More News on Harry and Meghan

[Viviennemary]

Two little bits of news I read today. First the bells won't ring out at Westminster Abbey for Meghans birthday next month and she'll be devastated. No I don't think she'll even expect them to ring. And I had to smile at Bogart the dog was left behind in Canada because it didn't take to Harry. What else could she do. Hardly leave Harry behind. And it would have been a worry with a baby in the house too. She did the right thing here.

[mrscampbellblackagain]

Kate is upper middle class but her parents are largely self made (although a family trust to pay for education allegedly)

Definitely not aristocracy though.

[mrscampbellblackagain]

There was so much snobbish stuff about Kate and her family in the press for years. And that recent tatler article was super snobbish about her too.

[Rainbunny]

One thing that Dominic Lawson mentions in his article that I think is useful to remember, is that When Phillip first married the Queen and entered the royal household he also was treated very badly by the courtiers, apparently they were "beastly" to him (I can't imagine any courtier daring to treat Philip this way but apparently they did). That revelation does help me understand how difficult MM must have felt in trying to deal with them and of course she wasn't raised in royal circles the way Philip was.

Still doesn't excuse H's actions though, he should have been a better guide for MM instead of throwing tantrums every time their plans were frustrated.

[BarleylemonPenguin]

I haven't read much more than a few extracts in the media but it's very obvious that they have been royally stitched up, and the fallout is going to just keep on falling. This story definitely "has legs" because it has every single human failing rolled into one enormous package. The couple that roasted (and skewered and stabbed) the golden chicken goose.

[thisenglishlife]

@Figgygal

Dear lord how much coverage is there on this in the daily fail today? Insane

They make a lot of money from H&M stories - the clicks and engagement mean that advertising space sells well

[SunbathingDragon]

I think H&M genuinely feel hard done by but their reasons seem very petty to many people at the best of times. The fact this book has come out during a pandemic when lots of people have huge health or financial worries, just makes them look so much worse.

They badly misread the public in complaining about much of this and with the timing.

[mrscampbellblackagain]

The DM are surely going to exploit this book in their legal case with MM.

[SunbathingDragon]

I haven’t seen the DM today although I can imagine numerous articles on there, but I expect the paper is revelling in how badly this has all backfired on H&M and enjoying pointing it all out to their readers. H&M have made an enemy with the DM and it won’t work in their favour.

[TofinoSurf]

the non anti posters are not posting as they have been hounded of the H&M threads. there is no point posting on the "positive" thread as it just leads to more of the same.

Hounded off the threads? Bit dramatic Samcro! Nobody has said you can't post or that you have to leave. People disagreeing with you is not hounding. Interesting though that it's only since the book extracts have been published that nobody seems to have anything positive to say to support them. Surely they need your support now more than ever?

[ArriettyJones]

I’m not quite sure how to do Telegraph share tokens. Does this work?

www.telegraph.co.uk/men/relationships/harry-meghan-seem-bring-worst/

[Rainbunny]

I actually feel rather sorry for H&M right now. I still find them, particularly H, insufferable but I think their attempts to establish themselves in LA are going to be hit negatively by this book. As much as they pretend not need it, they both know any status and interest in them derives from their royal titles (hence the fight over 'royal') but it's going to be hard to cover themselves in the sheen of royalty when their constantly suing people and clearly using books to air their grievances at the RF.

Their "star power" is lessened by the public knowing they are fighting with the institution that gave them their status IYKWIM. The idea that they are part of this special family is what makes people care (sorry H it isn't your recent wokeness) but if they're the black sheep of the RF now, that special sheen is greatly diminished.

[mrscampbellblackagain]

Very true @Rainbunny

[LadyPerseverance]

I honestly don’t have a clue how lawsuits work but surely Meghan’s history of leaking info to the press/paparazzi and the fact that they lied publicly about such a trivial thing (the proposal) won’t look good or might even go against them in their legal cases? If she has to give testimony in court won’t this paint her as an unreliable witness?

