People Magazine has yet another Prince Harry-Meghan Markle cover in their latest issue. I already covered the first excerpt from their cover story, which basically amounted to “Harry’s light was on.” As in, Harry was ready to get married before he even met Meghan and he was in a rush to lock this down. But People Mag isn’t stopping there! Their sources also claim that Meghan “wears the trousers” in their relationship. Both literally and figuratively, because one of my favorite parts about Meghan’s entrance into the royal fold is that we’re seeing a younger royal woman in honest-to-God trousers.
Prince Harry’s road to lasting love hasn’t been easy.
“Being a royal has been a romantic curse for him,” says Princess Diana’s former biographer Andrew Morton, the author of Meghan: A Hollywood Princess. Previous girlfriends Chelsy Davy and Cressida Bonas struggled under the glare of the royal spotlight. But Meghan shines under it.
“She is definitely the one wearing the trousers in their relationship,” a royal insider tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue. “She is a strong, opinionated woman who has her own ideas about things, and that’s one of the things he loves about her.”
A star following seven seasons on the USA hit Suits, “Meghan was established before she met Harry,” says the insider. “That’s a first for the royal family. I don’t think Harry was ever going to marry a nice upper-class girl from the [English] counties—it’s just not him.”
Of course, Harry has always held his own and even as a kid could command a room as the impish counterpart to his more dutiful big brother, Prince William. “You’d be a guest at Kensington Palace, and you’d see a plastic rifle come round the corner and a boy dressed in an army uniform,” Morton says. “He used to help the chauffeurs clean the cars and turn hoses on people. He was cheeky.”
Meghan’s self-assurance has made Harry even more confident as they work their way in tandem through the crowds of people who have gathered to see them at every engagement. And Harry’s never been more relaxed or at ease than with his bride-to-be by his side – his hand in hers.
“I don’t think Harry was ever going to marry a nice upper-class girl from the counties—it’s just not him.” True or false? I think if he met a nice upper-class girl from the counties who was truly keen for a certain kind of royal life, he might have considered it. But I suspect that as he got older, he discovered the same thing William discovered during one of his breakup cycles with then-Kate Middleton: those girls settle down pretty quickly, and there are pretty slim pickings within that elite set after a certain age. Harry could have done what his father did, which was stick with the same narrow “nice upper-class girl” criteria and just go for someone very young. But he didn’t do that, because ultimately, I do think Harry wanted to be different and marry a different kind of woman.
Photos courtesy of WENN, PCN and Backgrid.
Wait, didnt Prince Edward’s wife Sophie have a successful career before marrying Edward?
She did. Maybe it’s referring to an established public presence? Idk.
Yep. And she is supposed to be one of the Queen’s favorites.
I don’t like Harry’s choice of bride and the fact that he chose not to get a prenup says he’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer either. Perhaps these two deserve each other.
Firstly, prenups are not legal in the UK.
Secondly, if you think a non-royal will walk away with anything substantive from the royal coffers in the event of a divorce, i have a bridge to sell you. Half-price!!
@ Sabrine
May I suggest 2 possible reasons why Harry isn’t asking for a prenup?
1) Nothing about her says gold digger. As I’m sure you know, she left her first marriage with only her blender…..she sent her rings back and didn’t ask for spousal support. However, if you know a logical reason why she might be a gold digger, please don’t hesitate to enlighten me.
2) Should their marriage fail (heaven forfend), as LAK pointed out, Meghan would be dealing with the BRF as an establishment, not Harry himself and so I think a prenup would be pointless and an unnecessary point of contention.
I feel really grateful and lucky that I’m able to enjoy this couple and feel nothing but delight and optimism for their future.
Bring on the ginger kids! 😬😬😬
@ LAK
Lollll…….I’ll buy the bridge…..if you take off a further 10%
Why don’t you like her? Like, a legitimate, proven reason.
OMG chill, not everyone has to like her. I don’t dislike her, but I don’t think she’s the second coming either. Sabrine’s comment was pretty innocuous.
I totally agree with you, Bella. For me, Harry/Meghan stories just bring positivity and fashion. I’m glad we have a pleasant story to follow, when other kinds of news are so bad right now.
Prenups are legal in the UK and they are mostly enforced by law courts as long as they aren’t too unfair to one party.
The BRF are very good at hiding their money. Nobody knows what they own in stocks or in bonds or in money. The Queen’s bank accounts can’t even be checked by the British tax office. If Harry and Meghan got divorced – good luck locating the big chunck of Harry’s money.
As for the writing from People: all Royals use their engagements and marriages to improve their image. So you can expect some more drivel from tabloids.
Remember what they wrote about will and kate? They “subtly” implied that kate was a virgin and that she had “saved” herself for will? I couldn’t believe that the tabloids would actually publish such drivel but they did. They didn’t write “virgin” literally but they implied it. Just search the comments under the following article:
(firefox search window bottom left: ctrl + F)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1331472/Kate-Middleton-sixth-saving-Prince-Charming.html
“… Former classmates from her days at Marlborough College recall a teenager who had blossomed into a stunning young woman but shunned the attention she received from the opposite sex, intent on saving herself [SIC!!!!!] for someone special. …”
@ Ladida:
I don’t see anybody calling her the second coming…….and if you’re going to suggest someone is a gold digger, surely, I should be able to ask you where/how/why you’ve come to that conclusion?
