Strangest bits in Spare…

[Motorcycleemptyness]

i haven’t quite finished it yet but I wanted to read a thread about some of the weirder bits of Spare, and I haven’t seen a thread where people were discussing those without the ‘H&M’ vs the rest of the RF debate. There are definitely some parts which have made me really question why they were included, and I was wondering if anyone else had any similar thoughts.

The inclusion of the imagery of the poppy fields, and how heroin funds the Taliban. Fair enough. We all know that. The rest of the book is one long ode to posh people taking drugs. Does Prince Harry think the cocaine he takes is gently knitted by fairies and delivered to him by unicorns? Do the drugs he takes not contribute to war and terrorism and misery across the rest of the world (and indeed misery and crime in the UK, where he is 5th in line to be monarch!) I found this quite a strange passage and I was wondering if anyone else had any thoughts, or am I just over thinking it?

Elizabeth Arden cream. ‘Mummy’s lips’. ‘Todger’. Why? But really, why? Why was this included? Why did anyone think it or commit it to paper, and then publish it? Why did I read it? Why am I typing it here? ARGH.

What he actually thinks the relationship between the royal family and the press should actually be. Only reporting true things? Someone had a photo of him taking cocaine. Dressed as a nazi. Calling his colleague a ‘P*ki’. He wasn’t happy, but it was all true. Should journalists not be allowed to report true things? Or should they only be reporting things he wants them to report? Does Andrew get to choose that too? What about everyone else?

What the actual royal family should look like. This was mind bending. He seems to be perfectly happy with the idea of the monarchy, an institution which is predicated on the idea that they’re inherently superior to the rest of us, and that’s their birth right, but seems to massively struggle to apply that to himself and William. If a monarchy is the best system, why shouldn’t the heir be treated differently to the spare? (I don’t believe it is the best system and wish we could abolish them all but I don’t understand how one can believe one but not the other!).

Anyone else have any interesting thoughts?

I may have imagined it, but I think I read somewhere that Meghan wanted Harrison as his first name🤔. God knows what the foundation would have been called then 😂. I’ll go and see if I can find a source

Found one here. It’s only the report of a conversation, so maybe not very reliable not does confirm the son of Harry thing though

I think a sister foundation* should have been opened in Lilibet’s name too...best get on to that soon, H & M, otherwise she might end up feeling like a bit of a spare!

*Mind you then we’d have to listen to twice the guff about their plans for ‘good works’, so maybe not.

The Dianasdottir Foundation coming to a sick bucket near you soon.

Or maybe they could open an online gambling site “Lilibetwell”. I’ll get my coat 😆

She talked about her miscarriage and you think she doesn't want to reveal the gory details of pregnancy to cultivate a cool girl image? Fgs.

She has told at least two versions of the miscarriage story at this stage. The one in the article and the one in Netflix. The one in the article she was pottering about picking up socks and getting Archie up when she collapsed rocking and singing to keep the baby calm and in Netflix she said it was their first day in their new house when her former suits co star turned up to help them unpack (LOL AS IF) and she collapsed. I’m not saying it didn’t happen but she doesn’t seem to recall what did happen.
I think more prosaically Meghan is saving the full throttle birth stories for her book - when she will have kept how bad it was from harry to protect the poor soul or because he was off his chops and hadn’t a clue what happens, will depend on whether they are separated or not when it comes out! The racist royal will be in there too no doubt. They didn’t really have that much material between them

Is it just me, or was there something very inappropriate about PC walking MM down the aisle at her wedding?

Was there NO ONE from her side of the family? Surely, if she is a feminist (or is that no longer woke?), she would have had her mum give her away? Or even a friend? Like Serena Williams or Oprah Winfrey (lol).

Well, @Frezia , let's look at what she (very movingly) said about it.

“I knew, as I clutched my firstborn child that I was losing my second,” she wrote. “Hours later, I lay in a hospital bed, holding my husband’s hand. I felt the clamminess of his palm and kissed his knuckles, wet from both our tears. Staring at the cold white walls, my eyes glazed over. I tried to imagine how we’d heal.”

