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 ?

Edit: on second read, I possibly read that wrong

Oh come off it!!

I hope you don't think it's reasonable doing Oprah shafting the Queen's family when her husband is on his deathbed ? I expect you may have forgotten that little beauty.

@Mumtobabyhavoc I think what they didn’t realize is that some of their interviews and Harry’s book would result in Hollywood celebrities backing away from them, presumably for fear that private conversations could become the subject of future interviews, for example.

It was a risky strategy and it might have been better to just get on with new projects right away. I agree that they can work on what they like, but to make money, they do need to produce content that audiences want to watch.

Ok, but, so what? What rule says she can't make a lifestyle show, or do anything besides charity? They are not working royals.

I think that MM and Harry just speak more truth than most are comfortable with. We tend to like people who shut up and put up. Truth tellers are punished, particularly in systems as dysfunctional as the RF.

Think that poster needs ignoring, they're disgusting and it speaks volumes that more aren't calling them out.

Yes but she wasn't telling the truth?

You didn't read it wrong, they said what they said.

@MakeYourOwnMusicStartYourOwnDance I didn’t read it wrong after all then.

fuck me what a shit show this thread is.

Maybe to you but I don't find spoilt rich men who whine about their lot, are abusive to their polo ponies and are as arrogant and rude as Harry (have you seen how he speaks to people?) attractive.

Oh, sorry – I forgot that after he died he got the rose-tinted PR makeover: just a loveable old rogue with a tendency to make massively racist remarks gaffes! Good old cantankerous Phil, the Queen’s rock, a stalwart, a racist.

Come off what? Criticism isn't abuse.
What's on here goes way beyond criticism.

Have you seen or heard any of the vitriol they put in the public domain?

No "media machine" needed, just their own big mouths.

On the racism accusation do you mean? I have a strong sense that she was. We will never know exactly what went down. I mean he does have form doesn't he for racist gaffes. The media certainly perpetuated racist sentiment towards her.

Says who? Were you there? This is why does my head in. You’re all calling them liars when you don’t even know the other side of the story 😂 for all you know it could all be real. Utterly bonkers so many people are willing to die on this hill and you have literally no idea what’s real and what isn’t.

The irony.

I have a lot of sympathy for them. The royal family sound toxic AF and that was long before Meghan entered the scene or before Harry was even born. But neither Harry nor Meghan has coped well with the family's generational toxicity and they were not the only ones. Many family members have struggled over the decades, but stayed in the family because they had a pretty good idea what would happened to them if they left.

Meghan and Harry did leave. I guess they thought it was the lesser of two evils. But being as high profile as they already were, they will forever be targets. The will be targets for those who love the royal family and they will be targets for the press.

Many of us have left toxic families ourselves, but we can retreat into obscurity. The whole world doesn't know and doesn't care. We don't have to say anything and we can just go on with our daily lives and struggle in private. Meghan and Harry don't have that luxury. What is left of the privilege they had, does not protect them the way anonymity protects the rest of us. Privilege does not make you bullet-proof. However, being high profile means that every mistake gets put under the microscope by every asshole with an opinion and a social media account.

I generally like Mumsnet, but the way people here are gleefully dumping on Meghan and Harry makes me cringe.

Do you mean about the RF? I kind of understand. Harry just wanted someone to hear his experience, so did she. I can understand that. Was it wise? No. Much better in this situation of theirs to quietly walk away IMO, for their own benefit, not because they're necessarily wrong.

On the racism accusation do you mean?

Which 'racism accusation' are you referring to?

Didn't Harry later say they had never accused anyone of racism, and tht that was all lies from the bRiTisH mEDiA?

"Truth" - they wouldn't know "truth" if it smacked them in the face! Didn't Meghan even have to apologise to a court for having lied??!! What about the 'racism' allegation, the wedding-before-the-wedding.... I could go on!

That's actually hilarious.

Where?

Edited as keyboard went weird.

I’ll start again.

I think her show could be a success but I don’t think it will make Netflix want to sign them up for another long term contract. Maybe they can sell one-offs to Netflix but they would need to be very good proposals and I don’t think they will be able to do that. I can’t see another big money five year contract coming their way just because of this cooking show. So what next after that?

Don't you think there's a lot of toxicity associated with Meghan and Harry??!

Which "family member have struggled for decades"? I'm not aware of them?

Meghan and Harry CHOOSE not to "have that luxury"!!!