As far as Sabrina’s comments being innocuous……if you called me a gold digger, (or implied it), you’d be getting a metaphorical knee in the back, as it’s nothing short of an insult.
Anyway, @ WingKingdom:
I look very much to celebrating this with you and other people who ARE able to enjoy this……bring on the fashion, flowers, cakes, love, vows, gossip, positivity and everything else that’s distracting us from the mean, harsh world we currently inhabit!
😀 😀 😀
@Bella, please count me in the group of those looking forward to this wedding and ALL the trimmings. I’ll be ready on my tv with lots of popcorn and Canadian ginger ale. I can’t wait.😘😘😘
I am looking forward too.
@Bella and Masamf
They won’t answer your real question because it isn’t based on facts. I have wondered too, but I never get an answer. Anyone can like or dislike anyone it is their choice. I just want to know where some of the accusations come from. Not to argue but to understand the claim.
I am delighted by this couple; they seem modern and cheery and in happy giddy love. I am looking forward to the wedding, the fashion, the babies.
I don’t know where the accusations come from either. She has worked diligently in her life, rather than show goldigger stripes, too. Good enough for me!
@MasamF, Magnoliarose, Liberty
Bottoms up! 😉😉😘😘
I think also that the kind of ‘upper class’ English girls Harry would have wanted to marry (educated, confident, with some kind of career/ambition and opinion of their own) aren’t particularly interested in giving up their existing lifestyle/freedom for a ‘Princess’ title.
This. Many of these women already have status and money and wouldn’t touch that train wreck with a 10-foot pole. Diana was said to have shot back to Philip once that her title was older than his so to shut his trap. That goes for all of the Windsors, not just the DoE. Many/most of these titled families go back further than this dynasty and they don’t have to sit in the fishbowl. I wouldn’t touch it either if I were a lady of a certain status with everything I needed right there already.
@Meghan Yep – Many of the old aristo families have far more wealth than Harry, as well, so even if one wasn’t independently super wealthy, or looking for money, there are plenty of other options (rich men and women) which don’t require giving up all privacy, freedom, career etc. I think only a very specific type of ‘upper-class’ woman would have wanted to marry someone like Harry, and he wasn’t looking for that.
Of course there is something to be said for love, which he seems to have found with Meghan anyway!
I don’t know why this is so hard for Americans to understand. The posh aristo girls wanted none of Wills or Harry. Why would they? Marriage to these two can only be viewed as desirable for a certain sort – ones who want the attention and glamour. Most aristo girls have the cash and glamour and don’t want the attention.
I firmly believe this is the only reason William ended up having to marry Kate after postponing it for so long. The only thing they have to offer is a title and money and most of their peers have both with far more freedom and far less scrutiny. It took a social climber valuing those two things over everything else to put up with all the drawbacks. I view Kate and Meghan as highly as I do Melania Trump.
@Hikaru…so William and Harry do not deserve to have their own marital relationships, and any woman who accepts to marry them is like Melania Trump??
Every time this discussion comes up, i think this article clarifies any confusion. The publisher is a socialite who is besties with most European royal families including the Windsors, and the Wales in particular. Putting aside what it says about Kate in particular, it lays out the reasons many, if not all, wealthy aristo women want the royal life.
http://takimag.com/article/why_kate_middleton_is_prince_williams_only_option/print#axzz5CHiHLeBU
@Lak, I haven’t read the article (which I’m gonna) but it seems to me like PrincessK is challenging (or at least that’s what I think it is) is the notion that William and Harry were the ones that landed on the dumpster not being wanted by ALL or ANY of the aristo girls, which means that none of the men were desired in any way shape or form! I find that an absurd claim to make by anyone that isn’t William or Harry. How do we know that NONE of the aristos wanted to marry Harry or William? How do we know for a fact that William and Harry or even PoW wanted the aristo girls but they turned them down cold? I’m thinking that being turned down by one woman doesn’t necessarily mean that ALL the women wanted nothing to do with the guys!! Maybe the one that would have wanted to marry them just so happened that they weren’t interested in that person? What I think is we can speculate all we want but we will never know the truth and to state our speculations as factual is very misleading!
Implying that none of the aristo girls would have wanted Harry or Will is perhaps a bit too strong a statement. Absolutely not even one would have wanted a prince? Also the prince has to like the one who like him and that might be difficult.
But I do believe that many women would think quite thouroughly about marrying into that family – not just aristo girls.
I remember that Queen Mum, the wife of King George aka “Bertie”, had to be “motivated” by her future mother-in-law, Queen Alexandra, because Queen Mum hadn’t wanted to marry Bertie either.
Queen Mum, or then- Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon hadn’t intended to marry Bertie but some other aristo chap. Queen Alexandra, Bertie’s mum, made sure that that chap was sent to some far away military position – in other words Queen Alexandra eliminated the competition for her dear son Bertie. But even after that manoever Bertie had to propose to Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon three times because she rejected him the first two times. 😉
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2689033.stm
Masamf: Firstly, there is a missing word in my comnent ie NOT. As in reasons why aristos women don’t want to hitch themselves to royalty.
Secondly, we have plenty of evidence. Many eligible and not so eligible women have talked. Including ones dating the Princes. This is not my speculation, it’s an observation made by most people with knowledge about the BRF vs the rest of British aristocracy.
