The Duchess of Sussex covers the latest issue of The Cut!! This is Meghan’s first print interview since her pre-engagement Vanity Fair cover interview in the fall of 2019. It’s a doozy too – Meghan invited Allison P. Davis into the Sussexes’ Montecito home, and Davis got to meet Archie, Lilibet and Harry too. Meghan had a lot to say about healing, moving on from the Windsors and the f–king ordeal that she’s been through. This is obviously to promote Archetypes, her already-successful Spotify podcast. Some highlights from the interview, which you can read here.
She’s getting back on Instagram: “Do you want to know a secret? I’m getting back … on Instagram,” she says, her eyes alight and devilish. “Especially now, with Archetypes coming out.” Later, Meghan would relay she was no longer sure she would actually return to Instagram.
Giving up her old IG, The Tig, her passport, and the freedom to open her own mail when she married Harry: “It was a big adjustment — a huge adjustment to go from that kind of autonomy to a different life… There’s literally a structure by which if you want to release photos of your child, as a member of the family, you first have to give them to the Royal Rota. Why would I give the very people that are calling my children the N-word a photo of my child before I can share it with the people that love my child? You tell me how that makes sense and then I’ll play that game.”
She is still very aware that people see her as a princess. “It’s important to be thoughtful about it because — even with the Oprah interview, I was conscious of the fact that there are little girls that I meet and they’re just like, ‘Oh my God, it’s a real-life princess.’ I just look at all of them and think, You have the power within you to create a life greater than any fairy tale you’ve ever read. I don’t mean that in terms of ‘You could marry a prince one day.’ I mean you can find love. You can find happiness. You can be up against what could feel like the greatest obstacle and then you can find happiness again.”
An appearance by Harry: “We’re fixing all these things, the pipes, but that’s a whole story in itself,” Harry explains, exasperated. The day before, while Meghan was on the photo shoot for this issue, Harry had been left to his own devices, he tells me. “You were gone for, like, ten hours yesterday,” he marvels to his wife. “Tell her the first thing you said when you got back last night,” he says, turning to me. “She said, ‘I’m not a model.’ “I was like, ‘No, you are, of course you can be a model.’ And she’s like, ‘I’m a mom!’ And it’s like, ‘You can be both.’”
Starting their new lives: “I think we always knew the first few years of creating this new life from scratch were going to be the busiest — ” says Harry. “Well, it’s a start-up,” Meghan interjects. “We were building a business. During lockdown — ” And then Harry interjects, “With everyone weighing in. If you do something, they criticize you. If you don’t do anything, they criticize you anyway. It’s a lot, but …” “Oh, and then having a baby in the middle of it all, casually,” Meghan jokes.
The reports of a docuseries: But, Meghan explains, there’s a difference between a historical documentary and a reality docuseries. “The piece of my life I haven’t been able to share, that people haven’t been able to see, is our love story,” she says, then quotes what she says was the end of a speech she gave at her wedding, in which she took comfort in the “resounding knowing that, above all, love wins.” She adds, “I hope that is the sentiment that people feel when they see any of the content or the projects that we are working on.” I ask again if what they are currently filming is a documentary about their love story. “What’s so funny is I’m not trying to be cagey,” she says. “I don’t read any press. So I don’t know what’s confirmed. I will tell you Liz Garbus is incredible. Liz Garbus also worked on Pearl.” Meghan says she’s going to leave it to her publicist and Netflix to decide what can be shared. (Not much.) As for the rest of her projects, she explains, “When the media has shaped the story around you, it’s really nice to be able to tell your own story.”
Salt and pepper are always passed together. “She said, ‘You never move one without the other.’ That’s me and Harry. We’re like salt and pepper. We always move together.”
When they returned to the UK for the Jubbly, she finally got to pack up Frogmore: “You go back and you open drawers and you’re like, Oh my gosh. This is what I was writing in my journal there? And here’s all my socks from this time?’… It was bittersweet, you know? Knowing none of it had to be this way.”
She had tried to play royal. “I was an actress. My entire job was ‘Tell me where to stand. Tell me what to say. Tell me how to say it. Tell me what to wear, and I’ll do it.’ And I’ll show up early, and I’ll probably bake something for the crew.”
The Sussexit: They also thought it best to leave the U.K. (and the U.K. press) to do it. They were willing to go to basically any commonwealth, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, anywhere. “Anything to just … because just by existing, we were upsetting the dynamic of the hierarchy. So we go, ‘Okay, fine, let’s get out of here. Happy to,’ ” she says, putting her hands up in mock defeat. Meghan asserts that what they were asking for wasn’t “reinventing the wheel” and lists a handful of princes and princesses and dukes who have the very arrangement they wanted. “That, for whatever reason, is not something that we were allowed to do, even though several other members of the family do that exact thing.”
The podcast: “It’s so real. I feel different. I feel clearer. It’s like I’m finding — not finding my voice. I’ve had my voice for a long time, but being able to use it.”
On their fathers: “Harry said to me, ‘I lost my dad in this process.’ It doesn’t have to be the same for them as it was for me, but that’s his decision.”
She never signed an NDA: “It’s interesting, I’ve never had to sign anything that restricts me from talking. I can talk about my whole experience and make a choice not to.” Why doesn’t she talk? “Still healing,” she responds.
On forgiveness: “I think forgiveness is really important. It takes a lot more energy to not forgive. But it takes a lot of effort to forgive. I’ve really made an active effort, especially knowing that I can say anything,” she says, her voice full of meaning. And then she is silent. She breathes in and smiles and breathes out and says, “I have a lot to say until I don’t. Do you like that? Sometimes, as they say, the silent part is still part of the song.”
I’m sorry, this whole thing is amazing. Exactly the right tone too – she’s healing but she’s in a much better place, and you can tell. She’s happier. She’s relearned autonomy and Harry is learning it for the first time. She’s making it very clear that their family bond is solid and they’re creating their own community in Montecito, and there are no divisions in Sussex-ville. She still has scars from the Vile Years in Salt Island and she’s free to talk about those experiences, and she will choose when and where to have those conversations. “…Because just by existing, we were upsetting the dynamic of the hierarchy.” LMAO. So true. They still are. Anyway I’m still absorbing this interview! I will have more to say about all of this in the hours and days to come. Y’all know Salt Island is going apesh-t right now. Heads are exploding.
“Do you want to know a secret?” Meghan asks The Cut. For our Fall Fashion issue, the Duchess opens up about her new freedom, her new podcast, and her charming new California life. https://t.co/VNU0VcEOsz
📷: @CampbellAddy pic.twitter.com/Xv3QXF8Hli
— The Cut (@TheCut) August 29, 2022
Her new podcast, Archetypes, discusses the ways women are unfairly labeled—an experience Meghan has been through herself and is finally ready to talk about. "It’s really nice to be able to tell your own story," she says. https://t.co/VNU0VcEOsz
📷: @CampbellAddy pic.twitter.com/3TEVt8So3L
— The Cut (@TheCut) August 29, 2022
Cover & photos courtesy of The Cut.
