Anyone starting to feel sorry for them?

[Aspargar]

https://archive.ph/vV0f9

No matter how preeningly narcissistic the couple may seem, surely even they must now have realised what the source of their woes is? The fact is: people were only interested in hearing what Harry and Meghan had to say when they were dishing the dirt on the royal family.Hence, in January last year, the record-breakingly vast sales of Harrys memoir Spare. with all its eye-popping claims about his brother, father and stepmother. But every time he, and Meghan, start talking about any other topic – be it sport, jam or social justice – the world turns off. No one cares. Now that the Sussexes have finished flogging all the family secrets, they’ve got nothing that anyone wants.

There is part of me that does feelsorry for them too. I mean 2024 has been a disaster, off the back of 2023 which was another disaster. It’s not going to get any better. Reap what you sow, so we knew it was coming their way but it’s all a bit sad and pathetic now. The faux tours, cards from ‘the office of’, as time goes on, the more pathetic that will look because they have lost all connection to the Royals

This must be their year of reckoning. He won’t win his cases, they will lose Netflix, the brand will face further set backs, they realise that their kids will never have a royal Christmas at Sandringham or summer at Balmoral, ever. In fact they are unlikely to ever meet the King again.

Its all came off the rails. We all knew it would happen. Many could even see the disaster impending from the engagement announcement. But it’s still hard to watch and that’s what makes me feel a bit sorry for them.

Prepared to be flamed! 😬

One might argue that life has always been way more challenging for William who has had all the weight of expectation upon him, in the knowledge that he is destined to be king. That's huge! Harry had none of that - all the privileges without the responsibility!

@atotalshambles
Bari

Sorry total I don't kmow why it went to you.
Wigs it's not a case of either or surely? Harry and William are different people.

I'm pretty sure that William had a shit childhood and carries a lot of trauma too. He handles it differently. It's baffling that people can't see that. Yes they were hugely privileged, but they also had parents who appeared to hate each other. A father who was openly in love with his mistress. A mother who was unstable and who had multiple affairs. A dysfunctional extended family. A mother who was public property and who died in incredibly tragic circumstances when they were still children. And they were then paraded by said dysfunctional family in an act of unenlightened self interest to appease the baying mob. Enough to be going on with, I reckon.

Their family didn't want to 'parade' them, they wanted to keep the boys at Balmoral in privacy and have a private funeral for Diana. They were pressured into it by Blair (and the baying mob).

Yes it was an uncomfortable watch, seeing them walking behind their mother's coffin. They were used by the Rf and the government to curry favour from the public.

'Curry favour'...

Well, the point of a democracy is that public opinion matters. I found the hysteria around Diana's death truly bizarre and unpleasant, but the reality is the government - and RF as a constitutional monarchy - does need to respond to public opinion.

As I said, from what I have read the RF wanted a private funeral for Diana. They gave into pressure for the huge public funeral, and part of that is the men of the family walking behind the coffin as a mark of respect. W & H chose (as much as it was possible for them to choose given their age and understanding) to walk with the men. Philip did the same aged 16 at his sister's funeral.

So I don't think it is quite as simple as the RF carelessly sacrificing W & H to the 'baying mob'. More like a family trying to work.out the best thing to do in completely unexpected and devastating circumstances. And yes, not every decision was right. But equally, if W & H hadn't been allowed to walk behind the coffin, maybe now he would be complaining about be 'excluded' from his mother's funeral.

@Baital "They were pressured into it by Blair (and the baying mob)."
Obviously we have no idea what actually happened. But it is entirely credible that Blair said that the RF would not survive if the "baying mob" were not given what they wanted. So I maintain that the boys (as they were then) were sacrificed for that. Bot just the walk, but looking at the flowers, reading the tags.....

Plus the papers had begun to turn on Diana belt she died and been very critical. To cover themselves she suddenly became a perfect saint and they turned on the family instead.

Neither the media, the public nor the politicians covered themselves in glory during that time.

Obviously we have no idea what actually happened. But it is entirely credible that Blair said that the RF would not survive if the "baying mob" were not given what they wanted. So I maintain that the boys (as they were then) were sacrificed for that. Not just the walk, but looking at the flowers, reading the tags.....

