Norway’s Princess Martha Louise married American self-proclaimed magician Durek Verret on Saturday. The union of two alternative medicine practitioners has astonished people in Norway.
Divorcee Martha Louise, 52, claims she is a clairvoyant who can talk to angels, a gift she has shared – and benefited from – through books and courses.
Verret, 49, of California, calls himself a “sixth-generation shaman” and sells precious gold medallions that he says save people’s lives.
“I’m very spiritual, it’s great to be with a man who embraces that,” Martha Louise said on Instagram after the couple announced their engagement in June 2022.
The couple married on Saturday afternoon at a hotel nestled in the hills of Geiranger, a picturesque village nestled along a fiord on Norway’s west coast.
The ceremony took place under a white tent, which obscured the party, and the couple had sold exclusive photo and video rights to the ceremony.
According to photographs taken by the Norwegian press, Martha Louise wore a traditional white wedding dress and a crown given to her by her grandfather King Olav on her 18th birthday.
Durek wore a black suit and a gold-coloured cummerbund.
Apart from 87-year-old King Harald and Crown Prince Haakon, who wore dark suits, the royal family wore traditional Norwegian dress, called bunad, made of embroidered and woollen fabrics.
The festivities kicked off on Thursday with a get-together for more than 350 guests.
According to Verret, this wedding is actually a renewal of the couple’s vows.
The spiritual guide, whose followers include Hollywood celebrities Gwyneth Paltrow and Antonio Banderas, claims he was a pharaoh in a past life and that Martha Louise was his wife.
The couple’s eccentricity has caused a stir in Norway, and their disregard for science and use of their royal connections for commercial gain have also caused trouble for the couple.
To avoid confusion over her role, Märtha Louise relinquished her royal duties in November 2022. She retained her title, but agreed not to use it in her business endeavors.
However, she has violated the agreement several times since then, most recently when she and Verrett released a “wedding gin” for sale in Norway that bore her princess title on the label.
“Since the agreement has not been respected, it is time to strip Martha Louise of her title of princess before King Harald sees even more of his life’s work destroyed,” historian and royal expert Trond Norren Isaksen wrote in an article in July.
The couple have also upset the Norwegian media by signing deals with Hello! magazine and Netflix for exclusive wedding coverage.
Falling popularity
Martha Louise was first married to Norwegian writer Ari Behn, with whom she has three daughters. Ari Behn committed suicide in 2016, three years after their divorce.
She is fourth in line of succession to the Norwegian throne; her younger brother Crown Prince Haakon will one day succeed King Harald.
Norway’s royal family has largely avoided scandal until recently.
A survey this week by public broadcaster NRK showed that Martha Louise and Verret have contributed to waning public support for the monarchy, which has fallen to 68 percent from 81 percent in 2017.
A recent scandal involving Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s 27-year-old son – arising from her pre-marital relationship with Crown Prince Haakon – has also contributed to this.
Earlier this month, Marius Borg Høiby admitted to attacking his girlfriend while high on cocaine and alcohol, and two former girlfriends have since come forward with similar claims.
According to the survey, four out of 10 Norwegians said their view of the royal family had become more negative in the past year, and many blamed Mårtha Louise, Veret or Høiby for this.
Witch hunts and fake doctors
Martha Louise has accused the media of conspiring against her.
But Verrett received the most criticism, being labelled a “hypocrite and a hypocrite” in the press.
In one of his books he suggested that cancer was a choice, and recommended exercises to remove “scars” left on women’s vaginas by previous sexual partners.
On his website, he sells a $222 “Spirit Optimizer” medallion that he says helped him overcome Covid.
Although Verret has acknowledged that his beliefs may offend some people, he claims he is a victim of racism.
“White people give us all this hate and death threats… because… they don’t want to see a Black person in the royal family,” he said on Instagram in June 2022.
Meanwhile, King Harald – who fought for years to be allowed to marry Queen Sonja, a commoner – has said little about his future son-in-law, and has only cited a “cultural clash”.
He described him as “a great guy and very funny”.
“We have agreed to disagree on some things,” King said in November 2022.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