This was a great article, but the interviewer definitely seems to have some kind of…”distaste” for Meghan. Seemed to find her rehearsed. There was shade. ‘(at one point in our conversation, instead of answering a question, she will suggest how I might transcribe the noises she’s making: “She’s making these guttural sounds, and I can’t quite articulate what it is she’s feeling in that moment because she has no word for it; she’s just moaning”).’ All I can think of reading that is of David Brent telling an interviewer after he was made redundant how to write about him. Plus there were quotes about how Meghan didn’t like to say the b-word or “slut” that the interviewer put in there, and it seemed to be implying Meghan was silly or fake.
Just can’t quit the shade, can they? It’s like the writer (whoever it is) is terrified of erring by being on the side of Meghan, so has to take her down with the snarky asides. Exorbitant rehab of Frogmore Cottage? Bachelor producer in her ear telling her what to say? Sigh. It really ruined the article for me.
But, hey. At least it included Kate Middleton made Meghan cry. Another violation by the American of the rule that “The Duchess of Cambridge will not be drawn into gossip.”
I’ll have to re read it to see how much I think was actual shade – but definitely from the beginning I thought the article had an obnoxious edge – like, the writer was all, “aren’t I so cool for scoring this interview?” In general I don’t care for the kind of pieces where the author makes themselves an obvious part of the story. Otherwise, very interesting and covered a lot of ground.
I’ve read it…just not sure what to say bc I don’t want to threadjack. There are some things for sure.
I got the same vibe as you did. Especially the first half.
The Bachelor producer stuff was just goofy. It took me right out of the article and left me puzzled. I didn’t think that was very good writing. The article seemed sort of all over the place. I did like some of the descriptive ‘setting of the scenes’ but I didn’t love how it was written.
It’s not a bad thing to be rehearsed. It seems to me that Meghan is always prepared. And just because she’s escaped the UK tabloids doesn’t she won’t continue to be wary of the press.
I think Meghan was being cautious rather than rehearsed. She is so used to having the British press parse every syllable she utters that she goes into automatic “guard up” mode around the press.
I can’t speak specifically to this writer but if you search “The Cut” you will find they’ve been pretty vocal in showing the crap treatment Meghan’s been getting and very good about pointing it out.
Yes, but the commenters are incredibly negative. They always have been.
I noticed that too in some parts. Don’t completely love how the interviewer framed this but happy that Meghan isn’t hiding anymore!!!
You know what? I don’t mind it. It’s better than the shameless, obsequious ass licking the royal reporters give the royal family. If she thinks that Meghan comes off as too rehearsed, she’s entitled to that opinion.
I agree with Snuffles. Journalists aren’t supposed to be stenographers — they’re supposed to be fair. If this journalist had written a pure puff piece, it would have been dismissed entirely. Instead, she wrote about the rehearsed parts of Meghan (and given what Meghan has been through, of course she may come off as a bit rehearsed, just as a defense mechanism) while also revealing Meghan’s clearly excellent parenting (as seen in Archie’s happy “Momma, Momma, Momma” when Meghan picks him up from preschool — as well as in her insistence that he develop good manners).
The writer also gave space to Harry exhibiting his clear adoration of his wife.
Totally agree with @Snuffles and @QuiteContrary.. If the interviewer had come across as a total sycophant, it would have made the entire article seem less than credible.
Completely agree . . . I try to be very fair on my opinion of people, especially that I have not personally met, and stay open-minded. I love this site as a whole and daily enjoy reading the various comments. However, I am little tired of this site – comments, articles, etc – staunchly defending and getting so flustered by anything not pro-meghan/harry.
The interviewer is educated, cultured and obviously thought to be capable of giving an intelligent opinion based on first-hand experience with meghan/harry. I don’t think writer should be knocked because she didn’t get best impression. I think that, as fans, we should stay open-minded and not have completely set opinions either way. If people have borderline experiences in person, then their opinions should also be respected.
I agree with you. It bodes better that it’s not a sycophantic article and the writer acknowledges the worries about how the British Press and all the haters and evil racists will weaponize anything constructive or unsycophantic against her and her husband and children. She discusses she feels stuck in that and I liked she said that. That is the ridiculousness of all this. We all have preferences regarding podcasts we like or don’t like or performances we like or don’t like or interview styles we like and don’t like. The writer essentially says she seems rehearsed and not relaxed in the interview and was even asking how she’d describe the noise she made and this annoyed the writer. I don’t blame the writer for having an annoyed feeling, BUT how I interpret that AND the writer acknowledged that, Meghan has been so traumatized by the press and doing these projects and really getting herself out there is absolutely going to be a trauma reminder for her. I would give Meghan a break as I believe wanting to be rehearsed and asking what to write, is a hypervigilant stress response for her and a sign of safety for her so that if and when the BM twists any little inkling into a weapon, she has prepared herself. It makes me so angry because the level of scrutiny to a fair article is going to be so unfair, even retraumatizing for Meghan. So, overall, I appreciate the intention of the writer and I appreciate a fair article, and I also appreciate the fact the writer acknowledged that anything fair would be twisted into racist daggers at Megjan by the BM. It’s already happening. Fair articles don’t need to be stopped, the press trying to push a Black woman to suicide and leave her bi-racial children for dead at the behest of the palaces needs to be stopped.
I’ve noticed that Duchess Meghan does talk over people. As someone who does the same thing , I consider it to be a fault. I don’t think she is doing this in a mean way, but it can be perceived negatively by others.
Me neither. I don’t expect every person who interacts with Meghan to be a complete sycophant about her/towards her. And in reading this interview, it sounds like she went in with some preconceived notions about Meghan, and then became more sympathetic towards her throughout the process.
I’m not going to hold that against the writer. She is still observing as an outsider so she is adding layers to this interview. I may be naïve but the writer being a Black woman means something to me. I think she understands the pressure walking through this life as a Black woman.
^^ I’m with you @Girl_Ninja. I don’t think there was any intentional shade by the writer, who as has already been mentioned, is a black woman. BTW, the Editor-in-Chief of The Cut, is also a black woman, Lindsay Peoples Wagner:
https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/media/how-lindsay-peoples-wagner-is-remaking-the-cut/
I’m fairly certain that WOCs being in charge is why Meg chose The Cut to scoop this remarkable interview feature, which above all, is for the purposes of promoting Archetypes.
My take is that this style of writing about a huge global phenom, is what it is. The writer herself even questions whether she has accurately understood and properly interpreted what Meghan is trying to say. The writer also gives us a very good picture of the coded nuances and cautiousness involved in being escapees from the gilded cage! ‘There are no leaks in Montecito!’
We get a glimpse into what it was like for M&H after their Vancouver Island respite: creating a non-profit, while rebuilding their lives during a pandemic [losing a baby–which wasn’t mentioned], and then carrying and giving birth finally to a second child. All at the same time, they are being endlessly abused and slandered in the British media and by online trolls. Understandably, the Sussexes’ lives are still not easy, and they are continuing to heal. The fact that they have been able to do so with an abundance of style, class, and grace, is not a small thing.
