With Love, Meghan - criticisms and genuine concern for her mental health

[Lavenderfarmcottage]

I am probably going to be flogged for posting this and chased down the dark laneways of Mumsnet as bystanders yell “Shame Shame Shame”.

I weighed in yesterday about a thread on Meghan and her new Netflix show. I made some criticisms about the trailer and certain cliche’s in the way it was produced. Hypocritical of me to be posting this but I feel guilty and have reflected. I am actually looking forward to watching it on Netflix and my criticisms were pretty minor and not exclusive to her show - it’s a common issue I have.

Meghan has struggled with mental health because of criticism. The reaction to ‘With Love… Meghan’ has been fairly brutal.

I think it would be really good if we refrained from saying anything negative about the series or Meghan Markle. That’s not the point of this thread.

I want to know if you think the criticisms have gone too far. The Princess of Wales is not on the scene and we are protective of her rightly so. That leaves Meghan as media fodder though.

Do you think it’s time Meghan and Harry were given a break ? I do. I think we’ve been far too harsh and the criticisms have gotten out of hand.

I think we also forget the cultural relevance. If we went into the homes or Gwyneth, Julia Roberts etc and I would probably feel the divide too. American culture doesn’t apologise for wealth and hollywoood is highly competitive.

Having a confident demeanour, throwing your head back Julia Roberts style when you laugh and unapologetically selling $$$ vagina products like Gwyneth Paltrow is how it over there. People talk loudly and confidently and are polished and rehearsed especially in the
Competitive world of Hollywood…

Are we all being too hard ?

Isn't this what the royal family forum is for? To talk about Meghan's mental health?

If she doesn’t want public scrutiny then she should become a private individual instead of someone who makes a living as a celebrity.

they put themselves out there
deliberately
they sell everything about their lives and commodify it
🤷‍♀️

I think Meghan is treated as she is due to her behaviour. She didn't worry about Catherine's, William's Charles or the late Queens mental health when she did the interview, mocked the courtesy etc did she. Not her father's..

I kind of wish we could just go back to a time where if we like a thing, we watch it , maybe recommend it. If we don’t like a thing we just don’t watch it but assume that some people will like it.
What I will say though is that if you’re constantly in the public eye because you’ve chosen to be there, you also have to assume that some people won’t like the thing you produce and have to have the mental strength to cope with that.

If you make a multi-million dollar TV show then you should absolutely expect to receive reviews. There’s always a risk those reviews are shite. Think of all the Hollywood flops over the years. Should the reviewers have lied to protect the mental health of the people who made the programmes?

if Meghan and Harry don’t want publicity they could go and live a quiet life out of the spotlight. This is a choice they are making every day.

Though she gets more criticism than most actresses or celebrities and it’s usually very personal.

It's very easy not to criticise Meghan, worry about Meghan or give any head space at all to Meghan.

You think they should be given a break but have started yet another thread about them? 24 hours ago you were berating her apparently and now you are contrite? Maybe reflect on why you give two hoots about people you’ve presumably never met, never mind feel the need to discuss them online. Sounds like a “you” problem, not a “we” problem!

People who make reality TV will always get personal commentary, because they are turning their person into a commodity.

Meghan and Harry could do almost anything they want. If what they want is to be reality TV stars, they can expect people to talk about them the way people talk about the Kardashians, or the Osbourns back in the day, or the people on Big Brother.

No, they are both fair game . They are reaping what they have sown.

TV shows and movies put out trailers.

People comment on them.

Presumably you're happy with good reviews for Meghan? The flip side is bad reviews.

She didn't have to make this series, she chose to. And no doubt would have liked good reviews. But needs to accept it has had bad reviews.

I didn't even know there was a new Netflix show, but now you have told me, I might not be able to resist watching and probably laughing.

Megan is courting publicity. That is and always has been a double edged sword.

I don’t think I’d want to be out of the spotlight in her shoes or his. Meghan took enormous risks choosing Hollywood over a safe life path. She eventually found fame and built a fairly solid career. She gave that up for a family that expected her to be a supporting act for very little pay or benefit in the context of a) their wealth and b) her capacity to earn otherwise.
Why would she want to give up on a career and her previous dreams given up for the 🤴

Harry has never had anonymity and could never have a normal life. He was never going to retire in Nantucket and catch clams off a boat or get a job at Walmart. They needed something to do with their lives and its fairly impossible to ever hide.

The trailer is hilarious!

Lol

To clarify it’s not just reviews of the content it’s complete character assasinations. The comments about how she’s blown off her family. I would find that so hard and hurtful - her family is fairly complex. These are character summaries about how contrived she is, it’s fairly intense.

I think this would be better discussed in the topic

Im sure Meghan knows full well that you cannot control reactions to what you choose to put in to the public domain. She chose to make this series, the trailer is now out and of course it will be discussed (just like so many other programmes are - look at the threads in Telly Addicts, which frequently begin weeks before a new series is due to air).

And she’s on a hiding to nowhere if she thinks people should not say what they think.

There cannot be a full picture until 15/01, but the trailer has sparked reaction. Mainly that it’s pretty underwhelming (from the British pov) not least because it seems to be so close to Emma’s Kitchen, but mainly because it’s hitting the wrong note during a COL crisis and is poorly timed (in the month when it’s all dieting and clean living) plus of course she has no obvious credibility in these areas.

If, as you suggest in OP, her MY is in a poor state and she cannot cope with anything even mildly critical, then perhaps this is not the right field for her

Hmmm. With the support of her parents (including the father she has cut off) she seems to have had the support she needed to pursue an acting career for a number of years.

She was moderately successful in one show, which was coming to an end.

She was given the option of continuing her career after marriage, but chose to be a 'working royal', with the constraints as well as the privileges that brings.

They can and do fly under the radar when it suits them.

She is the author of her own mess and the criticisms she receives. She couldn’t care less about the feelings or mental health of all those she stabs in the back. I have zero sympathy for her.

I don’t think the criticism of her is any more noticeable than any other celeb who puts themselves in the public eye to be fair.
I mean she was never going to be overly popular in the U.K. after slagging off the royals was she?
The only thing that surprises me is how often their shows and things are in the news, given how mundane the things they do are.

If she cant stand the heat, why does she keep jumping back into that fire. Its not something id watch. But people just seem to dislike her. Everything seems to flop

The liar has never once stopped to consider anyone else's mental health, in fact she loves to ride roughshod over everyone she comes into contact with. So quite frankly she deserves what she has sown.

I agree with a PP, they are reaping what they have sown. They have both really upset multiple family members.

For a couple who wanted privacy they have gone a strange way about it. They have a desire for attention and will do anything to achieve it, and then are upset when they receive negative press etc. you always run the risk of this when you put yourself out there.

I think they make a nice couple, they have the children they both wanted. Why don’t they just enjoy their lives without all the angst and pressure.