I agree about possible comments around the baying mob, @CurlewKate, and even about "inspecting" the tributes, but find it hard to imagine that Blair as a family man himself would have pressed for the boys to do that almost unbelieveable walk

In any case, having given in over returning to London, that would surely have been the time for the family to say an absolute NO - something which I believe the majority of the public would have backed them over, even with the hysteria at the time

@Puzzledandpissedoff "In any case, having given in over returning to London, that would surely have been the time for the family to say an absolute NO"

Absolutely . That's what I mean by the boys being sacrificed to the "greater good" of RF. I am quite prepared to believe it was the RF's decision- but Blair would have spelled out to them what a dangerous and vulnerable position they were in at that moment of collective national insanity.

My BIL is American. His sister married a millionaire and they live in Montecito. They do not like H&M nor apparently do others in the area.

That said, BILs sister is a wierdo herself....

I wasn't commenting on who they are as people. I don't know where you got that from.

I was merely saying that Harry enjoyed pretty much the same level of privilege without the responsibility or the weight of expectations. He had so much more freedom than William has had.

It's a fact. I don't know what you are not understanding.

Well his own mum thought it was Harry who was having the hard time so...

It must be Christmas or something lol, because for once I agree with you Kate!

Yes, but only because she thought that he might feel inferior to William who was the more 'important'.

That doesn't negate what I said!

No she said it was the way people treated William as the heir and future king.

I believe a lot of the decision was Blair's influence.

The RF was being absolutely demonised for not being in London - which I think was entirely the right thing to do for those grieving boys. I think it was reaching crisis proportions actually and action needed to be taken to address that. They may have been worried for the actual future of the monarchy - it was that bad!

The media sanctified Diana and revolted against the royals.

I think the Queen made her decision reluctantly but based largely on Blair's advice.

And as someone said, I think Harry would now be whining and saying that he was excluded. Maybe they should have been in a car or something - easy to say in hindsight. I think they did what they felt they needed to do at the time to literally save the monarchy.

There are two separate threads here. Yes, people probably did treat William more deferentially as he was the future king, and Harry was not.

However, that in itself will have increased the pressure on William to be a certain way, to behave a certain way. Harry didn't feel that pressure as some of his more salacious episodes demonstrate! He had the same background and privilege as his brother but he didn't have that weight of expectation on him.

I can't understand why you won't see that.

@wigsonthegreenandhatsforthelifting " I think they did what they felt they needed to do at the time to literally save the monarchy"

My point exactly. The boys were sacrificed for the greater good of the RF. No consideration of what would be best for them.

I think the Queen and PP wanted to keep them away from the public gaze. The ill feeling was such towards the Queen for not making some sort of statement that public hostility built and built. What should have happened was for the Queen to have issued a statement and insisted on a quiet private funeral away from the Press. The boys should have stayed at Balmoral until they had to return to school. Of course the Spencer’s were very angry too and their wishes about her funeral had to be taken into account also.

I think it highlights the key problem of democracy - that the mob mentality is so strong. Having said that, I agree in this case with Churchill (I think?) that the best that can be said for democracy is that the alternatives are worse...

I don't agree with you on that point, sorry!

I think there was a lot of consideration of what was best for them - which was why they huddled up in Balmoral to begin with.

I don't think the RF ever wanted the boys to do that walk but they succumbed to public pressure to do it, because they feared the repercussions if they didn't.

I guess that's why Prince Philip said that he would walk with them.

The Queen was then the reigning monarch, and the throne was the birthright of Charles and William. The Queen and Prince Philip devoted their lives to preserving the monarchy. They must have felt that the risk was too great.

I think the 'baying mob' demanding a show of public grief was the problem. It was truly disturbing.

And when the walkabout happened, people sobbing and demanding comfort from W&H, people who never knew her expecting her children to comfort them, rather than being allowed to grieve the loss of their mother FFS.

It was disgusting. But a situation NOT created by the RF.

Such was the strength of public feeling at the time, I don't think the RF would ever have got away with a private funeral. Emotions were at fever pitch. The nation as a whole seemed to be carried away by the notion that the People's Princess was being short-changed in death, and had already been shafted in life.

And yes, Charles Spencer made his feelings very plain at Diana's funeral. I don't think they would have tolerated anything less than a ceremonial funeral. She was after all the mother of a future king.

On a massively smaller scale, and at a greater distance, my 9 and 7 year olds walked behind the coffins at both of their grandparents' funerals. It felt like the right thing to do at the time, and it was what both of them wanted.