Put yourself in the writer’s position, y’all. It comes across to me that the writer was a bit nervous and could barely believe her own luck in getting to be welcomed by M&H into their Montecito haven, and meeting Archie & Lili too!!! ❣️ We even get confirmation that Lili’s eyes are bright blue, and that she’s very observant. LOL, that they all had to put in genuine work to get a smile out of her royal loveliness, Princess Lili Diana! 😃💖
I just finished it and while I agree that there seems to be slight edge to some paragraphs, I think it has more to do with the fact that these pieces are always about control. The writer wants to write an interesting article with insights and new information and the subject wants to control how they come across. This is how I read the sidebar about Meghan’s suggestion regarding the noises she makes. That must be so annoying for the writer. Understandable that M wants to come across a certain way but Davis is a professional and probably didn’t love this. I wouldn’t. It’s noticable throughout the whole piece, that Davis knows she’s dealing with someone who is savvy and knows how this works and thus battling for control. It’s not a bad thing, it makes it more interesting to read. It’s not fawning but Davis isn’t there to become her friend or PR person.
I agree. Meghan wants ppl to see the “real her” and when she comes across in interviews as rehearsed and prepared (which she’s allowed to be) you owe the reader to tell them how you thought it came across. Meghan is free but she’s not above criticism (no one is). One of the thing’s that M has a blindside (and def came across in the first episode of Archetypes) is she’s so eager to respond she has a tendency to speak over someone (she did it with Serena and her engagement interview with Prince Harry) which many have pointed out. That’s not slamming or hating on her but its feedback similar to what the author of this piece did. Anyway I loved the article and can’t wait for the Mariah episode.
@JMoney she and Harry were speaking over each other. Couples do that all the time.
@Ameerah Yes but as I also said she did that with her interview with Serena. Pointing that out doesn’t mean someone hates Meghan/has an agenda/is bias against Meghan, its feedback.
This is an interesting take, and I can see this as something of a struggle for control of the interview. As a background issue though, it’s coming through as a snide edge in most of the piece, which doesn’t help either of them IMO – as we see, some people think she’s throwing shade. As a reader I’d instead rather the writer say what’s she’s thinking, upfront. I’m not expecting everything to be positive. Maybe this just isn’t my style; I’m not a fan of little sidebar flourishes. This was always going to be an interesting article regardless, because direct, lengthy conversations with Meghan are so scarce.
@windyriver: I’ve read it a second time now (slow day at the office) and there is actually one thing that reads as “throwing shade”. I don’t like that expression here because it implies unwarranted dickishness, which I don’t think this is.
I’m talking about the money aspect. I found this very interesting. Davis describes the house, the lavishness, the pricetag, even the way Meghan (blowout etc.) greets her in a way that’s really interesting because she doesn’t comment on it further. She makes a point of relaying how they couldn’t afford a multimillion dollar home and then they could. Harry mentioning the pipes as if the house is in a state of disrepair almost. As if she’s visiting a family of 5 with smaller income describing their struggles to find a place in this crazy market. That seemed deliberate. As if to remind people that yes, they went through some shit but man, they landed in a $15m home.
I think it’s hard to find a balance here. Because yes, again, they went through some shit and are still going through it. But other people do as well and don’t get to find piece and heal between the palm trees in their backyard.
Agreed. I’ve got friends who are writers and reporters and they hate being told how to write by their interviewees but it makes for good colour/texture in the story.
JMoney says:
“…….Yes but as I also said she did that with her interview with Serena….”
Those of us who are professional communicators will have noticed the moments when Serena clearly needed rescuing because she was repeating herself and those were the times when M stepped in to help her make the point or to make a larger point based on what Serena was trying to say. So to the uninitiated (or those who want to find fault with M) that gave critics an opp to knock M……to say she interrupted S.
M also jumped in a couple of times to steer the convo, which is the job of a skilled interviewer.
I read the bit about the noises as Meghan making a joke and the writer relaying it as serious. Meghan has a self-deprecating humor in many of her in-person interviews and I think that’s what this was – people in conversations say “you’re probably thinking ‘she’s nuts!'” and stuff like that all the time, but because it’s Meghan it’s blown way out of proportion.
Also re: talking over people, it’s a cultural difference in conversation. It’s very real and there have been academic papers written about it. To some, sitting in silence letting someone monologue at you is actually considered rude. Active participation in the convo and yes, sometimes overspeaking, is perfectly normal.
It didn’t come across that way for me. Sure some parts could be and probably were shady but as others have pointed out, the writer is not Meghan’s friend but an outsider so she’s not going to be fawning or even positive.
However I think Davis acknowledges that she’s not totally positive IMO when she says her words will probably be twisted and taken out of context. I don’t think she has it out for Meghan at all, she’s just reporting what she sees and observes
Yes, I found myself quite irritated at the beginning of the article because this writer was quite obviously being obnoxious! The comments about their home, the intentional use of the term Megxit even as the writer quotes Harry saying its sexist (so why use it?), and even how Meghan’s behavior is described.
The writer’s tone changes as the article goes on. By the end she actually feels a bit protective of Meghan and worries how her words could be skewed and used to attack her. I get the feeling the tone softened as the writer got to know Meghan. But more than getting to know her the writer witnessing the success of Archetypes and how certain sections of the press attacked clearly made an impact.
You get the feeling she finally understood why Meghan was so careful with her words and why the team around her is so protective. Something else she subtly shaded in the beginning of the article. Anyway not everyone is going to like or get Meghan’s life and lifestyle. Its just important they don’t lie and misrepresent it. I would prefer an article like this that shows the writer’s true opinions and makes clear what’s opinion and what’s Meghan’s own words. This allows us as readers to see the writer’s progression of that opinion. This article is infinitely superior to the fawning hagiography that takes place across the pond with the other royals.
I agree with this completely. This first half was definitely shady but then less so, especially the parts talking about Archie.
@B, Same part bothered me. The writer acknowledges that Harry believes Megxit is a misogynistic term. But then the writer chooses to later use the word again when describing their exit. So, the writer is thus cool with that word then? Idk. That part felt gross. Like tell me you’re cool with reading the DM for shits and giggles without telling me. The rest seemed like two people meeting w very different vibes. Optimistic glass half-full Meghan meets irreverent and wary of celebrities writer. Assuming this is the writers’ style which is interesting bc it gives insight into both Meghan and the writer. Thought you did a god job of describing it @B.
I actually appreciated the bit about “Megxit”. We all know why it’s derogatory, after all we practically have Ph.Ds in Meghan and Harry, but the average person who hasn’t given Meghan and Harry much thought won’t, and it was Harry who told them why it was terrible.
Go ahead, rota, make the point for me, I know you will.