Despite their status on the global stage, the royals aren’t considered a catch in their own class. Many families have a better pedigree, more money, more or equal privilege and the privacy to enjoy it. Why upend your life by hitching it to the royals who only bring the global spotlight to the table and not much else?
Outside of their personalities, Charles, William and Harry had trouble holding onto anyone in their class who wanted the hassle. Charles tried and eventually married the only willing candidate after being turned down by several appropriate and eligible women. Ditto William.
In an interview, Harry said he had trouble anyone willing to take on the royal part of his job. At a time when he was dating people within his class. Eventually he made the decision to date people comfortable with the media spotlight which eventually led to Meghan.
Besides all that, when you take into consideration their personalities and character and achievements, that’s an entire ball game of no, no, no.
Charles – needy and entitled, William – controlling, boorish and entitled, Harry – lazy and entitled. It’s not exactly a recipe for beating the women off with a stick!!!
Tata Mata: QM was after Bertie’s brother, David.
Later history records claimed it was another aristo chap, James Stuart – later a minister in govt, that she was interested in.
Later still all that was removed and claims were she was simply afraid of royal life and that’s why she took so long to accept Bertie’s proposals.
@Lak, so if understand you correctly, you are saying that the aristo (or non aristo whatever they’re called in UK) girls that the guys wanted or dated did not want to marry them, correct? So how does the few that they dated amass to ALL girls in the UK didn’t want them? As I said, those that were dated were not interested but there are others that the guys weren’t interested in that probably would have married them, we will never know. What I mean is making such generalized claims about a population based on 2or 3 girls is just absurd. Like, the same outlandish claims that people make about how NOBODY in the UK likes Meghan and NOBODY cares about this wedding, all these based on one’s dislike of Harry and Meghan. If Harry or William or PoW proposed to any of the girls they dated, those were the only girls that didn’t want to marry them, not everyone else. To claim otherwise is simply misleading as heck.
@Masmf
The evidence speaks for itself in a way. This is my thinking anyway.
First availability and suitability have to be considered, and that cuts out some women. Then attraction is another criteria to take into account and some physical appeal is essential. After that, their age which cuts out another large chunk of possibilities. Also are the ones already taken and married to someone else, so they have to be crossed off the list.
It doesn’t leave that many options. Perhaps others would have been game but for the above reasons could never be considered. There aren’t that many left, and those that were just weren’t interested in the lifestyle and job.
The world watched Diana’s misery, and that would make most women think thrice about accepting the challenge. It is a lot to give up for a woman who is already wealthy and lives a social life of privilege.
To Harry’s credit, he understood that before choosing someone and decided love would be one of the more important reasons to make a choice. Her ambitious nature is a plus. The fact that she isn’t afraid of hard work and can take criticism will work in their favor. Harry will have to step up because I don’t think she is interested in a negative image and his success is their success. She will be playing a significant role behind the scenes and already understands that to make Harry beloved and sell the love story (even though it is true) will prove to be invaluable. MM didn’t get to this point haplessly by sheer accident. Luck played a large part of course, and I don’t think she is some nefarious plotter, but she knows how to make the most of her opportunities. She isn’t stupid. I believe this is why she was accepted so quickly. The Firm approved for a reason.
I think Sophie’s prior work experience has also made her effective in her role and therefore HM adores her. She more than does her share.
This will be fun to watch. The ups and downs will happen, but at least it will be interesting. 🙂
@Magnoliarose, thank you, your post makes more sense to me.🏃🏃
@Clare This! I have no doubt he loves Megan and they seem very well-suited but I think no upper crust girl with the type of personality traits he likes would have been keen on marrying a royal with all the trade-offs it involves.
Charles had similar issues. One girlfriend, Lady Jane Wellesley, gave a quote to the media saying that exact thing when stories started to appear about a possible engagement between her and Charles.
This. Being rich is so much better when you are not famous.
I wish I had the chance to find out. : )
bella dupont
how in rhe world do you know if she’s not a gold digger?
How in the world would you know if she is? The facts tell a different story. Why not go for a billionaire? He’s not endlessly wealthy, and she won’t make out in a divorce like an ace. So where is the proof to the contrary?
Magnolia, social status is a powerful attraction for many. She gained a lot of mutual friends from the English upper class before Harry. That tells me she enjoyed the privilege which comes with befriending the aristo types. She didn’t choose any other wealthy London/UK circle to mingle with. Is this a bad thing? Not really.. I do think she has made the most of her opportunities and she knew who to align herself with in order to get ahead.
Yeah, f— Mother trousers. And they’re GORGEOUS. Still bummed that runaway is sold out lol
To be painfully honest, it was Harry those aristo girls did not want, ultimately. I think fate is a wonderful thing because five short years ago he and Meghan would not have worked. I think they are perfect for one another and now is their time.
@Hikaru…so William and Harry do not deserve to have their own marital relationships, and any woman who accepts to marry them is like Melania Trump??
Which aristo girls was Harry with who did not want him?
Umm Chelsea Davy? Who very clearly wanted NO part of being a princess despite Harry being crazy about her? Granted she isn’t English, or from an aristocratic family, but she certainly fits the mold in terms of wealth, social circle etc. Girls from that demographic weren’t exactly falling over themselves to give up their lives and freedom for a title and marriage to the spare. shrug.