She added that “watching her husband’s heart break as he tried to hold the shattered pieces of mine”, she realised that the only way to begin to heal “is to first ask: ‘Are you OK.’”

(I lifted the quotes from a Guardian article about it because I don't have an NYT subscription.)

It's not gory, not that I would expect it to be. It's in a more poetic register - which is exactly what I said her parenting book would be like. I'm not going to address the suggestion that some of the miscarriage article was plagiarised but you can find side by side comparisons if you want to; I genuinely don't care enough to check the dates of publication etc

I don’t think it was inappropriate, I actually think it was a very kind gesture to show she wasn’t alone and welcoming her to the family. However I think Meghan would have by far preferred to have walked alone all the way - all eyes on her! She chucked her mum out of the car before they got to the chapel so she could walk in alone. Of course it would have been amazing for her mum to walk her down the aisle or any of her black relatives. Wonder why Meghan didn’t go for it 🧐 it’s hardly unknown now for a mum to escort a bride down the aisle

Maybe her mum didn’t want that role!? I certainly wouldn’t with millions watching. I think it was said in one of the interviews or Netflix that she asked Charles to do it .

I thought it was a very kind gesture to walk her down the aisle. Did he not also take Dorias arm when they were going to sign the register?

I honestly cannot think how people would see it as inappropriate, esp at such a high profile event been shown live to millions, few people are used to having that much focus on them

I thought it was lovely. I thought he looked genuinely proud and happy to be walking his son’s bride down the aisle; I thought it was a nice gesture, too, that he took Doria’s hand/arm so warmly, showing that he knew she might be feeling quite overwhelmed coming out of the church into the public gaze all on her own.

Maybe that’s true about her mum, but given they have spilled their guts about every thing else you’d think it would have been mentioned that her mum had turned down the opportunity

Sorry, I meant that for the goady person, not you. Ma g apologies blossomtoes 💐

Yes tbf to him I think he really did v well that day.

I think “inappropriate” is used so often now that it’s lost all meaning.

It was a kind and generous “Welcome to the family” gesture.

No problem. I’ve done that myself.

No it's not inappropriate. She didn't want her father so she had her husbands father. Being a feminist doesn't mean blasting any man out of your life, and we don't have scrutinise every detail. I thought it was sweet, just a shame things didn't work out with family relationships.

Fertility rates falling across a population does not mean that it will be impossible for all women over 40 to get pregnant. Some will get pregnant easily, some will take some times and made need some help and some will find it is too late. Some people having children after 41 doesn't mean fertility levels don't fall.

@Mingmoo Does the language she used make any difference? She talked about a very personal and hurtful experience many women feel unable to talk about, one that still carries some stigma in the society and sadly causes many women who experience it to feel guilt and shame. She likes her flowery language but perhaps it gives her comfort. You said she vetoed descriptions of her pregnancy to maintain her cool girl image. If you were a royal bride (or anyone, but especially someone whose pregnant body was dissected in the media) would you Instagram your swollen feet or talk about your piles or perineal tears?

@Eyerollcentral Maybe she got confused, maybe both things happened on the same day - not sure how that relates to the "cool girl" stuff?

TW miscarriage
I didn’t say anything about cool girls. Hmmmm maybe she did. Don’t know how you can have a miscarriage twice with the same baby on the same day though.
She said in the first version she knew she was losing her second baby as she was holding her first. Seems harry and her both have very unreliable memories though. Makes them not very credible

in the interests of balance (and needing another trash read as distraction) is the book revenge any good? I’ve seen courtiers mentioned a few times, so trying to pick one…

Courtiers is very good. I recommend it.

@Mingmoo if true re: plagiarism, that’s um, ‘interesting’.

if M decided or contemplated using a surrogate for any pregnancy, hypothetically, could she admit it? And how to tackle its controversy?

I do know of less successful actresses via work in the USA who routinely freeze eggs mid 30s esp if not in a relationship or wanting to leave the profession/series soon. Their reason was so they could continue to work & preserve figure as they saw it. I was surprised how open they were about it but it seemed very accepted within their circles.