Yeah, some shade. Some of that is just The Cut style. It always has a cooler-than-thou mean girl tone. But yay Meghan! Hope she does come back to Instagram. She’s great at it.
Allison P. Davis’ piece for The Cut is incredibly shady. It was a series of jabs. It was like when Plum Sykes interviewed Gwyneth Paltrow for Vogue.
Look at how these sentences are structured.
“And while she was a fine actress, the job she is best at is envisioning a life for herself and getting it. That specific type of very American ambition just isn’t really compatible with being a princess. Though it is compatible with her current life, which seems to be the best of all worlds: a palace in a better climate, still culturally considered royalty while having freedom from the royal family, a level of celebrity that exceeds what she could have gotten through Suits or the Tig, a neighbor with mini-pigs.
Well, I can’t put words in your mouth, I say instead.”
and
“ Meghan sued for invasion of privacy and won, though the defense mounted against her painted her as calculating and manipulative.”
Ouch.
She doesn’t like her at all.
‘She’s flinging open the proverbial doors to her life; as any millennial woman whose feminism was forged in the girlboss era would understand, she has taken a hardship and turned it into content’.
Girlboss? Wow. What a slap in the face.
But that is exactly what Kate did. Her ambition was to snag Will. So how is that incompatible with doing royal “work”? And Meghan, even this woman admits had 3 million instagram followers before PH. So how does she know she wouldn’t have reached a higher level of celebrity without marrying PH? She was working her way up in many different areas with her blog, writing, philanthropy, acting, modeling, and clothes design.
Allison P. Davis was not prepared to write this article and was not the person for the job. The irreverent tone and the shadiness just shows her lack of preparedness. She did not do a serious deep dive into the years’ long hate campaign against her subject and just wrote this shallow piece thinking she had a big “gotcha” article. Towards the end, as others have pointed out, she seemed to start to view Meghan as a human being, but the deadline was approaching and she could not produce a fully fleshed out article on a subject with so many layers. Look, it was better than a RR article, but that bar is in hell. So Davis squandered a great opportunity. Disappointing.
@TangerineTree – I can’t imagine Meghan would grant this interview without doing her homework on Allison Davis. If she didn’t think Allison was up to the job, she wouldn’t have done it. And I can’t imagine Meghan not insisting on the right to review the article before it was published.
^^ There are some parts of the article that I question. I wonder how much the writer knew or knows about M&H, the British royals, all the backstory, and the support from the SussexSquad. Maybe she wasn’t worthy of landing this assignment. However, landing this scoop isn’t a piece-of-cake task for anyone.
Yep, there’s a lot of glossy, attitudinal phrasing. In part, I think it’s par for the course with this style of writing, so I don’t begrudge the writer. I read between-the-lines and I take from it what I can. There’s a lot of info in there too, with some lovely gems to dissect. This writer is not against the Sussexes, so I don’t think it’s necessary to over-analyze how she wrote the feature.
I absolutely love the accompanying photos. Meghan IS TOO a wonderful model! I love that Harry in effect borrowed M’s famous line, “I’m feminine and I’m a feminist. I can embrace both!” — Harry assured Meg after her photoshoot assessment that she’s not a model, she’s a mother, “You can be both!” 👍
IMO, Meghan just wants to tell her story. I think the author wanted to tell her story of Meghan telling her story which ended up odd. I like hearing Meghan tell her own story in her voice. No more interviews Meghan write and tell your story in your voice and your hand.
*I skipped over a lot of the adlibbing and pontificating from Davis.
The British Press has yet to defend themselves on calling Archie the N-Word. NOT A SINGLE ONE has denied this. Their silence on this issue speaks volumes
@pickupdropoff
I don’t recall the British media using the N word, when was this? And yeah, I thought chimp photo and niggling doubts were bad. Wow I missed a big story
Great interview. It paints a picture of their lives we already suspected: peacefully, working and healing, privately meeting close protecting friends and a happy family life with the kids on their own terms, in their secured Godly mansion
Meghan is super smart and strategic in speaking her truth: she will dominate here narrative going forward. She’s warning the ass clowns on shutter island; I’m not restricted to tell the world about my horrible experiences in the UK, so stop the nonsense already, or… f around and y’all find out.
PS: I’m getting Frida Kahlo vibes from the black and white dress (her second magazine gown) . Just stunning.
It’s called envy what all of these people feel towards Meghan.
That why they are carry or try to cut her down.
Their own insecurity gets in the way.
Bingo, @Dulcinea.
Allison P. Davis is effectively rehashing the British media argument that ok, Meghan claims she was treated racistly, but the real problem people have with her is what Meghan wants the castle and the glamour or royalty with all of the freedom of America – and she got it and she’s acting like a Queen in her multi bathroomed castle. It’s the “who are you, Briefcase Girl, with your straightened black hair and your goop-lite styling and your Prince husband joking about the pipes like he’s a norm, to complain?”
I’m not for a second saying that Davis has to admire Meghan, or respect her, or trust her – but she doesn’t. It’s there in black and white. And it’s fascinating to me. There are elements of Black Twitter and Lipstick Alley and Tattle who despise Meghan. They are gagging over this article because of the carefully constructed insults. Girlboss? Manipulative? The tabloids WILL have a field day with this.
Look at Davis’ Twitter (she limited replies, of course): all the interaction from high end magazine writers in the industry is admiration and drooling. They can see the subtext. They know how she architectured her opinions, the intertwining of fact and commentary, the pokes and prods.
They love it.
I sort of got that vibe too, tbh. It reminded me about how weirded out the characters on Parks and Rec would get whenever they visited the twilight zone that is the bright, unsettlingly treacly and hallmark card perfect Gergich family, lol. The Sussexes were never going to have a good time in a country as cynical as the UK if they’re so unironically precious. Not trying to shade them, btw, but that’s genuinely how they seem here, or at least the image they want to project to a journalist profiling them, which I get the feeling is what Allison felt and where the subtle shady tone from her comes from.
I didn’t like when she said Megxit, even though she knows the couple don’t like that term. I definitely felt some snark.
Im just happy she reminded the douches of salt island that she has not signed an NDA, so watch out
I loved this article and I like how it highlights something BIPOC go through daily, self-editing, to prevent others from misunderstanding us. I also am glad she said she wasn’t giving pictures of her kids to people who called her kids the n-word.
💯 KFG about the self-editing. And I’d add, not just so others don’t misunderstand us but also it’s that burden of representing your entire race. I can’t imagine the pressure she was under. I’m just an ordinary person and I find it so exhausting at times (more when I worked in an office setting), I can’t imagine how she felt.
Yes! Self-editing! My dear friend is an equity and diversity consultant to Fortune 500 companies…she talks about this all the time. And that was the impression I got both from this interview and from the first episode of Archetypes, that Meghan was trying to open herself up as much as she could without giving her haters too much ammunition.
I also think Meghan will become a better interviewer as she practices. Serena was a safe place to start and I’m glad that’s where she began. There’s definitely room for improvement, but knowing Meg I’d bet money she’ll get there. It’s a really difficult thing to do well.
