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The royal family

Harry and Meghan, more news!

999 replies

callmeadoctor · 20/06/2020 08:24

New thread following on old one: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/the_royal_family/3932323-Harry-and-Meghan-news?msgid=97617755

OP posts:
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20
Sittingontheveranda · 22/06/2020 17:24

In general terms, I was very surprised by how closely they've guarded Archie's privacy. The pregnancy was very high profile, with the celebrity baby shower etc,

It really wasn’t. There was huge speculation about a child. In the interview they had both been asked if they wanted kids, from the moment they said yes, there were comments that she shouldn’t hang around due to her age, was she or wasn’t she pregnant. Then terrible controversy about her leaving a coat button undone, stealing limelight from Eugenie, touching her bump, not wearing proper maternity clothes - every single thing she did and didn’t do was criticised, despite her going on full on tours while pregnant with her first child. She could have stepped back but went ahead and followed through with her commitment.
Her friends organised a baby shower, there was huge controversy saying she flew in a place, the expense. Her friends organised and paid for everything and the criticism continued to be relentless.
They didn’t show the baby and there was speculation they were waiting to do a full photo shoot with Hello. None of that happened. She cannot won.

Sittingontheveranda · 22/06/2020 17:25

Win even!

Cartesiandebt · 22/06/2020 17:55

They didn’t show the baby and there was speculation they were waiting to do a full photo shoot with Hello. None of that happened. She cannot won

I think they were very badly advised regarding the announcement of the pregancy, birth and the christening there was a lot more drama surrounding it than there needed to be. The timing of the birth suggests she can't have been more than 11-12 weeks pregnant when it was announced - and the clash with Eugenie's wedding and Baby Loss Awareness day was pretty unfortunate.

As for the birth itself, as mentioned up-thread, there are various expectations associated with being a working royal, Meghan was clearly unwilling to go along with some of these - and I can't blame her personally, I'd have hated all that attention during pregnancy & afterwards too. All the same, it wasn't surprising that the secrecy and intrigue caused a backlash - especially after Kate had previously played ball - three times - and with so little fuss.

Viviennemary · 22/06/2020 18:00

The whole thing was ridiculous. What harm would it have done to appear on the steps and wave for a couple of minutes. And release the names of the godparents. I couldn't tell you one of any of William and Kate's children's godparents. Yet with M& H it all had to be a huge secret.

Adante · 22/06/2020 18:22

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ButteryPuffin · 22/06/2020 18:41

The books keep coming! HarperCollins have announced a new biography, Meghan Misunderstood, by 'celebrity biographer' Sean Smith. Out 12 November. More details:

www.thebookseller.com/news/harpercollins-picks-pioneering-meghan-markle-biography-smith-1207535

Anyone know of Smith?

Samcro · 22/06/2020 18:46

Do we really in this day and age expect an older mother to dress up and have pictures taken just hours after giving birth.
Well done to her for putting her own well being first.

Andylion · 22/06/2020 19:11

Her friends organised a baby shower, there was huge controversy saying she flew in a place, the expense. Her friends organised and paid for everything and the criticism continued to be relentless.
They didn’t show the baby and there was speculation they were waiting to do a full photo shoot with Hello. None of that happened. She cannot won.

When her friends offered to throw her a shower, she could have said no.

They didn't do a photo shoot with Hello but they did get a fantastic pic with HMQ herself at Windsor.

MoreHippoThanPenguin · 22/06/2020 19:11

Samcro and sitting (and maybe others?) , I think this comes back to my point about expectations on a senior member of the royal family. I am not saying that they are right - at all. But the expectation is certain type of maternity clothes (I actually have no idea what Meghan wore), hat when with the queen, certain do’s and dont’s and the picture with the baby on the steps. And not contradicting (whoever it was in the other “Fab Four”) in interviews.

I try to tell my oldest (11) to fight one battle at a time. It is hard to come in to a new job (which is a bit what the royal family is) and modernise a lot at the same time. I believe that if she had stuck to a more boring dress code and only smiled and nodded, people would be less bothered about the lack of pictures after birth. If she had been on the steps of whatever hospital with Archie, people would forget about whatever coat she wore whilst pregnant. I just think it was a big clash with the traditionalists on many fronts.

Again, I am not saying that this is right, just that the role of “married to Prince Harry” came with certain expectations from a certain set of royalists. Those expectations were not fulfilled and they didn’t like it.

I think that a lot of the brilliant stuff drowned in the “but she didn’t do x”.

ARoseInHarlem · 22/06/2020 19:11

The new title's synopsis explains: “Meghan Misunderstood is a pioneering book that sets the record straight on the most talked about, unfairly vilified and misrepresented woman in the world.”

With hyperbole like this in the synopsis, I can just imagine how sycophantic the book will be. in the world??? Give me a break. It’s positively Trumpian in its self-centered, parallel-universe, myopia.

This sort of onslaught - they’ve been married two years and there are books, media leaks, Instagram pages, TV interviews, statements to the press, announcements - always wanting to set the record straight (but nobody understands meeeeeee!) increasingly puts H&M into the “celebrity” bracket, and pushes them further and further away from the serious people they seem to want to be or come across as. Why do they care so much what people think of them? Just why? The spotlight is so much on them as individuals it detracts from their work.