I don’t think that Harry dated an honest to goodness aristocrat, but he dated two women with aristocratic roots: Florence Brudenell-Bruce and Cressida Bonas. Chelsy Davy, daughter of a Zimbabwean land owner, is sometimes lumped in. I would not say that they did not want him, but reportedly all three found Harry’s royal status unappealing.
Interestingly when the women who Harry has supposedly dated are listed, quite a few of them are from the media and entertainment industry.
Yes, I think Harry wanted a woman already in the celebrity spotlight. Models, actresses, singers, etc.
There is also rumors that Harry cheated on his women repeatedly, which would have been one of the reasons they broke up with him. Chelsy and him broke up and made up multiple times, so the claim that she didn’t want him for who he is are just silly. She said the media intrusion in her life was the reason she broke up with him for good, why is that hard to believe? And Cressida said the media and being judged by strangers about everything in her life what the reason she broke up with Harry, not because she didn’t want him as a person! Look, there’s no way of knowing exactly why the women didn’t marry Harry or William, it could be because they didn’t want them but it could also be that the guys never showed any interest in settling down with any of them women! Its interesting how many are posting here how none of the women ever wanted nothing to do with the guys, SMH!! Do we know for a fact that the guys proposed but they were turned down? If they never proposed to the women, then why are we even discussing who wanted or didn’t want who? Maybe no-one of the m wanted to marry the other? Just sayin’
Cressida never fell out of love with her previous boyfriend. She and Harry had nothing in common. He cheated on her at least twice – once in Vegas and once in Florida. She made up her mind to dump him while he was in the US for Guy Pelly’s wedding, despite her mom telling her to stick it out. Chelsy loved Harry but his immaturity and constant cheating, with humiliating media headlines, proved to be too much. Even the young woman he met at a charity polo match in 2016 went on a few dates with him and got back together with her old boyfriend.
Well Chelsy is definitely not an ‘aristo’ even if she moves in those circles, and Cressida’s aristo pedigree isn’t really top drawer but I agree that she and Harry were not suited but just a result of Eugenie’s heroic match making quest on behalf of her cousin Harry. But I do think Cressida would have said yes, eventually if he had pulled out all stops for her but he was not in love.
@Shotcaller, you are confusing me! You said upthread that “to be honest, it was Harry that the aristo girls didn’t want” (I’m assuming you are saying William was very much wanted by the aristo girls?), but then you post that Harry cheated on Cressida and because she was still in love with her old boyfriend that’s why she left Harry! So in other words, Cressy left Harry because he cheated on her repeatedly, not because she didn’t want to have nothing to do with him or his life! So which is which? She can’t not want the life as his wife and then dump him only because he cheated, if he hadn’t cheated she would still be with him, is that what you are saying?
I agree with Shotcaller. Harry was a stop gap in the break with her relationship with her longterm boyfriend. She looks so much happier and much more convincingly in love with her boyfriend than she ever did with Harry.
Cressida has spoken about the media hell of dating Harry and how much she hated that aspect.
Perhaps her relationship with Harry might have lasted if not for that. However, seeing her with longterm boyfriend, i think she was deluding herself in whatever she felt for Harry.
As for Harry cheating, this is were shotcaller and i disagree. Shotcaller claims that Harry is a chronic cheater on Chelsy and Cressida despite lack of evidence AND context of certain situations eg Vegas – everyone, including Cressida’s family deny a relationship during Vegas, and Cressida dumped Harry BEFORE he got on that plane to Guy’s wedding.
Chelsy – no evidence at all. And the accused women strenously deny or sued any publication that claimed they cheated with Harry.
If they married, Harry and Cressida would have definitely ended in divorce. She’s still trying to rub the stench of that family off her. Poor thing. The old, bitchy courtiers were so pissed they said she was “needy”. Harry had to follow her around to her plays to show she wasn’t the desperate one. Lol.
Chelsy didn’t want the princess life but she dated a prince off and on for seven years? Ummmm…. I think she wanted commitment but he wasnt ready. When he was ready, she was long gone.
@Sage, @Lak and @Shotcaller, did Harry propose to Cressida or Chelsy and the turned him down? If not, how are you so sure they were the ones that didn’t want him and not him that never wanted to marry them? They dated him for years, breaking up with and hooking back up with him again! Cressida might have broken up with Harry and rehooked back with old boyfriend but maybe the other guy was the rebound, that too is a possibility you know? Much as people are claiming how Harry got dumped, I think the girls broke up with him because he showed no signs of wanting to commit and settle down with any of them, period. Harry had no pressures of producing a heir, his father was in his 30s when he got married, Harry dated all the women in his 20s, maybe he just didn’t want to get married in his 20s, we really don’t know!!
Masamf: We are saying very clearly that in the case of Cressida, because there is evidence, she didn’t want Harry. She remained in love witb her long-term boyfriend who she started dating as a teen. The Harry episode was merely an intermission in their relationship.
Whilst we disagree on whether Harry cheated on Chelsy, i think we agree that Chelsy didn’t want the royal life. She’s made that very clear in subsequent interviews and Harry hinted at that point in his ‘ i can’t find anyone willing to marry due to royal life’ interview soon after breaking up with Chelsy.
They did not want William more than anyone because he is the heir and very difficult to get along with long term. Harry was never as interested in aristocratic girls and always had more space to make a choice. William’s path has always been much narrower and difficult.