This article was incredible! I’m at a loss for words. Coming back to Instagram…new photos…a few house shots…wow, wow, wow!!
Heads will roll! Haha
^^ LOL @L84TEA and @Kelly! 😂 Exactly! There’s a smorgasbord to dissect in this article. Meg is so sublime. She’s gorgeous, she’s human, she’s boss! She’s also both vulnerable and complicated, as most human beings are. But it’s the rare human who can surmount and overcome what she and Harry have faced in their lives together, while remaining sane, grounded, classy, and willing to consider forgiving, to a point. Even individually, before they met, their plates were so full. Now, they are still healing while also forging a thriving and abundant California lifestyle, with raising their children and furthering an important legacy as their main focus.
Opening up just a little after restorative hibernating is even more complicated when practically everyone in the world wants a piece of you. M&H have been navigating this conundrum so gracefully. Fasten your seatbelts Squaddies. We are in for an incredible ride as the Sussexes segue into their next transition!!! It’s already upon us! Stay positive, moisturized, and hydrated! Above all, ‘No bad energy!’ 😍 🌈
The comments under the CUT article are just vile.
Ever since Archetypes aired, all the articles have provided a real target rich blocking environment. They are swarming out of the woodwork, making it so easy to mute and block. That said, I’ve found myself having to stop reading at a certain point, because all the hate and vitriol make me so anxious. I’m used to seeing it from the Fail denizens, and some of the other culprits, but so much publicity has launched an entirely new awful audience. You tend to forget just how much hatred for her is out there. If it’s overwhelming to me, I can only imagine how Meghan feels, even after all this time. She may not read her own press, but she knows exactly what’s out there. I seriously doubt I could have navigated all this with as much strength and grace as she has.
I need to go back and reread the article. I was so happy she was back and talking that I raced through the article and all the digs and pointed shade didn’t even register with me.
Of course they are. Those people live for hate and their jealousy is poison. Let them choke on it.
Came back to say exactly that about the comments. But that’s also par for the course for that site. It’s a non-stop snark-fest. The writers and the readers tend to be awful people.
Dont underestimate the size of the industry thats behind the hate and vitriol against M. I saw a tweet recently from someone who said, dont ask me how I know, but theres a billion dollar industry behind the uk tabloids hatefest against Meghan. Theyre not going to stop.
I am shocked by how terrible the comments are on that article. I’ve never read The Cut, is that a typical response to an article?
I’d like to see The Cut do a follow up article on the vile comments posted regarding Meghan, the Duchess
The photos were taken at Victoria Jackson’s “sprawling ranch near Santa Barbara that she lent to Meghan for the photo shoot”.
^^ Yep, it mentions that Meghan met Victoria Jackson through Gloria Steinem. Not too long ago Jackson collaborated with Ellen on a new skincare line. There’s a YouTube video from 10 months ago. I like how Jackson is so protective of the Sussexes in what the article quotes her as saying.
I can’t begin to say how much I admire her and am impressed by her. And Harry.
+1.
That cover shot is stunning too.
Right? Meghan genuinely works “natural-look” makeup better than just about any woman I can think of. She’s like, almost annoyingly beautiful.
I can see the bile projecting and heads spinning in every editors room across the UK, they will surely get a headline from literally every sentence here.
The photoshoot pictures are just jaw dropping. It is just as if Meghan never left off from her modelling days. She is getting hotter by the day.
Her detractors are going to combust when they see the fabulous photographs.
I just love it! This is coming in straight on the heels of the podcast that went to number 1.
The pictures are GORGEOUS. Heads are exploding in the UK today LOL.
And of course todays the day I’m at an amusement park with my kids (I hate roller coasters so I spend lots of time just waiting LOL).
I like that white suit so much better than the one she wore at Invictus. Much more interesting cut on the jacket and I thinks suits her better. Maybe this one would have been a little too edgy for that event I guess. She does look wonderful in all the pictures.
I cannot wait to read this! I listened to Archetypes this weekend. I grew up playing and watching tennis so it was great. I loved listening. One thing here that sticks out….Harry says he lost his father in all this. OUCH Salt Island gonna go crazy!
I took it to mean that Harry said that Meghan lost her father.
No, I read the whole interview along with the quote and it’s pretty clear Harry meant he lost Charles too. Meghan even says it’s not the same situation as with her father but Harry made his decision.
@equality, that’s not the way I read it. Harry said he lost his dad in the process and Meghan said it didn’t have to be same for them (Charles and Harry) as it was for her, but that it’s his decision.
I can’t read it, its pay walled for me. Boo! But I wonder if he considers himself having lost a brother too? As for Charles, it sounds like there is no way back for him. No wonder he’s terrified of Harry’s book.
If it did mean PC, I wonder if they will have anything to do with any royal events after TQ passes or if they will continue to lease Frogmore.
Quote from the article:
‘When I ask about it, Meghan doesn’t stay in her sadness for long; instead, she uses it to discuss how toxic tabloid culture has torn two families apart. “Harry said to me, ‘I lost my dad in this process.’ It doesn’t have to be the same for them as it was for me, but that’s his decision.”’
Sounds like Harry believes that he’s lost his dad in the process, and Meghan is contrasting it with her own.
It was clarified in People and by Scobie that it was referring to Meghan’s dad, and that Harry didn’t have to have the same outcome. Some are pointing out the writer’s snark but like they said, the Sussexes have no problem with criticism and expect it. So yes, there is a bit of side eye but overall, Meghan gets her points across.
Was it snark or just poorly worded by the writer? I also took it to refer to Harry’s relationship with Charles.
I think it was talking about Harry and Chuck. “It doesn’t have to be the same for them as it was for me, but that’s his decision.”’ Why would it be Harry’s decision whether Meghan lost her dad or not? I don’t know what People and Omid are talking about, I thought it was quite clear. It actually explains why Chuck wanted it out there that he had met with Harry, too, when H&M met with the Queen before Invictus. Maybe this is saying something out loud that had been kept quiet.
I have to wonder just how busy “palace sources” have been with People and Omid to change the narrative.
I just read this and I’m still flying!!!! It’s everything I ever wanted. Lots to digest and analyze. I shall be reading this at least a hundred more times. 🥹🥹🥹🥹🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
What I’d like to know is whether there is a print version, or whether The Cut is only online?
There will be a print version. They usually do a double issue where one side is NYMag, and the other side is The Cut. I have a subscription but it hasn’t come in the mail yet.
I’m glad she pointed out that others were allowed the half-in type thing that she and H wanted. Of course, there will be moaning that she “slapped the Queen” saying that.
I agree, it’s great to finally have explicitly pointed out what’s been completely obvious for a couple of years. Too bad it was up to Meghan to have to do it, should have been the job of one of the many “journalists”.
I agree with you both so much. I think it can’t be overestimated how much all CBers, definitely including myself, are braced for attack every time we read an article about Meghan and Harry, other than here. We would have been equally grossed out if it had read as an enbiggening pile of bullshit, a la Willnot and Cannot.
