45 minutes

[portocristo]

So Harry flew for 11 hours and then spoke to his father for 45 minutes ? Charles then bobbed to Sandringham by helicopter and Harry checked into a hotel. I mean wouldn't you think Harry would have gone to Sandringham with Charles maybe ?

I'm sure after dinner speaking is lucrative if there is demand for your 'product', but who really is going to pay big money to hear Harry or Meghan speak? What do they have to say that they haven't said a thousand times already?

Didn't Harry get a huge sum just after they left and before lockdown for an after-dinner speech?

Also is it going to be lucrative in the longer term? In 10 or 15 year time are they going to still be asked to make the same old speeches?

I think huge figures were mentioned in the same way as we're told they got 100 million from Netflix. No evidence provided.

In any case, 4 years ago they were in a completely different place. They were fresh and interesting, and there was a lot of curiosity about what they would do next. Now, after podcasts, 'documentaries', books, interviews, pay per view therapy sessions and what have you, we've pretty much seen and heard it all. We know they, or at least she, has been on the books of a big speaking agency for a while, so surely someone would have engaged her by now if demand were there?

I think a lot of folk will want to hear from them but you are right in that it has a limited lifespan - unless you continue to have other things going on in your life that folk are desperate to know about.

I fear some will just want salacious gossip or similar and as you’ve said, they’ve had that out on the stall already. More so from H I think.

I agree, what gave them currency is them leaving the Royal family. Four years on, that's wearing thin and they haven't really established alternative interests people are interested in, other than Invictus for him. But when the King is no longer here and William is on the throne, I wonder if all bets will be off. It feels unlikely the brothers will ever reconcile so Harry may feel there are no bridges left to burn and will start doing more speeches critical of his upbringing and William in particular.

It is a vicious dog eat dog world they have entered and there are so many in that arena. Scanning news today , Meghan is mentioned as definitely not appearing in the new Suits ( whether or not she wanted to is quite another thing) and someone saying that Archewell tried to get in on the production of it - denied strongly by Archewell. There are also articles about Meghan not being on the new Vogue cover of 40 women by her former (?) friend Edward Enninful. Now whether she again wanted to be on it is unknown but it must grate to see all these comments about her not being in it. I guess though it is part and parcel of that life.

And that would be even more of a bloody pity book.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-68245230. I n case you are wondering who the 40 are.

He selected women who he claimed had "reached beyond fashion and culture to change the fabric of society in the 2020s, in ways small and large and always positive".

I'm fairly ambivalent about Meghan, she's only doing what she was taught and trained to do to further herself in her career, and it is a cutthroat business!

I agree @jeffgoldblum this was/is her world and she certainly did all the crap jobs that people in that life often have to do.

I don't think any professional would advise Meghan to behave in the way she has these past 4 years.

Her only real 'selling point' is the royal connection, and that is fading. She was only royal for such a short time and it's unlikely she'll ever be seen in the presence of senior royals again. Without that, she is just another pretty 40 something who used to be in a cable TV show. No shortage of those in California.

She would have been much better off maintaining good relations with the royals, and building some sort of silly 'American royal' 'brand' on the back of that. Because otherwise, what really does she have to offer in an overcrowded celebrity world?

Indeed @mrsmingleton , and I may be feeling more apathetic than usual as I've just crammed an entire box of after eights down my gullet ! 🤣🤣

Oh don't get me wrong @IcedPurple , I don't for one moment she had professional training!
I imagine she had help from her father, his friends and her contemporaries.

I think it would have been difficult for her to go back to Suits.

It may be unseemly to be have a sexy storyline or a troublesome storyline that could create negativity. I think there would be many clauses and that would make for limited storylines and quite a headache for scriptwriters?

That said, I reckon that would have paid an awful lot more than an after dinner speech per episode.

I think her colleagues may be relieved. I think it would have undoubtedly become all about M and nobody wants to be in the shade.

I think looking at the 2 Harry has the better selling point.

Why thank you @Turtlerussell , am beginning to feel it may be something to be proud of instead of something I need to confess under the cover of darkness! 🤣

Sadly I think this is really the point , it's always going to be " prince Harry " actual royalty that opens doors!

He might get more vindictive, but I think that is a recipe for ever decreasing returns. Yes, people like gossip, but petty and spiteful isn't a good look. A crusade for reform is one thing, but when 'reform' turns out to mean keeping all your unearned privileges yourself... well, hypocrisy tends not to get good press.

The height of their support was when they made their veiled accusations that the RF was racist and bullying. It was clever to weave the colonial history of the RF into their NF series alongside their personal grievances, because it again allowed them to position themselves as enlightened modernisers, battling wider injustices.

The trouble is, the evidence for all this has turned out to be rather... well, let's say ambiguous. And ultimately, if your words and actions don't match up we are back to hypocrisy - which doesn't sell widely. You'll always be able to convince a handful of people that it is all a big conspiracy against you, but most people will see through that.

Royalty may indeed open doors, but you still have to prove your worth or opportunities won't be extended to you again. Simply being a prince isn't that interesting unless you are seen at royal events and can somehow maintain the prestige of royalty. Difficult when working as a CHIMPO in provincial California.

Harry's value as a 'royal' is going to diminish. Unless there's a reconciliation, which I doubt, 10 or 15 years from now many will only be vaguely aware that Charles has another son and William has a brother. What interest will there be in a bald ginger man in his 50s whining about who got more sausages 40 years ago?