Meghan at glitzy launch party

[Twistybrancher]

Meghan in LA this week at some fancy launch party. Think these are her friends who own a high end salon.

The wavy hair has made a return, I’m guessing this is the new look she’s going for, for the rebrand. Jury is out out for that particular style- mid parting, flat waves. Thinks she suits a side part, with full waves. But hey!

Personally I like the paired down eye make up look. I always thought the heavy lashes and dark shadows were a bit much for royal duties (I feel Kates is far too heavy on the smokey eye too!)

But it sure does make her look different. I do think ita just make up and not surgery…but other posters are better at spotting these things.

Harry not there. They are her friends, so no real reason but when it’s a social event, doesn’t look great that they aren’t together….again

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-14090659/Meghan-Markle-dances-friends-glamorous-launch-party-Los-Angeles-without-husband-Prince-Harry.html

Can't see Harold 'getting away' with a show reviving all those scandalously buried animal cruelty allegations.

Polo ponies, hen harriers moorhens, water buffalo, deer and grouse hunting as one of the 'Killer Wales'.

Pinning his credentials to this particular mast is insane.

I can't wait 😎

Reality TV is the direction they seem to be heading, certainly. The OW interview and NF series were on that trajectory.

Fair enough, plenty of people make a living from it. I do wonder whether they have - individually or jointly - a 'big' enough personality, once the RF gossip is old news. Maybe. I am not their target market so I don't know much about it.

Is this another of them things folks swear is going to bring him down and dEsTrOy tHeM fOrEvER, it was supposed to be the abuse allegations from African Parks a few months ago.

Anyways, I hope they promote this show properly, the glimpse of drama has great potential.

They are not featured in this, it’s about the lives and family of polo players within a tournament. They just produce it. It’s a smart choice if it works.

Gworrlll, I didn't say attendance. I said clothing and hotel allowance. It's industry rumour of course I don't have proof, who are you, the ghost of Tom Denning? Tuck your outrage away for such time as it may be really needed!

This rumour came from the same YouTubers who claim that Archie and Lili are dolls, that H&M are about to divorce yesterday etc I saw it originate on YouTube and Facebook then repeated ad nauseam on Twitter. They harassed the Invictus team via email until it was denied in writing. Invictus Games monies are well documented on companies house. No outrage, it’s just a shame.

Link?
Genuine question - I can't find it on the IG website

And looking at the last accounts filed in Companies House, there is no breakdown of costs in support of charitable events other than between direct and support.

Quite - no expenses need to be detailed. I read that for the Invictus in Germany, Netflix picked up the huge tab. But I guess they’re not doing that now.

@GiveMeSpanakopita 👏👏👏

The rumour was fuelled by the German government Defence department's response to a request by MP Christian Gorke for a breakdown of the 40m cost of funding for the Invictus Games by Germany.

It showed that 24% of the budget went on security, accommodation and side events. In other words, a 10m slush fund.

Is this another of them things folks swear is going to bring him down and dEsTrOy tHeM fOrEvER, it was supposed to be the abuse allegations from African Parks a few months ago.

Not at all.

Harold's animal abuses were smoothed over for him by the palace machine he so despises years ago. I'm just surprised he thinks a documentary on a cruel sport with his history is a good idea.

Glad you brought up African Parks. Has he broken his silence yet? He did have the perfect opportunity on his recent visit.

The average person watching Netflix doesn’t care. It’s for sure a cruel sport, which anyone watching a show called Polo will know or soon find out. It’s also a cruel sport when working royals are playing for fundraising purposes.

African Parks is investigating as they’ve said many times, Harry is right to ignore the desperate attempts a few to disturb the work they do.

And you realise that security costs with veterans and visiting dignitaries (Presidents, Ministers, NATO reps) would be high?

Accommodations are simply hotel costs paid directly to the establishment.

For 10m you could buy a hotel and house all the athletes.

I wish she’d started by resurrecting The Tig and trying to grow that, then she could have tagged on jam, coffee, hair care and her other investment brands as she went. She had the name recognition already, albeit small, she could have leaned into slightly cheesy taglines like “the Markle sparkle”, rebuilt the social media following that the Tig had. ARO is such a mouthful and the blurry cooking video in the ball gown doesn’t fit the Cali casual, “I hug the princess of wales in torn jeans” vibe; whereas the Tig did match her brand at the time. Really, I think marrying into the RF did her a disservice because it’s a brand mismatch. She never looked right in the flesh-toned tights and frumpy coat dresses, and “Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex” and American Riviera Orchard all feels a bit square peg, round hole versus her earlier vibe with the Tig. I hope it’s not too late for her to draw a line under all the various attempts at things – way too much stuff going on with charities and producing and and and – and start over with one clear idea.

No you couldn’t- athletes alone you are looking at 500+ rooms needed, plus additional staff like coaches, physios, carers for those who’s disabilities mean they need help getting around. Then people who work for IG.

one hotel doesn’t come close to covering it. That’s just housing them, then security - that’s hardly cheap for an event of that size before you even factor in the higher risks associated with it because it’s veterans.

I think this nails it really - it’s all rather muddy. They’re both trying to keep fingers in lots of pies and as a result their image is really confused.

As long as they refrain from slating their families for a few quid I don’t really care what they do. They both have potential in different areas but they need to drop the preachy word salads, mixed messaging, and hypocritical actions/words.