Charles, William and Harry all share the same characteristics: difficult, needy, entitled with petulance thrown in for good measure when things don’t go their way. Nor are they particularly intelligent. They seem to require nanny wives and demand to be first in the relationship. How very wearing and dull for the woman who enters into this family. As has been pointed out, women with status and money don’t need these men to provide such things. The next level down may well be attracted to it but enter the family as second-class to the blood family. All in all, not much of an attractive option for a woman. Harry has chased women from the celebrity circuit; he just likes that crowd and can access it due to his position.
Did any one think otherwise? She is smarter, more educated and has a strong personality… I think it shines a good light on Harry, he chose a partner, a woman better than himself… Not an always agreeeing woman.
I don’t know. Maybe it’s the photos the press run with but there are so many photos of her glazing ‘ in love’ at harry at these official events that she comes across a bit stepford wife needing to have his attention and approval All. The. Time (to me anyway). If she as wearing the trousers in the relationship, she would not have had to give up her charities once getting engaged. She would be encouraged to undertake work /interests of her own instead of their engagement interview where they sold themselves as ‘team harry’ instead of two individual people. I can’t imagine her version of ‘boots on the ground’ from the same interview was one engagement every 2 – 3 weeks if she was in control. She has life experience, a degree that will be useful to the role and a public profile – they should be encouraging her to get out and about independently and not be diminished into simply ‘the wife of’ which seems to be the current action (we will see after the wedding if that continues or was simply the engagement period). Maybe she wears the pants with harry but the palace wears the pants with her.
Birdy – The 2 things aren’t mutually exclusive. I’m head over heels for my boy, and my face def shows that when we’re together. But a large part of the reason for that is that he genuinely respects me and my opinions, and we call each out on our BS. No one “wears the trousers”. We both have very strong personalities, but think highly enough of one another’s thoughts and feelings that we happily listen to them even if we don’t ultimately agree.
She gave up two things that were considered too political. An evangelical-related charity and the UN (because yes, in the UK the UN is considered too political). She’s already holding firm on the work she did with that evangelical charity, as one of the seven charities to receive donations for their wedding is the one she worked with directly in India (Myna Mahila Foundation).
She isn’t officially on the job yet. The stories that come out are about her working behind the scenes, being highly-engaged – things we didn’t get about Kate Middleton during this same period. We’ll wait and see what she does post wedding, but pre-wedding she’s already done loads more work than KM did during the same time period.
Maybe she wears the pants with harry but the palace wears the pants with her.
Quoted for Truth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I hate that whole ‘wears the trousers’ schtick. Surely we should celebrate any man confident and secure enough to love and be with a strong, independent, educated and successful woman, not be implying that he is somehow less of a man i.e. not wearing the trousers? FFS this nonsense is so endemic.
Also – having your own opinion does not make you ‘opinionated’.
Grrr.
This. It doesn’t sound like she’s got him strung up by his nether regions, it sounds like they have a healthy relationship.
Agreed.
They are equals. Harry is marrying someone older and divorced, that shows how comfortable he is with his masculinity. As royals it’s a good partnership they need to navigate the complexity of their jobs.
Part of the problem is that Kate has remained such a cipher all these years later and still barely speaks, so every time Meghan even states an opinion on the most minor thing, it gets contrasted. And Sophie ,who also had a job before marriage (and during it for a short time) gets ignored by the media, so although Meghan isn’t that different from Sophie in many ways, the press compares her to the Victorian throwback.
Based on y viewing of THe Crown (LOL) it seems the Queen considers that her role is to remain, or appear to be, absolutely neutral. Maybe she schooled William and Kate, as the heirs, in this. They certainly seem to have much much less freedom than Harry and now Meghan.
Such an incredibly generous reading of two people, W&K, who have shown for 15 years that they care more about their vacations than anything else.
They do not have less freedom, as they feel free to do whatever they want regarding not working, harassing the press, and doing next to nothing of value. Like William threatening to destroy the ivory in the Royal Collection, because he doesn’t understand it belongs to the nation not to him.
They choose to be lazy, spendthrift, and to care about little else beyond their personal satisfaction. It isn’t being neutal, it is being selfish and lazy. We’ll see if Harry and Meghan do better in the years to come.
@nota – an excellent appraisal of WK. They provide an unfortunate model by which those who follow will be judged.
These educated and confident aristocratic girls are royal-adjacent by default. They get the perks but are not weighed down by trying to prove they are value for money (also know as “duty”). Its the perfect life to be honest, its easy to see why the current crop of aristocratic girls wouldn’t want to give that up for a lifetime of criticism and ribbon cutting etc…
She’s controlling him! She’s going to be the downfall of the monarchy!*
* Disclaimer: Don’t ask me how this will come about, because I have no idea. All I know is that Harry’s doomed. Dooooomed I tells ye!
What was it someone said last week? Harry is “condemned?” LOL.
Yep, “condemned” was the world. Like Meghan is going to come out in her black trousers and use the guillotine on him!
I cackled when I saw that. I can’t wait till their wedding day cause some of these people are gonna lose control lol!
That may have formed part of my inspiration, yes 😉 along with a few of the less disgusting Daily Fail comments.
Yep, the OP claimed PH was a dead man walking. But, what would be awesome is Meghan in black trousers AND a black executioner’s hood made of the finest mulberry silk. She’d def be a style trend setter with that outfit.