She took the time to address so many things that Kaiser has been pointing out for years now, almost like they were bulleted line items. I don’t need smoke blown up my ass about Meghan and Harry, I already adore them. I need the press to be fair to them.
My god, she is a beautiful woman!
Isn’t she just….these are some of the best shots of her in a long time.
Indeed! Inside and out. I just love her.
Despite all the shidt she got and continues to get from an entire country and the psychological searing that has been, she is still courageous enough to insist on living an authentic life; to be her authentic self. Its very admirable because some of us go thru life editing ourself constantly and before you know it, youre dead and gone.
She is beautiful but I think these photos don’t do her justice. She’s prettier everywhere else. There’s something about the stern style that makes her look too harsh here, at least in my opinion. She seems so lovely and warm elsewhere.
The reason why she is not smiling sweetly is that the photographer wants to convey the bold tone of the article.
I love that she won’t be silenced. Gorgeous pictures, inspiring woman!
Won’t be silenced and also repeating again how she can talk about anything she wants when she wants. Her words should be sending cold fear down the RF’s back.
I never signed anything restricting what I say.
I can say anything but have chosen not to.
I’m still healing.
Watch out, RF, is how I read that.
I definitely caught that. She is telling them “I could say so much more…” They–the RF and the BM–should really tread lightly with her.
Hopefully, it was a message. KP might want to think before sending other employees after her, starting more rumors, or continuing to push the crying and bullying stories.
Yes. This was the most elegant way I ever saw to say “I’m sitting on mountains of receipts so be very careful”, lol.
Yes, Jais! I love that message she’s sending to the BRF. Between this and Harry’s book, I hope they’re all shitting themselves.
Yes – and that she CLEARLY warns several times in this interview that she is not bound by an NDA and that she can say ANYTHING when she chooses to do so.
Wow. I can’t help taking that as a clear warning to the RF (and probably William in particular) to watch their step.
It’s almost as though she is trying to give them the chance to step back from the brink. Do we think they will listen?!?
I honestly don’t think they will – or even if they do try to step back, they hate that they fostered through the media has grown to a huge money-making juggernaut that they cannot control anymore. There’s a lot of money in Meghan hate, which is such a sad indictment of society.
The RF is definitely afraid of the Meghan and Harry.
Stupid Palace pushed them out thinking that would make them quiet.
I don’t think they thought it would make H&M quiet. They thought they would come crawling back with nowhere else to go and no way to make enough money for security without the RF.
It was definitely a warning, aimed at both the press and the Firm IMO.
Look who gets to wear whatever emeralds she wants now! I don’t know if those earrings are shade. But if they are I’m here for it.
Ha! Didn’t even think about that but they’re gorgeous shade if so. Sorry if my earrings make you green with envy, haters.
They’re beautiful but not emeralds. Lanvin Brass & Green Glass Melodie Earrings
Her words are powerful. And the pictures are lovely. She is a model!
I love all of this for her. I hope she is doing more promo because this is great.
After reading the article and seeing the gorgeous photos… more please! I really didn’t need the author inserting herself in the interview. Don’t know or care about her. She is only relevant in telling me about Meghan. I’m well equipped to make my own conclusions.
It’s not an interview, it’s a profile. It seems that’s the mistake a lot of people are making when judging this and complaining the author doesn’t like Meghan. A profile has the pov of the writer in it, it’s not just about questions and answers.
I didn’t know that, Ace. I was wondering why the writer kept adding her pov. Thanks for the information.
Well, I don’t doubt for a second that she’s still healing but also … she may want to put all of that in writing someday, i.e. write a book of her own. And there’s absolutely no reason to do that right now or even soon. And if she talked about bits and pieces now, it won’t have the same impact once you put it all down. She’s a businesswoman, she won’t give away all of it for free.
Love that pic of her on the wooden bench, she takes such great photos. But the cover shot looks like she’s squinting a little which is slightly off when it’s a close-up.
I have a theory that Meghan has written down her thoughts and feelings about everything that went down, and is likely continuing to keep track of everything still going down and being thrown at her. It might not come for many years, but I think one day we will get a Meghan book from her own words. One day. But it will never happen until the Queen is gone.
Well, she did mention the journal she was writing in while at Frogmore. The book is coming some day.
Yup, she basically has everything that happened to her documented. If/when her book comes out, it’s going to be one hell of a read and I’ll be reading it.
She definitely has, L84tea. Hasn’t she said in the past that she journals? Plus we know she’s kept receipts. I would imagine she has written down everything since she started dating Harry and especially after marriage. And also backed up accounts and emails, printed hardcopies, sent things to her lawyers, etc. She seems very organized and thorough. And I can’t wait for all the facts to come out about that family (not that the truth matters to that family or salty isle). And here in the land of reality, recollections can’t vary when you have the receipts.
Yep, I took the journal reference as another warning shot. They really shouldn’t mess with someone who is known for journaling. What idiots.
Of course Meghan will write her own book one day.
I loved the article, there is a lot to read, every time I thought I was finished there was more. Does Lily have are own garden. They gave the write some Jam at the end. I love the idea of Harry fixing things around the house and at his neighbours I really want to know how he learned to fix stuff. That is not the image I have of a prince being able to DIY stuff around the house
The Harry parts were so cute. Fussing about how long Meghan was gone to do the photo shoot and then grumbling about the plumbing. And Harry gushing about how the two palm trees being joined at the roots is just like their love? Adorable! The hostage was really trained to keep up the facade for this interview.
I’m sure the plumbing thing will morph into some sort of shade about the hundreds of bathrooms they have when the RR get onto it.
Well Frogmore was a wreck before it was fixed up and they moved in. There were probably things that still needed repairing so maybe he got some practice then. Plus Harry seems like a pretty hands on guy, not the type who just likes to stand back and watch. And you can find pretty much any home repair project on YouTube nowadays.
Harry probably learned some fix-its during 10 years in the army.
I once read an article that said Harry was left to his own devices as a kid and he would ask the staff if he could help them. One example was helping in the kitchen. That type of benign neglect helped Harry become a decent and kind person.
It would be amusing if all those staff got more mention in his book than the Windsors.
That detail of him fixing the sprinkler at their friends’ property was a great one.
Every time there is an article about her on here, the first thing I think is “she’s so pretty.” She’s sooo pretty. I know that is not the most important or most interesting thing about her, but…she’s so pretty.
I know right! My first thought was “Urghh she’s so hot!” And then i feel bad because the article is more important damn it!
Yes same haha. She really is so beautiful.
I haven’t read the piece yet- I plan to later today. But I am THRILLED that she is using her voice and speaking of her experience. I cannot fathom all that she and Harry(and especially she) has been through.
Also on a shallow note, she looks amazingly beautiful here. I mean, she is always gorgeous and photogenic but these pics are wow!
