Welcome, friends, back to the halcyon days of June, 1993! When I was graduating from high school, and 23 year-old Rania Al-Yassin was marrying Prince Abdullah of Jordan, who was not at the time the heir to the throne. (Abdullah’s father was indeed the king, but his brother — Abdullah’s uncle Hassan — was the heir for YEARS, and the king only switched back to Abdullah three weeks before he died, which is exactly the kind of hardcore drama I appreciate in my royal families. Doctor Wikipedia insists that Abdullah’s Uncle Hassan was only ever the heir because Abdullah’s father felt the official heir should be an adult, but Abdullah was THIRTY-SIX when they finally made him the heir again, and if you read Hassan’s Wikipedia page, it seems like it was MUCH MORE DRAMATIC than that. What I’m saying is, I only have the vaguest grasp on this and I need a The Crown-style mini-series about the royal family of Jordan, which has loads of drama. Abdullah’s father’s “Personal Life” section of his Wikipedia page could be several seasons on its own.)
Anyhoodle, these two allegedly met at a dinner party, which is incredibly dull, and their wedding does not even have its own Wikipedia page — which should be, as far as I am concerned, a crime punishable by law. (I did read that he proposed after two months, which is considerably less dull and makes me think that Wikipedia has not given me the entire scoop.) She was 22, he was nearly a decade older, and they are still married.
Here are some fun facts and interesting tidbits for you:
Per our friends at The Royal Order of Sartorial Splendor (RIP), “Rania chose British designer Bruce Oldfield to create her wedding look. Drawing on inspiration from the embellishments on Syrian formal dresses exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, Oldfield added gold detailing to the trim of the bride’s voluminous gown, matching hair ornament and gloves.” You’ll soon see. It’s VERY 1993.
Per his Wikipedia, “Abdullah has listed skydiving, motorcycling, water sports, and collecting ancient weapons as his interests and hobbies, and is a fan of the science-fiction series Star Trek. In 1996 he appeared briefly in the Star Trek: Voyager episode “Investigations”, in a non-speaking role.” !!!!!
Also via Professor Wiki: “In 2013, a video of Abdullah helping push a car stuck in snow in Amman during the 2013 Middle East cold snap went viral. In 2017, another amateur video that went viral showed Abdullah wearing pyjamas helping in extinguishing a fire in a wood near the royal palace.” How very Cory Booker of him!