@Olenna
With ermine though. We need some royal touches for Harry’s doomsday. A golden blade on the ax too.
@Beluga. LOL!!
Perfect! It’d be even better if you said that whilst cackling and stirring a cauldron with your one good eye. Behind you, a minion chops moldy onions and plague-carrying rats scurry around your feet.
sidenote: Am very glad its 2018 🙂
Totally agree that she’s the brighter light here and he’s just wondering how he got so lucky, hoping his title and charming personality will be enough to keep her permanently enthralled.
Isn’t it interesting that both of Diana’s boys wound up with slightly older women instead of virginal teenagers (as she was)? Diana gets painted as a fragile hysteric at times, but she kept saying, “hey this situation is actually bullshit” and then things changed for the better for the next generation. Good.
To all intents and purposes William ended up with a virginal teenager less worldly than his own mother despite marrying her in her late 20s.
As breaking the mold, once the royals stopped marrying other royals, every generation has taken a step further away from expectations. And Harry isn’t the first in the family to marry / date an American, a divorce or non-white person or someone who has no aristocratic / wealthy background.
Only the Queen stuck to the old school rules of marrying another royal who was also a cousin and therefore a known quantity in the royal club.
Yes, Kate did start waiting in college, it’s true, but at least she wasn’t literally tied to William with bonds of marriage and children anywhere nearly as young as Diana was. Kate had SOME agency, at least. While Diana was hoodwinked and used by Charles before she even had a chance to grow up. Ugh. What a disaster that marriage was.
Meghan, wear those pants girl!
I think you miss my point. Despite having agency or not ‘being tricked into a marriage, being a decade older etc, Kate was figuratively virginal and utterly unworldly on her wedding day.
She may not have been hoodwinked into it the marriage,but she refused to develop herself in any way except to wait in a metaphoric ivory tower. Like sleeping beauty waiting 100yrs for a prince to kiss her awake.
And in doing so she atrophied to a point where William’s mother, an actual teenager entering her royal marriage wouldn’t recognise. The teen being more worldly in every way than the 28yr old bride.
@LAk one may even argue that although Kate wasn’t ‘hoodwinked’ into marriage as a teenager, she was ‘hoodwinked’ into arrested development AS a teenager by her parent’s ambitions.
Certainly she does not speak, engage or behave like a woman in her late thirties.
Diana hoodwinked far more than she was hoodwinked. Also, even though the Spencers fit the bill as a wealthy aristocratic family that would prefer royal adjacent status to being HRHs, they actually aspired to marry into the British Royal Family. My take is that Sarah, the oldest Spencer daughter, was the family’s choice to snag the big fish, and she gave it a shot, decided that marrying Charles was not for her, and then pulled a self-immolation stunt by sharing disqualifying tidbits with a couple of tabloid hacks.
Regarding Kate, while I am sure her parents were thrilled, I don’t think that she was prodded to fall in love with William, she genuinely fell in love with him before she was fully cooked and then proceeded to develop herself in a way that made her compatible and pleasing to William.
AAA: exactly.
I don’t dispute that Kate loves William. Those puppy eyes don’t lie. The part that disgusts me is her decision to atrophy herself in order to please him and do whatever it took, accept any and all his behaviour and apparently tell herself it was worth it since he married her.
It’s no wonder she still needs her mother!!
atrophy herself.(With the encouragement of mommy dearest of course) haha well said @LAK.
That has always been the issue with Kate. Her whole life has been about him but he always been about “him” too. I think she loves him, and sometimes I cringe because he seems indifferent to it. I feel sorry for her in those moments.
A large part of William’s attraction to Kate (and her family) is his position. She wouldn’t have hung around, put up with the constant cheating and dumping, if he was Billy the Plumber.
Magnoliarose: Me too.
It is not unheard of in a relationship that one person loves the other more, and in Kate and William’s relationship, Kate has that distinction. But I think that Kate is the package for William, and William appreciates that package. The three big draws of Kate to William IMO is her love and loyalty, Middleton family life and his being able to protect and take care of her.
Constant cheating? constant dumping? Hmmm, not so sure about that.
Agree with others that I think the artistocratic girls/women of Harry’s generation probably did not want to marry him, so if he was avoiding them as future brides, the feeling was probably mutual. If you have wealth and privilege, why give that up for a life in the public fishbowl, especially in this age of social media, everyone has a camera, etc.
Maybe if there had been “true love” between him and one of those women (I have that in quotes because it sounds so cheesy) there may have been a desire to give up her lifestyle but I think the days of artistocratic (wealthy, titled) families throwing their daughters at princes are over, at least for the time being.
I think Harry and Meghan work well together for several reasons, and I think both of them being a bit older is part of that (and I think Meghan being older than Harry also plays a part.)
Are we really still saying this? “The One Wearing the trousers”? Ridiculous and outdated.
Exactly – I mean exactly – my reaction.
Harry found the one best suited to him and the baggage he brings.
Let’s keep it there and not overanalyse.
Do people still say ‘trouser snake’?
It’s remarkable how easily we equate not being a doormat, with being bossy and controlling. Strong men don’t mind independent women, but society always seems to.
And always leveled at woman whom some dislike. It is thrown at Letizia all the time in the sexist society in which she lives, but similar behavior from Maxima or Mathilde and no one blinks.