@ sunny, I too am thrilled that she has fully restored her willingness to speak about what happened during the “divorce” proceedings with the BRF. I absolutely adore Meghans analogy of Harry and Meghan compared to salt and pepper, their love and union are forever. They are apparently blissfully happy and creating the lives that are for them and their children.
As a side note, Meghan is stunning and her ability to showcase her beauty with such ease and little to nothing makeup makes me admire her even more.
I was reading the comments and didn’t want to reply to those that have read the article in its entirety so I came to your post.
It is such a good profile! I think Allison did such a good job with it- profile writing is hard because it demands perspective on the subject. Like, Meghan comes off very well, thoughtful, smart, kind, warm, playful, but also a bit cheesy and painfully earnest and image conscious. I can readily believe all of those things are true.
One thing that really is evident is the love between Harry and Meghan and the family that they have built. It is really beautiful and even a bit cheesy. I laughed at the tree bit. This is a family that is together, strong, and thriving. Meghan is in her Renaissance era.
On another note, every good celebrity profile has a few notes that are just a bit ridiculous because to a certain extent there lives are so far removed from normal people. Like Caity Weaver’s piece on GP when she adds the detail of GP making her a delicious pasta dish(effortlessly) and cocktails and Caity spills food on herself while GP manages no stains while wearing white. In this piece, it is the Jonas candle detail for me.
I am going to correct myself here- I think it was Taffy who wrote the magnificent GP profile.
It is not shallow at all to tell the truth and the truth is …she is stunning!
That shot of her in the black dress is just stunning. I’m glad Harry got so lucky, he really deserves some goodness back in his life.
@Sunny and K: Then call me “shallow” too because I was transfixed with the photos.
I could barely get past her sharing that she’s getting back on Instagram! I am so ready for her to take it by storm and for salt island to implode. Ha ha ha ha!
And my word, isn’t our Meghan just so gorgeous?
OMG. Camilla Tominey wrote that trash take about no one caring about Harry and Meghan before this article came out! She is going to be bouncing off the walls! What an amazing Monday!
@ girl_ninja, maybe Britain could harness her, and the rest of the BM vipers, bouncing and raging and they could provide power to the peasants that the BRF refuse to acknowledge, yet alone help?? Imagine ALL of the families home that they could heat for the winter……wouldn’t that be the ultimate goal that she placed up Harry and Meghan in constructing a financial handbook????
She is so gorgeous! I wish there was a way for Harry and PC to forge a new relationship. Families are so complicated!
Lol! They are all fools.
Everytime I see Meghan, I think of the “Still I Rise” poem by Maya Angelou. The amount of nastiness, smears, racism, xenophobia thrown at her has been off the scale and the Sussexes aren’t letting that family, aides and those hubristic media reporters and editors control or win over them. Keep rising, both of you!!
Yes, one of my favourite poems. I had it pinned on the wall when I was a university student and I often quote it in relation to Meghan.
I’m still absorbing all of this, because it’s an AMAZING way to start my Monday morning. And those photos…wowza 😍
But one of the things that comes to mind is the BRF are really gonna regret not letting the Sussexes do the half in-half out plan they originally requested. The BRF and courtiers were so stupid and shortsighted (what else is new though, right?) and now they’re gonna be destroyed simply by Meghan and Harry telling the truth. The truth of being treated differently than other royals. The truth about their children being called the N-word. The truth about how vile Charles is and how apparently Harry has no relationship with him anymore. The truth about every👏🏽thing👏🏽
They really thought Harry and Meghan would fail and Harry would come crawling back to that abusive system. Did they not listen to what he’d been saying for years?! He wanted OUT. The BRF is just so stupid. And I love that for them.
Other than that initial thought, I’m so excited that Meghan is going back to IG and (it sounds like) they are doing a documentary about their love story. Sign me up for that!! I also love love love that she seems to be reminding the BRF and RRs (and whoever else needs to be reminded) that she hasn’t signed an NDA and isn’t done speaking, she’s just biding her time.
It took me a while to read the whole article (constant interruptions), but OH MY it’s chock full of meaty stuff. I get why some think the writer was a bit edgy or even a tad shady at times, but I loved the way she added some loaded words to show that she was “getting” what Meghan was not saying. I also think the writer was really happy to get to write about Harry, Archie and Lili — totally charming. I’ll have to read it again because I was so stunned with the candor I’m sure there’re lots of things I haven’t processed yet. Superficial notes, the fashion photos are stunning and, no doubt, have KKKhate tearing her wiglets out. 😆
I like that she wrote good things about the children and how they relate to H&M.
@ SussexWatcher, I agree!! The BRF were certainly thrown for a loop thinking that Harry and Meghan would fail, more importantly they began to thrive and strive as soon as their feet hit the ground, just as Meghan had done once she was within the imprisonment of the BRF.
As for their refusal of accepting Harry and Meghans offer of half in/out, I can bet my life that Prince of Pegging stomped his little fists and feet to keep that arrangement for coming to fruition. Now they are experiencing the full scope of having given in to his temper tantrums regarding his demands while Harry and Meghan capture the stage with a worldwide audience waiting and wanting to hear from them and fully support their causes.
Guess they shouldn’t have bet on the lame, and incapable horse in this race. Giver that QEII is such a horse fan you would have thought she knew of the odds. They ALL lost out and they deserve every bit of the consequences.
This is so amazing 😍 Meghan is back, like really back. And her saying that she’s not beholden to be quiet. Ha! Take that Salt Island, she’s staying quiet but she can expose y’all at the drop of a hat.
And I was squealing at all the parts of Archie and Lili. Archie is so intelligent and well mannered (cue howls from Adelaide cottage) . And Lili’s bright blue eyes (Diana’s eyes) . *Insert screeching from bucklebury and AC*
After Archie’s Chick Inn,we have Lili’s Bunny Farm OMGGGG!!!
My only complaint is, they didn’t make a good cover,as in they could have photographed her face better. Inside pictures are gorgeous though 😍
I like the cover because it is a bare-faced look with no air-brushing and you can see faint lines in her forehead but she hasn’t been botoxed to death like Kate and still looks great. Kate has to be photoshopped and botoxed and still doesn’t compare.
She really is well and truly back!
Yup and their is no stopping her from sharing and being featured on covers or major publications or syndicates as well!!
Yasss Queen! Give it to them and give it good. The royal 🐀 will loose their damn minds tonight! No less than 2k articles will be about this article in the next 2 days! Lol , imagine if they were loosing their sh!t about the podcast 😂
Meghan looks gorgeous by the way while serving them.
Plus another podcast drops tomorrow, I believe. But honestly, who needs to read the tabloids if you can read and listen to Meghan herself? And Harry next with his book?
Tominey, Levin and Wooton are all going to have breakdowns after their heads stop spinning.
@ MsIam, yes!! The RR’s will be fuming that Meghan has stolen their “thunder” as she has taken her voice and power back. Of course that won’t stop them from completely losing their minds over this article and her podcasts, but they are willing to show the world their arses and vile hatred.