They would need to be brave to stick to a single image/vision rather than trying to constantly dabble but I think it could be really successful if they pick wisely. I’m not a fan of either but they do have potential to carve out a successful niche/brand - but the longer they don’t take advice/piddle around with conflicting things, the more they weaken their image.

I think a fresh Cali vibe and a Tig-style blog would really work for Meghan. IMO, she looks her best when she’s casually dressed. She suits natural rather than glammed up where so often her choices are just a bit off. Contrast to her casual look which she tends to pull off effortlessly. Harry loves Invictus and Africa so focusing on his charity work where he can get his hands dirty and get involved would seem to suit him. Archewell doesn’t seem to be doing much charitable work but time will tell on that front.

Why will anyone have any interest in a documentary that attempts to glamourize the cruel sport of polo for rich people?

If Harry isn't in it there's no reason for royal watchers to watch it.

Let's face it if something is produced by M or H it just means the quality will likely be lower than if professional producers had produced it. A pointless exercise.

African Parks is investigating as they’ve said many times, Harry is right to ignore the desperate attempts a few to disturb the work they do.

AP was first made aware of the allegations in 2013 yet didn't launch an investigation until 2023. The charity that first put the allegations to AP is now concerned the result may be a whitewash:

survivalinternational.org/news/14096

Looks less like Henry ignoring 'desperate attempts to disturb' and more like he's hedging his bets.

What’s happening with Meet Me At The Lake and Pearl ?

They may have no choice but to "keep their fingers in lots of pies" @SecretSoul

Those with real talent and ability can generally afford to rely on one or two areas if their known worth will pay the bills, whereas those who lack it perhaps need more fallbacks if it doesn't work out

Unfortunately with H&M very many "initiatives" has come to nothing, and now it's spiralling down into ever less prestigious ones with the really big names disappearing over the horizon

Edited to add that Netflix said Pearl had been cancelled, @Mylovelygreendress. I believe Archewell still holds the rights to Meet Me At The Lake, but whether it'll ever see the light of day is anyone's guess

Thanks @Puzzledandpissedoff but did I not read that they were offering MMATL to another platform ?

did I not read that they were offering MMATL to another platform ?

I honestly don't know, @Mylovelygreendress, but if true it might perhaps suggest that Netflix don't want that one either, and with their contract up for renewal next year I'd have thought H&M could do with offering something solid

I guess they could always spew some more dirt about the RF from those diaries Meghan "found" when clearing Nott Cott, but then with their credibility completely blown I doubt anyone with sense would believe it anyway

I watched the trailer for Netflix Polo docu. It doesn't bode well for the success of the show. I was expecting that H&M (who are prominently named, under their Royal titles, as Producers) would try to make the game more universally accessible, perhaps by tracking the fortunes of a Man of Colour or working class woman, someone who usually doesn't belong in the elite world of polo, through the game. I thought that something like this would fit well with H&M's brave decision to embody a postcolonial, progressive the twenty first century.

Instead, the trailer shows that the show will be a reality-style show and will endorse deeply culturally regressive and elitist values. They seem to be going for a mix of Jilly Cooper, Succession and Desperate Housewives. But it doesn't work, because:

1. We are briefly introduced to the main characters - very wealthy, privileged, handsome men and women from generational wealth. Since we don't know any of them, I think it'll be hard for audiences to truly like and root for these people.
2. It's deeply sexist. The women are not shown taking part in the sport, but instead, presented as silly girls with no agency - giggling about "sexy rich men, sweating and riding" (yes this is an actual partial quote.). I am amazed that Meghan as an avowed feminist would sign off on this. Especially since she has been quite clear that she knew nothing about Harry before they dated, and didn't marry him for his wealth and position.
3. It's tone deaf to the times. The trailer clearly presents that one of the key 'human drama' plotlines will be from a polo wife, stressed because she's pregnant and needs support but her husband keeps going to Argentina twice a week on his helicopter to do polo. What is a viewer supposed to think? 'I'm drinking through paper straws and paying through the nose for petrol because I'm told I have to save the environment, but at the same time I'm supposed to root for this rich fool who flies from the US to Argentina twice a week?' I'm surprised that H&M, who are very concerned with climate change, and the struggles of ordinary people, would not notice this glaring dissonance.
4. There's little human drama signposted in the trailer. Reality shows HAVE to have elements of human drama to which the viewer can relate. That appears to be lacking in this trailer. There's a pregnancy story mentioned above, but tbh it's so elitist I'm unsure people will relate. The other human drama will, it appears, come from a very wealthy father and son duo who compete against each other. This could work...I suppose? Neither of them seem that interesting but hopefully the full episodes will bring this to life.

I'm surprised that Netflix marketing team signed off on this trailer. It seems elitist, out of touch, but worst of all...BORING. The other two issues could potentially be overlooked by audiences if the drama was interesting. I suppose we'll have to assume that Netflix is saving all the human drama for the actual episodes, although this isn't their usual MO; they're known for making excellent, exciting trailers. It's something Netflix is genuinely good at. Maybe this is the best footage they have?

This is before we get started on the animal cruelty issue. I don't know enough about horses to opine tbh but Peta and many other animal lovers are already pasting the trailer, leading to its being badly ratioed. I suppose if it leads to a proper conversation about the treatment of horses in polo, some good will have come out of it, albeit not the result its makers intended.