+1 @Starryfish Someone needs to put that last sentence on a t-shirt. I’d buy it.
Sure she does! And some pretty damn great trousers.
Wearing the trousers insults them both. Code for Harry being thick and Meghan being controlling/ambitious.
I read it as an insult too. The tab narrative is Meghan is manipulative social climber and poor dumb Harry is a “condemned “ man. People mag is just encouraging the narrative.
I started watching, “The Windsors.” I keep picturing Harry with his crayons and Megan saying, “Suits” is that high-pitched way.
I enjoyed the first season, but they did Meghan wrong introducing her in the second season. Having her show up in a tube top looking like Aaliyah in the 90s even though real Meghan is chic and modern. Making reference to her filming in LA even though it was Toronto. Simple facts they got wrong to make her character look bad. I don’t know why they introduced her at all if the whole second season was still fixated on pairing up Harry and Pippa. Feels like it was written by the DM, especially with the Xmas episode and many others all about how great Kate is and how she saves the day.
@ Bethany….Well ‘The Windsors’ is a mix of fact and fiction, so it really does not matter. I have just finished Season one, and I found in hilarious and terribly cruel in equal measure. Hilarious because the acting and script is so funny:
Camilla wants to try for a baby – Charles: “Oh, Camilla, you haven’t had a period since Wham broke up”
Anne being a spoilsport – Charles: ” Well Anne, if you had a bit of fun occasionally you wouldn’t turn up to all your engagements with a face like a slapped arse”
Terribly cruel because the storylines are based on things that do have a tinge of truth to them. The rivalry between Charles and William, Pippa’s jealousy of Kate, Fergie louche past and being left out in the cold, Harry’s past wild behaviour and poor school record (which IMO does not mean that he is dim), Prince Philips penchant for swearing, Andrew’s dubious business dealings and connections.
At times I was surprised that the writers were allowed to get away with so much, if it was not the royal family some people would have sued for defamation of character.
Why would you think a mocking, satirical, comedy show in the best tradition of Spitting Image is bothered with facts?
As for accusing the writers of being DM, are you not familiar with our brand of mocking, satirical comedy that utterly disregards the facts?
@LAK….Firstly, where did I suggest that the series should be bothered with facts?
Secondly, what exactly do you mean “are you not familiar with our brand of mocking, satirical comedy that utterly disregards the facts?”…..I am very familiar with Spitting Image and that genre.
PrincessK: My comment was for Bethany F who evidently doesn’t get this brand of humour and is insisting on facts.
Based upon her comment i would be very surprised if Beffany F turns out to be from blighty whereas i know you are.
Oh…sorry LAK! 😬
Really, no one knows what goes on a a relationship, except for the two people involved. How do they know if she wears the trousers or not?
This sexist term has to die already. I’m so over it.
Not being in total control of a woman does not mean that she “wears the pants” and it does not mean a man is less of a man because he’s not in control of her. Even if Harry does not feel that way, I wish other people would stop using such outdated terms to suggest he should.
Oh dear, it really does look as if it is confirmed that the Obama’s will not be at the wedding…..not sure if there is any hope now.
Oh, I just saw this on another paper, can’t remember where. It said “no current or former heads of state” would be invited and that this was considered “appropriate” for this wedding. The vibe I got, although I’m American so someone in the know might have to chime in, is “This is not a state occasion and and we’re drawing some lines here.” I mean, why would they care, really? But maybe they do?
From HELLO: “A Kensington Palace spokesperson said: “It has been decided that an official list of political leaders, both UK and international, is not required for Prince Harry and Ms Markle’s wedding. Her Majesty’s Government was consulted on this decision, which was taken by The Royal Household.”
https://us.hellomagazine.com/royalty/2018041047703/barack-obama-michelle-not-attending-royal-wedding/
But the article goes on to say the Trudeaus are expected.
But “not required” is different from “none at all”…I haven’t seen any news about it today other than the comments here, but couldn’t the Obamas still be invited as personal friends of Harry? I hope so!
I read it as no one has been invited as an official representative of their country but as private citizens.
I can see her being the one more organized, perhaps with new ideas? However, I hope it doesn’t dampen her spirit when she finds out that neither she or Harry are “wearing the pants” so to speak…
Exactly this @homeslice! Harry and Meghan seem well-suited and appear to be very much in love and happy with each other. I wish them all the best. With the impending birth of Will and Kate’s third child, Harry is more than ever “the Spare” to the Heirs. No matter how charismatic, philanthropic, skilled and attractive Meghan and Harry are, as a couple and individually, they will not be permitted to outshine the “the Heirs Apparent” — and by that I mean Will and Kate between now and whenever they ascend to the throne. And the institutional Monarchy usually dictates the rules rather than the other way around.
Of course, might be awhile before Wills and Kate ascend to the throne or “top job” as Diana called it. The Queen — and her offspring have longevity on their sides. Queen Elizabeth appears to be in excellent health and could conceivably continue to reign for another five to 10 years.
Meanwhile though Harry and Meghan will be used as clickbait since they are much livelier and definitely more interesting than Will and Kate.
Harry and Meghan can outshine W&K through more professional behavior, even if the engagement totals differ.
I think Meghan is more comfortable with public life than Harry, tbh.
