Does anyone else think that the Harry & Meghan show isn't going to be that explosive?

[HelloThereMeHearties]

I really doubt that loads of dirt will be raked, or muck spread. I'm guessing that there will be a few "it was hard to speak" type complaints, which the media will blow up, but that it's not actually going to be as exciting as we're all being led to believe?

@ShallowCoastalWaters

It has already been confirmed that the 'dark skin' comments were not by the Queen or Prince Philip.

My money is on Charles- the way Meghan said it would be very damaging for the person to name them. It has to be a direct heir to the Throne (so Charles or William).

Also context is everything - it could have been said in a racist way which would of course be abhorrent. It could also have been said in an empathetic way - given the racist undertone of some of the press the couple had had previously. Like - do you have any worries or concerns and how can we help protect you and your son.

But then who knows, Harry has said some shockingly racist things himself in the past IN FRONT of the media - so god knows what terms this family uses behind closed doors. He obviously had no idea calling a colleague the 'P' word was offensive.

I am inclined to agree, he can't underdo the racist things he has said in the past.

I also agree it could have been said in a protective way, but there is no financial support forthcoming to protect Archie.

Well, it's been a shocker for sure. Ouch and triple ouch. Racist Royals deny Archie his rightful title of Prince 'cos he is black. Possibly, maybe, not sure, could be that.

My money's on Prince Phil and his gaff prone gob.

Harry's Dad sending him to Coventry, wicked Kate driving poor Megs to tears (over tights IIR).

All flippancy aside, I can't see how Buck Palace can ignore this. I genuinely feel that Harry and Meghan have struck the fatal blow, and that the Royals will slowly bleed out until it's all over, no more Monarchy.

And that's a really sad prospect, 100's of years of tradition and history gone. Not that I'm Monarchist of the year, but I still feel deeply sad for the Queen. All that sacrifice and duty, trying to keep it all together for almost all of her life, and this pair, in one interview, obliterate it.

People always said Harry wasn't the sharpest tack, and if he is unaware of the monumental damage this will cause, then they were right.

@thecatsthecats

I've always thought that Harry was a colossal twonk and this just seals the deal.

HE has made racist comments that I have fired people for the like of, and lived happily with horrors like Prince Philip and Princess Michael (the former of whom gets his racism played off as gaffes), and turns around and claims surprise at comments?

It's all very well saying "I had to get my family out of there", when you made no proactive actions in settling her in, or taking it steady, helping her with protocol etc. Then to storm off without a proper plan that made assumptions on the grounds that he'd be treated with kid gloves as he had his whole life.

I happen to be going through a legal dispute with an ex business partner at the moment. He is similarly laser focused on proving every last bit of perceived harm against him, and sees us as irredeemably bad etc.

But it rarely proves the case in life that one party is wholly responsible and the other party wholly to blame, or that meanings were correctly inferred from what was said or done.

Comment about Archies skin tone - was it something harmless misinterpreted, something crass but unharmful, or was it harmful?

Incident with Kate - did Kate say something awful, or was Megan ready to cry at the drop of a pin because of pre existing stress. Was Kate mortified, guilty, or did she just realise Meghan needed cheering up?

Were her keys and passport taken away, or is it normal for security reasons for them to be held securely?

There are so many different constructions on each and every incident, and what usually holds true is that once you dislike someone, you dislike everything about them. That goes for both sides.

What strikes me is the absence of balance. All this awful stuff emphasised, and nothing about the good stuff - Charles walking her down the aisle etc. Even in a "it might have seemed like a nice gesture, but actually I wanted my mum and the Palace refused that too" way.

Whatever the truth (unlikely to be presented by either side accurately), its clear that Harry has handled this badly from day one, and it's amde the situation worse for them, not better.

Agree with all of this. Context is everything. Its so playground - They said something mean but I am not going to say what they said. Its pointless.

Especially the Kate accusation - what happened there? Sounds like something and nothing. I'd be mortified if a high tension moment with my future sister in law was thrown back in my face a few years later!

Also the passport thing surely makes sense? Imagine heading off on a Royal tour and can't put your hand to your passport! Surely it is just good sense that someone else looks after it! Not to mention a matter of security.

In Meghan's defence, i really wish Piers Morgan would lay on her. He is far, far too harsh and over the top with her. It makes me really uncomfortable.

