Enninful was followed by Dean Forbes, a partner at the private equity firm Court and Capital, in second place, and Fu Chief Financial Officer at the Bank of England in third place. Among the top 100 on the list, the Mayor of Bristol, Marvin Rees, was also featured. Notable names on the Powerlist included social media entrepreneur Patricia Bright and comedian Mo Gilligan.
The Powerlist Black Excellence Awards for 2024 are scheduled to take place in London soon, but it remains uncertain whether Meghan Markle will receive an invitation. Notably, Meghan and Edward's friendship has encountered turbulence, particularly stemming from their collaboration on the renowned September 2019 issue of British Vogue. While they were initially close, they experienced conflicts during the issue's creation and subsequent publication.
In Tom Bower's book, "The Exposé," working with Meghan Markle was described as an unpleasant and challenging experience for Edward Enninful and his team. It highlighted clashes between Markle and the Vogue staff, including disagreements on issue content and publication schedules. The book reported that Meghan's suggestions were often viewed as shallow and confusing by the Vogue team.
One significant dispute arose when Meghan asked the head of communications, Sarah Leam, to alter Vogue's publication schedule, publishing in the US first and the UK second, which Edward Enninful rejected. This particular conflict strained the relationship between Meghan and British Vogue.
The book suggested that the conflict revolved around control, and upon the issue's publication, Meghan faced criticism in the UK media. Piers Morgan, for instance, criticized her for self-promotion, and Dan Wootton, on ITV's "Lorraine" show, deemed the decision to edit the issue as "idiotic." Camilla Tominey of The Telegraph and other journalists voiced their concerns about the issue. Edward Enninful later attributed some of the backlash against Meghan to racism but later amended his statement, acknowledging that the criticism was not solely due to racism but also because of a misunderstanding of royal rules.
Despite the friction, Edward Enninful has gone on to become a global ambassador for the Prince's Trust, a charity founded by Prince Charles in 1976 to support disadvantaged youth. The Prince's Trust has played a pivotal role in helping nearly a million young people turn their lives around and has extended its influence beyond the UK to other Commonwealth countries.
