PR disasters thread 33

[BigWillyLittleTodger]

A shiny new thread for September Sussex shenanigans!

You said it yourself, PoppysAunt - like everything else it was launched amid a blaze of publicity and never heard of again

IIRC the idea was that she'd recruit 40 women to each give 40 minutes of their time to mentor other women, but perhaps they too had twigged by then that Meghan's only interest was herself

The 40 at 40 initiative was the usual shallow, performative bullshit. 40 minutes of coaching from someone who is not qualified as a coach in any way is not going to help anyone (I speak as someone who has done a lot of business coaching, and being coached too). Matching coach to coachee is a skill in itself, and analysing what the coachee wants to get out of the process would take longer than 40 minutes on its own.

😂

Good post.

It was also very attention seeking. As if her birthday was a big “to do” for everyone.

She only got the gig because Harry agreed to appear.

You forget that Archie's middle name is Harrison. Maybe it was really a sweet nod to the actor? 😁

BTW, not sure if this has appeared on the PR threads, but in that awful video where Meghan showed the interviewer how to make toast, she talked about Grandma Markle's apple butter and put some apple butter (probably purchased) on her toast.

You can buy it in NYC at Farmers Markets. The orchard people usually sell the homemade apple butter along with apple cider donuts ( which are great!), homemade cider, and of course apples.

I'm in a little choir which sings for various occasions and the dreaded 'When I'm 64' was suggested. Some people objected because they didn't want to be thought of as 64, and the rest of us would have been pleased to be 64 again!

Genius bemused! , of course the naming of their son was “ a sweet nod “ to Harrison ford! 😁

I agree with pps - what a shallow, meaningless, vain initiative.

It reminds me of the (what are they called...idents?) bits between some Sky Arts programmes, where mentors/parents and mentees talk about the advice they were given. I now have to mute off this awful, Disney-style word-salad but it could have come out of the mouth of dear Meghan. Examples

Only you can change tomorrow.
Let your self-doubt fuel you.
You're only in competition with yourself.
I just want you to be creative.
There's always room in this industry for someone who wants to change things.

What do any of these mantras even mean? I have a thousand questions!
But I think that's exactly the level that M works on. She'd get a mic, spout this sort of stuff at women/young girls, and think she'd changed the world for feminism.

Do you know what really ticks me off??
“bring your whole self to work!” ……. No ! , no! ….keep it at home! ….im at work, I don’t need to know Brian enjoys sm or that Joyce is particular to various positions…..I’m at work to work…it’s enough to know if someone prefers hobnobs or digestives with their tea!!!

There has been a backlash to the whole self idea:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomaspremuzic/2025/11/17/five-reasons-for-not-bringing-your-whole-self-to-work/

I agree with the author.

Completely agree, both - and thanks for the article @BemusedAmerican.

The best statement from it:

At work, what matters is role-relevant behavior

Definitely!

It's the modern world, though. When I was in my teens/twenties, any daft inanity like these would have been pounced on , and you'd be made to explain exactly what you meant. But now, with counselling/therapy-speak and corporate, team-building jargon being so prevalent, and so much silly stuff on social media, are we just supposed to swallow this sort of word-salad?

It sounds trivial but I think it's a sad sign of the times - we're all going soft in the head, as Capt Mainwaring might have crossly said!

Cookie Queens bought by Paramount

https://archive.is/OF3lr

Very true! , I watched Flash Gordon ( for the millionth time) and was surprised to see it tagged with a warning…this film contains outdated views that may offend…. I watched looking for these outdated views, couldn’t find any and wondered what I had missed that could offend anyone about a fictional sci fi film about aliens and flying people? …I’m still puzzled 🤔

That's horrible!

😂😂

I once worked with a Headteacher who always said "leave problems at the door". Inner city, non selective state school, lots of problems. He said "everyone's got problems, this is about learning". He was great.

It's ridiculous, Jeff, but actually rather worrying on a deeper level. There's an assumption that we're all (dreaded term, but you know what I mean) 'snowflakes'!

Yet at the same time, the f and c words are now pretty mainstream on TV and violence can be quite extreme. I find this very incongruous.

Yes! The films and tv of today contain an awful lot more that I would find offensive, I simply don’t watch…however…my father took me to see Flash Gordon at the cinema as a child….to this day I will never forget the sound of the booming bass and the vibrations throughout the floor and walls when the music started! , I was transported and it started my lifelong love of queen and remains a favourite with me now!

Charlotte Griffith says (at the 24 minute mark) the Diana award dinner gala has been cancelled! that the gala dinner fundraiser, scheduled for the 18th September is cancelled.

It was Harry´s "turn" to attend this year. The room was booked, the entertainer booked - but it was cancelled yeaterday. Charlotte says she will be digging into why it was cancelled.

Palace Confidential: https://www.youtube.com/watch?

So something else that Harry's ruined?

Maybe Harry has finally checked into rehab.

Well that’s the thing autumn , I can’t find anything about this anywhere!
so either Charlotte has a scoop or she’s been misled!
but if true it does seem odd after the tit for tat in the media about whether ham were invited or going or not! 🤷‍♀️

We can all wish! , however it’s probably too much to hope for.