[StartupRepair]

I find it so disingenuous to complain that Kate was cold at the Commonwealth service. This was after H and M had released their staggering website, insulted the Queen and made it clear that they had no intention of supporting Charles, William or George in their future roles.

[YouSayWhat]

The moral of this story is “Never. Trust. A. Journalist.”

[AnneOfQueenSables]

I don't think the Telegraph article is fair. It seems to miss that becoming a husband and a parent could have negatively impacted Harry regardless of who he married. He struggles with his MH; he lost his DM early in awful circumstances. Becoming a husband and parent could have triggered a crisis. Likewise M left her job, her country, became a wife and mother. Either or both of them could have had depression or PND. The tragedy is none of them had close enough friends to suggest stepping back from the precipice of leaving the RF until they had emotionally dealt with all the life changes. They had already withdrawn too much from their families for relatives to urge caution and be listened to.

[CallmeAngelina]

I cannot for the life of me imagine why Meghan thought that Kate would want to merrily smile and chat with her at that Commonwealth service.
How blind must she be?

[CallmeAngelina]

Arrietty, No, sorry, that link greys out after the first paragraph.

[OVienna]

I agree with much from the Dominic Lawson piece and I do think the shocking revelation of this whole tale is exactly that: how little Harry knows about the workings of the Royal Family. The irritation about having to bow to his brother is speculation but where it is visible in my opinion is the financial and security arrangements they announced themselves. It seemed so neat and tidy to them - living on two continents, half in and half out, etc. The clear distinction between public and private funding, as they saw it. All it did was highlight how little Harry knows about what goes on behind the scenes to make things 'happen' for him and how the whole shop is generally run. The Windsors aren't the Rockefeller family - the things around him are either owned by the state (okay, Crown) or supplied by the state, or grew because the state wasn't taxing them. That includes his homes, his security, his access to staff who supply important context and help with decision making. He has no idea at all what that sort of experience and support costs in the real world if you had to assemble and pay for it yourself.

I don't agree Meghan is blameless here. I think she did think that her advisors like Sunshine Sachs could do better than the palace in promoting them and for sure I think she took one look at what her 'platform' in the UK was going to look like as part of the RF and thought they could do better.

[BarleylemonPenguin]

The tragedy is none of them had close enough friends to suggest stepping back from the precipice of leaving the RF until they had emotionally dealt with all the life changes. They had already withdrawn too much from their families for relatives to urge caution and be listened to

Actually, one of the big battles in all of this is the fact that plenty of people, relatives and otherwise, did advise them to slow down, take some time out, regroup, stand back. Isn't it exactly this advice that has caused some of the major fractures within the family?

[CallmeAngelina]

We need a new thread!

[Thisfucker]

How could Catherine have caught Megan's eye? Meghan was too busy working out where the cameras were, then she spent time grinning at them.

[EvilPea]

Oh I’ve been deleted for showing genuine concern for them and where they go from here.

[LadyPerseverance]

Colin Campbell’s book lays the majority of the blame at Harry’s feet. Whilst she’s not very complimentary about Meghan she does paint her as a perfectionist and eager to learn the ropes. She wanted to be instructed so she didn’t make social faux pas as she is very image conscious. It was up to Harry to teach her stuff about etiquette, hierarchy and general British culture and attitudes, but he failed to do this. Rather than correcting her misdemeanours or advising against certain things, he just let her blindly do whatever she wanted (which would cause problems at a basic level ie culture clashes) and whenever anyone spoke up about it he dismissed them as being snobbish or racist. His attitude was ‘whatever Meghan wants, Meghan gets’ making Meghan think that this was the case.

She explains it really well regarding the tiara fiasco and her treatment of royal staff. It’s all things that could have been avoided if Harry had explained the way things worked from the beginning. It was his duty as the royal to educate his wife to royal standards and help her fit in. Instead he just pandered to her every whim and played the victim when he didnt get his own way. I must say he comes across as very spoilt and deluded about his own self importance. I wonder if he’s always been like this?