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The royal family
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I can’t understand that she knew ‘nothing’ about royal protcal

154 replies

Slimmer2018 · 06/01/2023 18:37

It’s normal practice to brief your partner on your family’s habits when initially introduced. What to talk to about with dad (football, golf, cars etc) what granny likes (bingo, knitting etc) I’m being stereotypical here but my point is - surely Harry must’ve briefed his future wife on what happens in the ‘family’ I can’t understand why Megan says it was a surprise to her that she had to curtsey to grandma and that she felt it was formal behind closed doors - Harry had lived that life so why was it such a shock to Megan?? What did she expect?? My thoughts are that she wanted to make changes that really couldn’t be made. To me I feel she just didn’t want to conform to the royal family from the outset. You can’t break hundreds of years of tradition as she tried to do… and I don’t believe she hadn’t researched…

OP posts:
LavenderHillMob · 07/01/2023 14:03

Surely it's courtesy - wherever you live in the world - to treat your in laws with respect and to take your cues on how to behave from them?

Antst · 07/01/2023 14:09

@LavenderHillMob, well, that applies to everyone else in the family too.

SheilaFentiman · 07/01/2023 14:13

wouldn’t you go to hug, say, your brother’s new girlfriend the first time you met her? I probably would. Certainly pre covid, I would. I wouldn’t see her as an in law to defer to, though I would be fine with an “ooh, I’m not a hugger, but lovely to meet you”

spanieleyes · 07/01/2023 14:16

My sister has been married for over forty years, we are very close but I have never yet hugged my brother in law!

bakalava · 07/01/2023 14:34

sausage767 · 07/01/2023 13:15

@Antst you state she ‘dressed appropriately and adhered to protocol’.. from the very start she didn’t. Her first engagement with the Queen, she was advised to wear a hat. Which she didn’t, and very quickly her hair looked like a rats nest. And she made several protocol snafus such as pushing in front of the Queen.

Then they were off to Australia, where she did a walkabout in a completely see through skirt that showed her underpants, and behaved abhorrently to her hosts (the Governor General) and his staff.

Perhaps she couldn't help it in which case, this was not the marriage for her and she should have left it alone. In pursuit of the high life, she has demoralized and attacked a lot of people.

purpledalmation · 07/01/2023 14:40

they were together for 18 months by the time curtseygate arrived. Its BS to say she knew nothing. Like he would have said 5 minutes before meeting the queen, oh by the way you need to curtsey. Perhaps she thought he was delusional and not really a prince? The look on his face as she does the Netflux bow shows utter contempt because he knows she is lying. She also had a 30 page dossier from royal staff on how to behave, so she knew exactly what to do.

bakalava · 07/01/2023 14:44

She wanted to merch the royal brand for personal gain, she had US based advisors retained for this purpose. They have now given it their best shot. Interviews and the printed word do not produce the same impact. Those icky revelations would kill even the most golden of romances.

Twizbe · 07/01/2023 14:55

SheilaFentiman · 07/01/2023 14:13

wouldn’t you go to hug, say, your brother’s new girlfriend the first time you met her? I probably would. Certainly pre covid, I would. I wouldn’t see her as an in law to defer to, though I would be fine with an “ooh, I’m not a hugger, but lovely to meet you”

No! I'd smile lots, be very welcoming but, no I wouldn't hug anyone the first time I met them

ily0 · 07/01/2023 14:57

dropthevipers · 06/01/2023 18:43

The notion that she didn't so much as Google "British royal family" let alone get the low down from Harry has to be utter nonsense-you would have to be a complete idiot not to, and whatever else is, she is not an idiot.

And if she didn’t then it’s her own fault for no knowing anything, she’s a forty year old woman for goodness sake, she’s not a teenager like Diana was.

marcopront · 07/01/2023 15:14

In her place I would have watched the Crown with Harry and asked him if it was accurate.

ZeldaWillTellYourFortune · 07/01/2023 15:30

SheilaFentiman · 07/01/2023 14:13

wouldn’t you go to hug, say, your brother’s new girlfriend the first time you met her? I probably would. Certainly pre covid, I would. I wouldn’t see her as an in law to defer to, though I would be fine with an “ooh, I’m not a hugger, but lovely to meet you”

No, i did not hug my boyfriend's family at first meeting. Nor ever, even after four years.

ZeldaWillTellYourFortune · 07/01/2023 15:32

defi · 07/01/2023 12:48

I didn't think they Curtsied behind closed doors. I thought in the privacy of their own homes they'd unclench.

Perhaps they enjoy the rituals and protocol. Not everyone aspires to be Onslow.

Florissant · 07/01/2023 15:40

PipinwasAuntieMabelsdog · 06/01/2023 18:44

It's bull shit. MM had a degree in international relations and worked at the UN briefly, likes to paint herself as intelligent, yet she expects people to believe that the status and behaviour of head of state and future heads of state was a surprise? Hmm She obviously thinks all Brits. are as gullible as her husband!

Nope. She has a degree in Theatre and International Studies - not IR, which is a totally different subject. She had a six-week internship at the US embassy in Argentina that her uncle (who she did not invite to the wedding) arranged for her. She did not work at the UN.

BellePeppa · 07/01/2023 16:02

MagpiePi · 07/01/2023 08:56

I don't think a quick curtsey the first time you greet a royal in a family setting, in the UK is any more weird than American children calling their parents Sir and Ma'am.