The whole thing if you think about it is odd. But it’s their take on it, and perception is everything, it’s their truth,,,I’ve no doubt at all Charles, William and the queen will see it all very differently. For example That Archie wasn’t to be a prince, or paid for due to rules in existent for years before Harry and Meghan ever met.

The whole thing seems to stem from not being able to do what they wished publicly, Ie interviews, being expected to play second fiddle, for wanting Archie to be a prince and having his security paid for and not getting it, and then having their funding cut off when they published that mad letter about collaborating with the queen and fucking off to Vancouver. I’d imagine Charles was fuming and that’s why he cut them off immediately. Rightly or wrongly.

There will be Harry and meghans side, the royal families side and the truth of it. Which will be somewhere in between.

Harry’s comment that he didn’t know he was trapped until Meghan told him, is thought provoking. I mean was he trapped? Yes there are clear rules about being royal, as there are in most countries with a monarchy, but with that life of service, comes huge privilege. I’m not sure it means you’re trapped really, unless you really don’t want that life, and it appears from Harry’s statement he didn’t feel remotely trapped until meghan informed him of the fact.

What is clear is the division is so so deep now, it will be nigh on impossible for those relationships to recover. The queen will be deeply dismayed that there has been an insinuation she decided Archie couldn’t be a prince due to his potential skin colour. I think any relationship with her and Philip will be completely unrecoverable after that.

Yesterday it was reported that M&H plan to 'move on' after the interview is aired.
How on earth can they do that now? I'm not sure I've ever seen a bigger can of worms

@CallmeHendricks

Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall, also grandchildren of the monarch, weren't styled Prince or Princess either, at Princess Anne's own request, I believe. She was looking ahead to when they would need to make their own way in the world.

Peter and Zara could never have been Prince or Princess. They could have been Lord/Lady if Mark Philips had been granted (and accepted) an Earldom. Prince/Princess are reserved for the male line of the ruling monarch's grandchildren. Edward's could have been but they chose Lord/Lady. Archie could have been granted an Earldom on birth and will be entitled to be a Prince once his grandfather is on the throne.

Watching the clips again today...she’s a better actress than I thought. The pregnant pauses, the rearranging of the dress, the faltering starts...Oprah acting all shocked at revelations that she was NOT hearing for the first time.

Archie isn't entitled to be a Prince unless the queen stepped in. She didn't. So while they are happily saying how lovely she is it's her they are slagging off as she's the only one with the power to sort it. The only grandchildren not in the direct line with titles are Andrew's children. Perhaps best not eh?

@MissFlite

Yesterday it was reported that M&H plan to 'move on' after the interview is aired. How on earth can they do that now? I'm not sure I've ever seen a bigger can of worms

Very naive to think you can drop that bombshell and there be no repercussions.

@HouseStuff123

Well, it's been a shocker for sure. Ouch and triple ouch. Racist Royals deny Archie his rightful title of Prince 'cos he is black. Possibly, maybe, not sure, could be that.

My money's on Prince Phil and his gaff prone gob.

Harry's Dad sending him to Coventry, wicked Kate driving poor Megs to tears (over tights IIR).

All flippancy aside, I can't see how Buck Palace can ignore this. I genuinely feel that Harry and Meghan have struck the fatal blow, and that the Royals will slowly bleed out until it's all over, no more Monarchy.

And that's a really sad prospect, 100's of years of tradition and history gone. Not that I'm Monarchist of the year, but I still feel deeply sad for the Queen. All that sacrifice and duty, trying to keep it all together for almost all of her life, and this pair, in one interview, obliterate it.

People always said Harry wasn't the sharpest tack, and if he is unaware of the monumental damage this will cause, then they were right.

I disagree, I think the fatal blow was struck to Harry's relationship with his family. If anything, when combined with the Commonwealth Day events yesterday, it showed how the core Royal family just trundles along doing it does best and is stronger than any twaddle this awful pair of bunglers choose to come up with. They mainly showed themselves up

@TrickyD

A woman on Women’s Hour is just saying it is incomprehensible that anyone could have discussed the possible colour of Archie’s skin.

Of course they did. One of the delights have having mixed race children (or in our case grandchildren) is wondering and looking forward to discovering, what skin colour they will have.

I did wonder if maybe the family member was excited about the prospect of blood member of the royal family having different skin colour?

Maybe the comment was meant with good intention, but said incorrectly or picked up wrong.