I remember in an interview some time ago (pre-Meghan) Harry mentioned to an interviewer that he would like to have a partner to “share the burden” or something like that. I think he struggles with anxiety in his role & she, on her own, has a sense of how to do it. I can see how her sense of confidence would be an enormous relief/support to him, actually.
I think more than one thing can be true. I don’t think any aristo women wanted the life Meghan will have: no privacy, can never go outside again without a bodyguard, criticism
of every move you make. I also think MM thirsted for this life – if the excerpts from Morton’s book are right, they decided on getting engaged on the 3rd date, before Oct 2016. That isn’t love, that’s lust. And actresses want attention and she will have more attention than almost any woman on earth. Their goals may match though, and that’s good.
I don’t know if she understood her future life, however, cause how could any American? She does look like she has lost a lot of weight and the transition may be difficult. I know I would rip my hair out being so confined. And that she isn’t allowed to have her own voice and state her own opinions anymore? I don’t understand how any modern woman can handle that. Kate seems better suited for that part of the role.
We will see, I guess.
May 19, will soon be here.
Some will get put out of their misery that day, when they realize Harry or Meghan, cares so much about opinion.
She can never go outside again without a bodyguard?? What about just in her own yard? A castle yard?
If not that seems absolutely unbearable for most people!
Don’t know about KP, but at Buck House there are armed guards in the court yard, the Queen was nearly shot by them a while back, when she went out to draw some fresh air without alerting security.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/queen-nearly-shot-buckingham-palace-guard-security-late-night-walk-elizabeth-ii-a7510376.html
Plenty of other independent, successful people have married in to royal families (BRF included) and been fine. The amount of attention they receive in their countries more than equals the attention on the BRF in the UK.
Women just can’t win, can they?! Most women set the tone in a relationship, and some are more dominant than others, and if that’s what he likes, what’s the big deal?!
I am getting close to the point when I don’t think I will be able to read and respond to the comments on articles about Meghan in the Daily Mail. As the wedding draws closer DM is piling on the articles which are based on practically nothing. The latest being that Meghan visits psychics…based on no real evidence. DM is deliberately encouraging its readers to write nasty things. I have also noticed that some people who used to support Meghan can’t take it anymore and have disappeared.
I think that as the date draws closer the trolls are really, as predicted, going insane, with six weeks to go I just feel that things are going to get worse. Kate and William never faced it this bad on DM. I go on DM because I like the pictures and its easy to navigate around the stories but I feel I have to stop reading comments about Meghan. I know DM is not representative of Britain as a whole but it is widely read around the world and there are so many gullible people. I also feel that there are a lot of lonely people out there with borderline mental health issues, judging by the comments.
I want to be in a happy mood in the run up to the wedding and so I am going to try to resist going there to stick up for Meghan.
@PrincessK, good for you. I’m glad you’re doing what you need to for your sanity (even though I’m sad there will be one less Meghan defender on those threads!).
I have no idea why this particular relationship brings out such strong feelings in people (on both sides), but I’m grateful that I like them both and enjoy reading about them for the fashion and the fun stuff. We need a royal wedding when everything else is so terrible right now!
PrincessK, please don’t be discouraged. There are others around the world who are really happy for this couple and looking forward to their wedding.
We all know the Fail writers are worse than hacks; they’ve been given free reign to express their own prejudices and envy by writing sh*tty articles that aren’t worth our time. Hopefully, this article will bring a little cheer into the otherwise dispiriting experience of reading insignificant comments poorly composed by disgruntled racists, classicists and bigots on one of the nastiest online, international conservative rags.
https://wtop.com/living/2018/03/pajamas-and-high-tea-royal-wedding-fans-gearing-up-to-party/
Thanks Lorelei and Olenna….I feel really bad because I can tell that there are some well meaning people who go on DM and are unable to distinguish the real facts and truth from the lies and hate perpetuated by the trolls.
But I have to limit myself to just looking at the pictures as the comments are becoming more awful and intense as the wedding draws closer, this was predicted by many who said that people in denial were going to eventually lose their heads and this is happening now. And DM is churning out more and more ridiculous stories, which in turn irritates people and makes them blame Meghan for these non stop stories.
I am now just going to try to concentrate on positive stuff.
Yes, PrincessK. Tiara and wedding gown, and your plans for the day. Are you and your girls still planning on going to Windsor?
@nota….Oh yes, we are still going, the bed n breakfast is booked and so are our train tickets. I am planning on waving both the UK and US flags to represent all of us on here.
Harry’s dating profile is actually pretty good. Tall, athletic, a former military officer that was a leader and could fly helicopters, passionate about the environment and animals, founder of International charities, and great with children and eager to start a family. Lots of women besides Meghan would be interested in that. Unfortunately Harry also comes with global public scrutiny and a required public job involving philanthropy and diplomacy. Harry so decided to seek someone who actually wanted the job part and handle the public interest, rather than seeing the job as a burden like even Kate does. Harry lucked into finding a woman that actually views the job as close to a dream job rather than a burden. He somehow lucked into a woman that is happy to be in a tent in Africa with him, but also interested enough in fashion to not be tormented by the world analyzing everything she wears.
Love this positivity. I think you’re right— they’re an excellent match. The English tabloids are so into pointing out what’s supposedly wrong with each of them (He’s dumb! She’s ambitious!), but even if that stuff is true, so what? If you really needed to be a perfect person to be happily married, a lot of us would be in trouble.