Yes, we all have our strange little ways. If Harry and Meghan had visited the Emperor of Japan I dare say there would have been a fair amount of bowing going on, I doubt they would have come back complaining about it.

HolidayHideaway · 07/01/2023 16:13

tattychicken · 07/01/2023 11:28

I can't understand it either OP. She is known to have a strong work ethic and attention to detail in all other matters. T's crossed and I's dotted.

Why did she not apply this when making the biggest decision of her life, joining the RF? Baffles me. Confused

I feel she did, the ‘Suits’ job, just one & not strongest example. She didn’t land it by happy chance, imagine the competition & the groundwork.

She’s an A type personality I think, spreadsheets & plans par for course, and for that reason alone I think she knew what she was doing re: a personal & professional strategy. Then as now.

BellePeppa · 07/01/2023 16:22

Florissant · 07/01/2023 15:40

Nope. She has a degree in Theatre and International Studies - not IR, which is a totally different subject. She had a six-week internship at the US embassy in Argentina that her uncle (who she did not invite to the wedding) arranged for her. She did not work at the UN.

Show quote history

Theatre and a degree with studies in the name doesn’t seem particularly highbrow for someone who likes to emphasise her smartness (and nerdiness). Nothing against those subjects per se but why not physics or chemical engineering rather than ‘soft’ subjects for such a nerdy brain box🤔

XanaduKira · 07/01/2023 16:26

thebellagio · 06/01/2023 19:28

I’ve said for months this is all Harry’s fault, he didn’t help her at all

from what I can gather the meeting between m & w & c started badly. He told her it was a casual meeting, hence the bare feet/jeans/hugs. He’s tried to slag Willy off saying he was uncomfortable with Meghan hugging him, why the Fuck didn’t he say to Meghan, FYI, my bro isn’t used to hugging people he doesn’t know, and if he only wanted it to be casual why didn’t he text his bro and say “mate, I want to introduce you as my brother not a future king, can we be relaxed and informal tonight pls?”

no matter how you spin it, Harry is the shitty factor for both Meghan and William/Catherine

I've said this all along also. It's entirely his fault - he didn't prepare her properly, he didn't get her help for her mental health issues (when he's able to get mental health support for himself) and he didn't explain the hierarchy or how things work generally (including how vile the British press can be and ensure she had support to deal with their onslaught).

Not saying the others are entirely blameless as I've no clue what has gone on, but from what Harry has said himself, it's al clearly on him (& him alone!)

Tamarindtree · 07/01/2023 16:27

There are photographs of her as a child pictured with photos of the royal family on her bedroom wall. Friends and family say she had a keen interest in the British Royal family when she was growing up.

There are also photographs of her as a young woman, not sure if she was a teenager or older but standing in front of Buckingham Palace with her friends that she’d been on a trip to London.

I do not believe that she did not realise she had to curtsey to the Queen and only found out a few minutes before she was introduced to her.

BellePeppa · 07/01/2023 16:28

SheilaFentiman · 07/01/2023 14:13

wouldn’t you go to hug, say, your brother’s new girlfriend the first time you met her? I probably would. Certainly pre covid, I would. I wouldn’t see her as an in law to defer to, though I would be fine with an “ooh, I’m not a hugger, but lovely to meet you”

I hugged my son’s new girlfriend but they are very much younger than me and she was a bit nervous. I’m not a natural hugger though (but far from ‘cold’). I’ve never hugged my sister’s husband even though they’ve been married for fifteen odd years and I get on fine with him. To be honest when I hug people it never feels natural to me I have to ‘fake’ it but not in a horrible way. I don’t need hugs either. The only people I have ever felt natural hugging are my children.

bakalava · 07/01/2023 16:31

BellePeppa · 07/01/2023 16:22

Theatre and a degree with studies in the name doesn’t seem particularly highbrow for someone who likes to emphasise her smartness (and nerdiness). Nothing against those subjects per se but why not physics or chemical engineering rather than ‘soft’ subjects for such a nerdy brain box🤔

Show quote history

She tried and failed to secure a permanent position at the embassy. I don't think nerds colour coordinate the books on their shelves either.

Florissant · 07/01/2023 16:38

She tried and failed to secure a permanent position at the embassy.

Inaccurate. She failed the foreign service exam. Not the same thing at all.

XanaduKira · 07/01/2023 16:38

I agree with you @BellePeppa - I'm not a hugger (other to my DCs & my parents) and absolutely hate hugging people I don't know. It was one good aspect from covid for me that 'natural huggers' stopped, so I didn't need to fake it or appear rude by saying I'm not a hugger!

OzziePopPop · 07/01/2023 16:39

Calmdown14 · 06/01/2023 19:19

I'm starting to think she's played a master stroke here.

The ground work is laid for people to be quite sympathetic to her leaving him in the future should she chose to.

I don't know she's that smart and don't really go in for conspiracy theories but I'm struggling to see why anyone would do this otherwise

Yup, and she had evidence of most of the world believing him to be mentally unstable… wouldn’t want the kids around that!

bakalava · 07/01/2023 16:40

Florissant · 07/01/2023 16:38

She tried and failed to secure a permanent position at the embassy.

Inaccurate. She failed the foreign service exam. Not the same thing at all.

So even worse in that case. Okay 😂was a good indicator that she would fail as a Royal too.

SimonandGarfunkel · 07/01/2023 16:40

@Antst - please tell me more about what the "average Brit" would and would not do. I am intrigued as you seem to have such a grasp on our negative, nasty culture.