Maybe it was out and out racist. But without details, who knows?!

What I find fascinating is they have such contempt for the royal family yet wanted to keep representing them, even calling their website Sussex Royal until they were told they weren't allowed.

It all just seems very sadly like sour grapes. Let's throw in contentious issues into the celebrity chat show as they know the RF can't dispute individual accusations.

@teentipans

Why would they want Archie his to have a title anyway if they were so unhappy with the RF?

I read as they wanted the title as the security came with it.

And remember, ‘What Meghan wants, Meghan gets’.

The point about singling Archie out not to be a prince was irritating - there are (if I have counted correctly) at least 8 other grandchildren and great grandchildren of the Queen who do not carry the title of Prince/Princess

All flippancy aside, I can't see how Buck Palace can ignore this. I genuinely feel that Harry and Meghan have struck the fatal blow, and that the Royals will slowly bleed out until it's all over, no more Monarchy.

I hope so!

There will be Harry and meghans side, the royal families side and the truth of it. Which will be somewhere in between.

agree

I mean was he trapped?

Tough one, I would hate the life even with all the trappings.

I think Harry feeling trapped was actually about him getting rescued, IYSWIM.
With Meghan, he found a great way to escape and still be able to influence things. I think it was meant in that way. She was his way out.

And the point about his brother and father being trapped is also quite true. Does anyone else remember that girl who William pursued for a while and who is now the DIL of one of the richest men in Britain? I think this is the sort of stuff that Harry meant by that comment and it’s quite telling. I think we should simply let the RF go after Queen dies.
That will resolve the situation nicely for both tax payers and the RF.

@Sparrowtree

Archie isn't entitled to be a Prince unless the queen stepped in. She didn't. So while they are happily saying how lovely she is it's her they are slagging off as she's the only one with the power to sort it. The only grandchildren not in the direct line with titles are Andrew's children. Perhaps best not eh?

And they're Grandkids not Great Grandkids which is the point. Anne out right refused titles and Edward modified. No great grandkids except the direct heirs have titles

I think this interview is not just damaging to the RF but also damaging to US/UK relations generally.

Just looking at Twitter there is so much hostility from US media/US accounts to not just the RF but towards British culture generally.

A lot of this was there before tbf.

as in they already thought the press M was shocking etc.

I really think they need to say exactly what was said about the skin colour thing. My partner is mixed race and people often make comments about what our potential children would look like. Some of it is completely harmless, some of it is racist (i.e. an implication that being brown but not too brown is what you want).

If it was said in a racist way then the British public need to know what was said and by whom. Otherwise we will have endless speculation. These people are supposed to represent us and if H&M care about eradicating racism then it's their duty to challenge it at the heart of the British establishment.

And the point about his brother and father being trapped is also quite true.

I think that sounds a bit patronising. Like, I’ve seen the light and realised I was trapped but Charles and William are still trapped and unaware and I feel sorry for them.

The question on skin tone can either be out of curiosity or racism. As we weren’t privy to the conversation, who asked, and when, we can’t tell but Meghan and Harry thought it was steeped in racism. That’s their truth. The person who asked the question isn’t able to defend themselves and may feel differently. Ie they were just curious. And that will be their truth.

But it’s been linked to him not being made a prince, and it’s the queen who basically makes the title decision, so it really means the accusation is against her personally. Even though it’s hugely improbable she was the one who asked. I think they didn’t think that through. Because they were at pains to try to make sure she wasn’t negatively commented on. The attacks were clearly meant for William, Kate and Charles.

Any comments on Archie not getting what they wanted for him would always directly implicate the queen, as she’s the only one with the power. I think they didn’t quite realise by implying it they were directly accusing the queen of extreme racism, that that was the motivation for her decision,

As said, I don’t think this is recoverable from for a very long time. Harry and Meghan are at war.

The irony though of them suing when anything private is published when meghans family speaks out, and then going on global tv and airing private petty squabbles, Ie Kate, is mind boggling.

If I was the mail I’d be going back to court with an appeal. How can it be argued Meghan has a right to privacy from what her father wants published about her, when she herself is on global tv spilling private conversations in this manner and negating everyone else’s right to privacy?

Archie could have been granted an Earldom on birth and will be entitled to be a Prince once his grandfather is on the throne.

Apparently he does have an Earldom , he is the Earl of Dunbar. They said they didn’t want to use it when he was born