Durek Verrett, 49, is a California conspiracy theorist and self-proclaimed shaman, or “spiritual guide,” who claims not to be human and claims he can reverse aging by “spinning atoms.”

Like so many great royal love stories, their romance began with a media offensive.

In 2019 – two years after the princess’ divorce from the late author Ari Behn, to whom she was married for 15 years – she and Verrett appeared on a Scandinavian talk show to promote a series of lectures on shamanism. It was a strange interview. When talking about how they met, the two claimed they had met in a previous life.

Princess Martha Louise married Ari Behn in 2002. Behn committed suicide in 2019

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Less than two months later, Princess Martha announced her love for the shaman on Instagram in an effusive post that read: “When you meet your twin soul, you know it.”

Then things got weirder and weirder.

Verrett told People magazine he had memories of ruling ancient Egypt as a pharaoh with Martha Louise by his side as queen. The shaman also spoke at length about his sexual escapades with a former boyfriend. (Verrett is bisexual.) He later said on Instagram that he was a “hybrid reptile-Andromeda species.” The Norwegian press ate it up.

For the conservative Norwegian palace, most of these stories were unpleasant but harmless. However, other allegations by Verrett cast a darker shadow over the royal household.

“He talked about removing evil spirits from children,” says Ingeborg Senneset, a journalist at the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten, who was one of the first to criticize the couple for spreading pseudoscience and false claims. “In 2021, he left me a series of voicemails trying to convince me of the existence of the Illuminati. It’s somehow important that people know how far off the mark he actually is.”

An interview with the Irish press was, for some, the strangest example of all. In it, he claimed that there are “certain marks in women’s vaginas when they have too many sexual partners that they have to clean.” Verrett mysteriously added that he “gives exercises for that.”

But that was not all. In the American television show The doctors He has spoken about how to “hack your mind,” and on YouTube he warns people not to have “energy vampires” in their lives. For $2,000, Shaman Verrett offers private sessions on his website, which includes Paltrow on its list of celebrity endorsements. The actress and founder of Goop has called him a “light on earth.”

The couple believe they met in a previous life. The popularity of the royal family has declined, polls show

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Verrett’s connections to the royal family have also caused a stir in the government. His 2019 book Ghost hacking was withdrawn by Norwegian publishers for claiming children could get cancer just from being unhappy. Health authorities were not too pleased when he talked about rejecting conventional treatments for Covid-19 and instead using a gold medallion – which he called a “mind optimizer” – to ward off the disease. He still sells the medallions for $222 (£168) on his website.

Following the coronavirus claims, Ole Henrik Krat Bjørkholt, Norway’s health minister, called him an “unscrupulous and dangerous charlatan”, while Trygve Hegnar, editor-in-chief of the financial magazine Finansavisen, simply said that the shaman “should be in prison”.

Verrett, who is black, claims the statement was taken out of context and deliberately misinterpreted by what he describes as the “racist” Norwegian press.

“There is no doubt that he has had to endure a fair amount of racist abuse on social media and elsewhere, which is of course unacceptable,” says Trond Noren Isaksen, a historian and author of seven books on the Norwegian monarchy. “But there are other reasons besides his skin colour why people are critical – most Norwegians think his claims are nonsense.”

All this is causing the royals a headache. Princess Märtha Louise used to have a generally positive image in Norway. Although she was the royal couple’s first child, the birthright made her younger brother the heir, while she was the surrogate.

Polls show that the royal family’s popularity has declined since Verrett came on the scene.

Despite all the controversy, the King and Queen kept a cool head and only rarely mentioned the “culture shock” caused by Verrett’s arrival.

In response to the couple selling their wedding photos exclusively to Hello! magazine, the royal family issued a statement saying they were “denying other media fair access.” A Netflix series is also in the works.

The wedding festivities will be a four-day extravaganza, with Stevie Wonder likely to perform.

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Other Norwegians, however, are upset by Martha Louise’s use of her name “Princess.” From the Angel School to an equestrian brand to lecture tours, Martha Louise has attached her royal name to all sorts of businesses to generate private income. Verrett has also used the glamour of the monarchy to sell goods.

The king and queen have tried to prevent this from happening. In 2019, Martha Louise entered into an agreement with the palace to stop using her title for private purposes, and in 2022 she agreed to step down from her royal duties. Nevertheless, two months ago she and Verrett released a commemorative bottle of pink gin to mark the wedding. The word “Princess” was printed on the side and the label featured a faux royal monogram. This was quickly withdrawn.

The wedding invitations state “sexy and cool” as the dress code – but the bride and groom will certainly choose more unusual fashion. “I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a lot of symbolism: artistic textures and embroidery – especially for his evening look,” says Marianne Jemtegard, host of the Norwegian fashion podcast High Mess“I’m sure Martha will try to follow up as best she can, but I think all eyes will be on Durek.”