As Ever Part 6: Definitely NOT a trad wife

[Strudie]

Previous thread here: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/the_royal_family/5286597-as-ever-part-v-two-stunt-lemons-with-love-meghan

Carry on! Reviews from the US are trickling in, so far, not so good - https://variety.com/2025/tv/reviews/with-love-meghan-markle-netflix-duchess-of-sussex-1236327469/

I’ve just checked my USA Netflix and the show isn’t yet in the top 10.

Can't be much of a friend is she's not aware of her friend's surname! Which is why this bit was either scripted, to allow Meghan to announce to the world she is no longer a Markle; or an unscripted snark that Netflix thought was too juicy to leave out of an otherwise dull show. Judging by the look on Mindy's face, I'm thinking the latter.

A poster on the other thread made the excellent point in regard to this.

That Mindy who was on maternity leave and had just had her third child, is known to have an unusual family set up. She has never revealed who the father is and she isn’t in a relationship with him. I think it’s her friend who she worked with on the Office. Obviously it’s a loving family and they’ve had three kids, but it’s not the typical traditional set up. All 5 are not going to have the same surname.

So for Meghan to not only correct her- but make a big song and dance about them all having the same name and that being part of their love story was straight up Meg being a dick to Mindy

Yes, same way Diana wasn't officially Princess Diana (although everyone called her that when she eventually stopped being Lady Di, which lingered for aeons)

She likely had no idea, they’ve met twice (?) in real life.

@IcedPurple and @SpreadingJammyTodgerLove thanks.

I forgot about the Princess Henry detail was aware of that.

Harry and William never had Mountbatten Windsor as a birth certificate name I don't think?

But having checked, Archie and Lilibet did have that put on their birth certificates, presumably as they were yet to be given their own titles being too far from the monarch at the time.

The children had titles. Earl of Dumbarton for Archie and Lady Lilibet. The Sussexes and Scobie doo who was in favour at this time, asserted that they were not going to use titles as they wanted to give the children a “normal” upbringing. Turns out that it was more a case of they didn’t like the tiles the children were given at birth, they preferred to hold out until Prince and Princess were available 🙄

It just jarred with me how she gushed about having the same name as her children, it's hardly unusual!

That was me. I think MM was being passive aggressive and Mindy's face said it all. I also think Mindy was playing a self depreciating "role" though, of a less thin, less pretty, less successful sidekick, completely bowled over by every little crappy thing Meghan does. When the reality is that Mindy is worth a thousand Meghans in terms of talent and achievement, not to mention style and beauty (imo).

And, as life is imitating art, Mindy is Ann to Meghan's Amanda. Ann being a bit scruffy and unfashionable, but also having a PhD and being formerly powerful career woman; plus being kind and super organised in a non showy fashion. Versus Amanda's 3 GCSEs, trad wife existence and cos playing of kind and organised when she is anything but this - rather, she's a user of other people's kindness and organisational skills, and self aggrandises on the the back of other people's work.

What might work for Meghan in future is to champion some of the ‘As Ever’ staff or bring the ‘real’ gardeners & bee keepers to fore.

Thinking of the Clarkson & Kaleb, Gerald dynamic. Clarkson is a controversial figure but Kaleb has allegedly become a millionaire on back of show & there’s much love for Gerald.

‘Meghan, Duchess of Sussex’ I think. HRH has been withdrawn as they are not ‘working ‘ members of the Royal Family. (? Your Grace? Probably just ‘ma’am’.

Odd how obsessive Meghan is about tiltes. There was already a perfectly viable alternative for their children, demonstrated by The Princess Royal and her children: no titles, father’s surname, Zara took her husband’s name on marriage, her children called Tindall. That would have been a respectable ‘progressive’ route if she had fancied it. Meghan could keep her surname as many of us have done in a professional capacity after marriage.

I have Netflix for my DGC but I usually let them navigate it, how do I do a thumbs down?

Ignore, found it.

I wonder what her actual genuine friends like about her?

