his website, he says he is a "sixth generation shaman", and is "redefining what wellness means".

    He writes that his teachings have "impacted thousands".

    The site also sells virtual private sessions with him for $1,500 and offers classes on "talking to spirits."

    He has been embroiled in his fair share of controversy.

    In 2020, a Norwegian publisher, Cappelen Damm, pulled his book Spirit Hacking due to its claim that childhood cancer is caused by unhappiness.

    Publishing manager Knut Ola Ulvestad told Norwegian tabloid newspaper Verdens Gang that he wasn’t aware of the claims in the book until it was published in the United States. 

    Meanwhile, the couple have said much of the criticism labelled at Mr Verrett is due to racism. 

    In April of this year, they took to Instagram to shut down "lies" ahead of their wedding.

    "Today we are drawing a line," the couple wrote.

    "We know that parts of the press will intensify with lies about us, as our wedding draws nearer.

    "As we prepare for our Big Day, we are dedicated to taking care of each other, prioritising our mental well-being and love for each other, and have therefore decided that from this day forward, we will not comment on anything the press throws at us."

    Mr Verrett will not have a title or represent Norway's royal house when he and the princess marry.

    The pair will attend family-related occasions and traditional royal events.

    Local media locked out of royal wedding 

    The couple have always had a contentious relationship with the Norwegian press.

    Now it seems, local media is uninvited to the wedding altogether. 

    For the first time, only foreign press have been invited to a Norwegian royal wedding. 

    The couple have broken protocol by choosing to sell exclusive media rights for the day to British magazine Hello Magazine and Netflix.

    Local editors and representatives have voiced their disappointment about not having access to the major public event.

    "I think it is deeply regrettable and a shame," said general-secretary Reidun Kjelling Nybø of the Norwegian Editors' Association to NRK.

    Netflix confirmed this week it is creating a documentary that follows the couple's love story.

    It said it has been following the couple for more than a year.

    The guest list and other details of the day have not been made public to the media.

    Traditionally, major events featuring the royal family are documented by Norwegian news outlets NTB and NRK on behalf of the entire press, which is then passed on to other outlets.  

    Who else will be at the wedding?

    It appears the king and queen will be at the wedding.

    Harald and Sonja issued a statement after the couple announced their engagement.

    "We are excited to have Durek Verrett join the family and we look forward to celebrating the big day with them," the king and queen said in a statement.

    "We wish Märtha and Durek all the best."

    In the statement, the king also condemned "racist attitudes" towards Mr Verrett by the public and on social media since he and the princess became a couple. 

    As a result of the controversial media deal, NRK has reported that other members of the royal family will not be photographed and filmed by Netflix and Hello! because other press won't have access.

    It is also unclear whether the princess' nephew by marriage, Marius Borg Hoiby, will attend as he currently faces criminal charges. 

    The eldest son of Mette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway, Mr Borg Hoiby is under suspicion for causing bodily harm and criminal damage, Oslo police said earlier this month.

    Details were unclear, but police said there was "a relationship between the suspect and the victim".

    According to the Associated Press, Mr Borg Hoiby lives with his mother and Haakon, and their two children — Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus.

    Norway’s future queen made headlines in 2001 when she married Haakon because she was a single mother who had lived a freewheeling life with a companion who had been convicted on drug charges.

    © 2024 ABC Australian Broadcasting Corporation. All rights reserved

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