If they hadn’t brought so much negative attention to themselves with their behaviour (things they themselves have said and done, not what other people have said or written about them), none of this would be necessary, and the stuff they say they want to do (whatever it was - shining a light, highlighting, championing, all those things) might actually get a look in.

Lynda07 · 22/06/2020 19:15

Viviennemary

The whole thing was ridiculous. What harm would it have done to appear on the steps and wave for a couple of minutes. And release the names of the godparents. I couldn't tell you one of any of William and Kate's children's godparents. Yet with M& H it all had to be a huge secret.
.......
Well the media made it out to be a big intrigue. If they hadn't I doubt anyone would have given it a second thought. At the time I thought it was nice when Harry came out to the press and gave his announcement. I couldn't care less who the godparents are. It seemed quite normal really.

Then the press decided to make an issue out of a non issue.

Shucks.

Inspiralcarpetry · 22/06/2020 19:22

I agree there was an element of game playing around the pregnancy and birth announcements, the lack of showing off of the baby, the secrecy of the godparents, then the odd photo of a foot or the back of a head.
It made a bigger drama out of it than it would otherwise have been and if she wasn't comfortable doing the standing on the steps thing (I get that), a photo of them sitting down with Archie, or even just a pic of Archie if she felt uncomfortable in it herself.
This and many other examples are why if they had maybe done X, the backlash of Y might not have happened.
Whilst Archie's privacy as a child is important, they were at that stage members of the RF and showing an early picture of a royal baby is of great interest to the nation and an implicit 'payback' for all the public money spent on their wedding and security etc.

Samcro · 22/06/2020 19:25

I don't agree about the steps. Don't blame her for that.
But the godparent thing was odd.

Sittingontheveranda · 22/06/2020 19:30

Do we really in this day and age expect an older mother to dress up and have pictures taken just hours after giving birth.
Well done to her for putting her own well being first.

More fool Kate for doing it tbh. She said in a later interview she was shaking doing it. It is unthinkable to even ask a new mother to do that. Diana was the first royal woman to do it. Perhaps it is because they gave birth to the future king and obviousky would have to do the same with all subsequent children to show them they were equally important. There was no need to ever suggest Meghan should do it. I don’t remember there being any expectation of Fergie doing it.

Myimaginarycathadfleas · 22/06/2020 19:36

http://seansmithceleb.com/books/

Here you go, Buttery.

thisenglishlife · 22/06/2020 19:38

looks suspiciously like you (H&M) are aiming to get credit for that show of support. I would be more impressed by some actual concrete support for the charities - e.g. a donation
It's perfectly valid for anyone to point out that other royals have done the same

showing an early picture of a royal baby
They did the Harry announcement to the press with some questions in person, the photocall with Archie and released the photos where they had Archie with the Queen and Prince Philip.

I do think they should have released an clear extra photo of just Archie and the names of the godparents. However, I also think that the media made everything worse as well

HarryDaylight · 22/06/2020 19:41

Thanks botanicalart a very interesting read indeed!

BrieAndChilli · 22/06/2020 19:42

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

derxa · 22/06/2020 19:42

Diana was the first royal woman to do it.
www.hellomagazine.com/imagenes/fashion/royal-style/2019112781211/royal-family-baby-hospital-outfit-pictures/0-391-663/princess-anne-hospital-stairs-a.jpg
Here's a picture of Anne and Zara

Cartesiandebt · 22/06/2020 19:43

I don’t remember there being any expectation of Fergie doing it

Actually Fergie was pictured leaving the hospital too
thebritishmonarchy.weebly.com/uploads/8/3/7/6/83761588/13101800-de05-426f-8488-40e52eaef79d-897-000001141a79dbd3.png

Princess Anne did it first though

Samcro · 22/06/2020 19:44

How do yiu kniw she is lieing?

Sittingontheveranda · 22/06/2020 19:45

If they hadn’t brought so much negative attention to themselves with their behaviour (things they themselves have said and done, not what other people have said or written about them), none of this would be necessary

Not true.
Leaving aside the notion that Meghan is the devil himself blah blah, why do you think they didn’t ‘play ball’ with the public and press? Do you think it could have been anything to do with the negative criticism they received about just about everything just may have caused them to turn against the public and the media?

thisenglishlife · 22/06/2020 19:45

She said in a later interview she was shaking doing it. It is unthinkable to even ask a new mother to do that. Diana was the first royal woman to do it.Speaking about the pressure of knowing the whole world was waiting for updates on her birth, Kate admitted she was "terrified".
I liked that she did do it, but I do feel sorry for her.

This is from the Happy Mum podcast interview that Kate did:

Giovanna asked: "What was it like knowing that so many people outside, after you’ve given birth and you’re in your little cocoon with your new family, what’s it like?"

Kate replied: "Yeah, slightly terrifying, slightly terrifying, I’m not going to lie.

"I like to decompartmentalise - what’s the word – compartmentalise, yes, the whole thing."

"I remember it was one of the hottest days and night with huge thunderstorms so I didn’t get a huge amount of sleept.. I was keen to get home..."

botanicalart · 22/06/2020 19:48

Apparently JM s husband has resigned