She keeps portraying herself as so well loved but other than harry I don’t get it at all.
I can see what he likes about her of course, she is his lost mummy in shaggable form and he is so completely psychologically dependent on her that I think he will never leave her no matter what, but what qualities does she have for female friends?
Throughout years of public exposure I have never seen any hint of a sense of humour, intelligence or genuine kindness.
She must have something going for her? It’s very rare that someone has no redeeming qualities at all but she certainly hides them well.
Of course we don’t “know” royals but we do pick up a hint of their private selves and sometimes more than that but has anyone seen qualities in MM (or MS!) which could make and maintain friendships?

Crickey, that would make it worse.....

Harry Sussex
Meghan Markle (or Sussex depending on keep/loose birth name)
Archie Dumbarton
Lilibet Mountbatten Windsor (unless its Sussex as she is a lady of the daughters of the duke and Duchess of Sussex so gets to drop her birth certificate name, but in that case, why give her one)

I'm glad i was just born Jane Smith of nowhere in particular and married John Jones of nothing spectacular. Much easier to know who I am as my authentic self. Less identities.

The Joy of Sussex?

With love Meghan just became to goal orientated, the list of requirements just grew till it achieved little, from food, cooking, hosting, California lifestyle, product placement for as ever, then on top was to show that Meghan was authentic, down to earth, a working mother, positivity and this list could go on for paragraphs. Then the scattered dead flowers on top was the show had to be about love and joy. It was tying too hard

These type of brands need to have a physical presence, a place where ‘As ever’ actually exists.

• So Highgrove products come from Highgrove estate, which people visit.

• Farm shops products are on the large estates or farms, lots of people visit their local farm shop and are prepared to pay a bit extra

• Flamingo estate products has the Flamingo estate in California - the rich and famous can go visit

You have to see the home of the products to be willing to shell out for the big bucks for them.

The reason why this just feels destined for the TK Maxx bargain bin, is that ‘As ever’ isn’t a real place. Is just an interchangable name (ARO anyone?) with faux crest to slap on food products. The exact same type of stuff that you get in TK maxx. They have products from ‘House of Balfour’ …..so that’s an old Scottish surname, so it’s a name picked for heritage and prestige. But the House of Balfour doesn’t exist. It isn’t a real place. They do that with lots of their products.

When it comes to food, you have to know where it comes from. It’s clearly not from her home estate or any estate she owns that you can visit/purchase products. It’s just long life cupboard staples, made in some factory, in some country somewhere .

I think this might be the nail in the coffin. It's the finale of a list of epic fails, no depth, no talent, nothing original and not even a glimpse of being genuine

What else do they have to sell? Who is going to partner them or sign them up for their "services"?

Well the standard grandiose and delusional narc treats 'friends' as objects - they are a transactional stepping stone or provide and audience of 'awe'. People like this often 'kiss up and kick down' - so those she wants to impress du to their 'highher status' or access to something she wants get love bombed so would see her as generous, charming, thoughful .... then there are a few others who supply her with the fawning which is her narc supply.

@Somethingthecatdraggedin7 Ive been wracking my brains to come up with anyone that I have met who is like her, the nearest I can come up with is an old work colleague who always butted in on conversations with something totally irrelevant, used stories that other people had told as her own , had zero sense of humour, always laughed at inappropriate moments, made herself the centre of everything- we always included her in our lunch breaks but she wasn't really very likeable because she just seemed to take over every conversation and make it about herself.

A comment I saw elsewhere on the internet sums it up for me - 'By marrying Meghan Markle and thereby unleashing her on the world, it is in fact Harry who has taken something utterly ordinary and given her a platform where we are subjected to watching her unceasing attempts to elevate herself.'

I also don’t think this has been Megs idea to create these cupboard products. These boring products already existed, they just needed a name and face to sell it and a long tv advert of show off the bog standard products.

I think a company or NF has approached Meg, to sell these long life cupboard products and she’s jumped on board. I don’t think she spent months working out the perfect pancake mix and then set about looking for a factory to make it. We know what a disaster she is at actually carrying things through.

This was a good to go set of products, that Meg has picked from and maybe tweaked. The company/NF just needs Meg to front it and sell it.

Which makes me think, Meg will be giving a large cut of profits to others involved higher up the chain. It’s almost like she’s been pulled into a sort of fancy MLM….she needs to keep selling and she’s starting to look desperate. It’s going to get worse.

You would have thought so but I definitely don't think this will make her give up.

The Only Way Is Sussex?! 😂

Brilliant!