All of which will cements the comments made about Meghan and Harry of their unhinged, vile, misogynistic and racist comments. I was so happy to hear Meghan call out the secret agreement that the BRF has with the BM and their “exclusives”.
Looking forward to reading the article!
The photos are beautiful – but I prefer her photos IRL where she’s moving around, interacting with people around her. She has this lovely ease and warmth and light and love shining out of her that draws people to her [same as with Harry! imo] that I don’t see here as much.
So. I think we are getting a docuseries. I can’t wait for that.
Yes! I’m eating my words, was a definite nonbeliever of the docuseries. I just want all their content now. Drop the book, Harry! More eps please, Meghan! Invictus doc and love story docuseries when?!! 🤗🤗
You go girl! These are stunning cover shots! Btw, I’m stunned by the Royal Rota calling Archie the N word! Who was that disgusting rota rat?
I’m not stunned at all – they probably all did. I can’t remember who, but there was a woman reporter who said she was standing next to a bunch of the RRs during an event and was shocked at the vile and disgusting way they talked about Meghan. And I think this was very early on.
I also really do believe that the RRs were taking a page from their KP overlords so any language or names they called Meghan and the children also came straight from Chuck, The Other Brother, and Kkkeen’s mouths (and their staff – Jason K and the like). The RRs got so out of control because they were given the green light to, by the royal family.
If we’re thinking about the same event and reporter, it *might* have actually been at the church service for Commonwealth Day 2020. The woman (I can’t quite remember her name either, it might’ve been Laura?) said that not only were these reporters (most of them older men) saying awful things about Meghan, they were also editing witch hats onto the photos they had just taken of her (and god knows what else).
There was an Irish journalist who wrote a piece about how the RR talked about Meghan while they followed the Sussexes during the visit to Ireland. She said that the way they talked about her was just awful – and they said she was too sexy to be a member of the BRF.
She described how the male journalists were slobbering over her but also condemning her for being too sexy (which probably has more about them being conflicted about being finding her attractive). Full on misogyny with a great dolloped on unvoiced racism.
Ooh I remember that @ArtHistorian. Was that the same reporter/piece in which she talked about how they contrasted Kate as being ‘demure’ when they claimed Meghan was ‘too sexy’? I know there was some article about a Sussex visit where reporters (and/or maybe even random bystanders?) were apparently comparing ‘good girl’ Kate to ‘sexy vixen’ Meghan and this might’ve been the same one.
Good God. The same Kate who flashed people while in school, and again during royal tours? Several times. Demure? Oh well, perhaps that word has a different meaning over in England.
Probably the same horrible person who called Meghan a mutt? Seems right up her alley.
I haven’t read the whole piece but just the quotes you’ve shared with us here are EPIC. Wow. I’ll need to come back to this later a read through it again as it’s a lot to take in and so interesting to hear her in her own words (I haven’t listened to the podcast yet).
Go Meghan and Harry and the kiddies.
Love the photos. Between this and a new podcast episode tomorrow, there’s going to be even more meltdowns from the usual suspects. And honestly? I’m here for it.
The stuff about Archie and manners is going to send a certain Early Years expert into a frenzied rage 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Meghan’s trolling is psy-op levels now lmao. She’s in her “eat it” phase and I live it.
lmaooo because Meghan’s out here teaching Archie that “manners make the man” while Kate can’t get control over Louis, who’s shushing her and pulling every possible face at her at the jubbly?
A frenzied rage? Kate? Is she capable of that emotional extreme?
As someone who loved her before her relationship with Harry, I am glad to see her again. Her time in the BRF and in the UK was bleak and I think a lot of people are realising how much she diminished herself in order to make it work, and I love that she will one day talk about the ordeal. And I bet she will do so in a way that will help others, instead of victimizing herself (unlike others!)
I am so happy they got out!
The only reason she is holding back, for now, is Harry’s “Gran”. As soon as the world coverage ebbs, we will get it all. This was a lovely arrow full of Kate’s favorite flowers. Caution. I have the receipts. Stop the nonsense now.
M has class that Camilla, Charles, Kate, and William can’t buy. Or cosplay.
Gorgeous cover and photos! The British press and the RF are 100% losing their minds and I’m here for it. As Meghan said, it didn’t have to be this way.
Even though she says she doesn’t read press, she must surely be aware that the tabloids will take every word and twist and twist until the meaning is to their advantage and Meghan is smeared and derided yet again. I question if this interview is to her advantage. She is giving them an enormous amount of ammunition to erode her reputation even more. I realize I’m being over protective, but why give the enemy a chance to do more harm?
Julia, I understand this knee-jerk reaction and had it for a while myself. But, I think that this is what it means to truly be free. To say what you want, knowing it can and will be distorted by people who judge you in bad faith and still choose to say it anyway because it’s your truth. For so long M censored herself to fit into the RF and she’s done. She fought long and hard and has lost so much in order to just speak for herself again. And honestly, there’s nothing M could ever say that could make the RR happy because it pays their bills to misunderstand her and twist every little breath she takes. Our girl is free and it looks so good on her.
The British Media and the BRF have exploited her silence – and they have tried and still try to rewrite history. Meghan and Harry speaking out is important – for themselves but also for the historical record.
She’s been derided and they’ve tried to ruin her reputation for years now. No, you don’t live in fear of the tabloids, which many including that family has done. Why do you think many of their stars leave and move to America? That press and members of the RF and Markles have been allowed to abuse and mistreat them long enough. They hate her because she won’t bow to them. Even when she’s quiet and minding her business, they still attack her. She’ll never win with those people and it’s designed that way on purpose. They want her to grovel and shrink and she’s not doing it and that’s why they’re mad.
Meghan is written about badly whether she speaks or not. I’m happy she is not letting the vile, racist and abusive RF and UK media dictate her life. Watching how Diana’s life is being rewritten, Meghan is wise to have HER story memorialized so the roya rats and the RF don’t rewrite her history.
At some point she’d have to make peace with that and move forward and it looks like she is. Living in fear and silence is exactly what the media and the RF want for her. It’s good that she’s now feeling comfortable enough to speak out more. These are people who have gleefully attacked her more intensely when Harry asked them to be easier on her during her pregnancy with Archie. They’ve cheerfully violated her privacy in so many ways and so many times. Nothing Meghan says or does is going to change their fixation on her or the negativity they constantly throw her way.
Because they’ll attack her no matter what and she herself has said one of the most painful things was them trying to take her voice away where she could NEVER defend herself or speak. so acting like her using her voice is a bad thing is not protective.
PR 101: Either you speak your message yourself, or others will speak for you; in general, silence doesn’t do anyone any favours. However, I like very much Meghan and Harry’s approach to communicating – only what they’re comfortable with, in their own words (unless spokespeople are required) and when they’re ready. They are also careful to let each other define their own communications space. Harry’s turn with the memoir will come, and I imagine Meghan will stay in the background at that point, just as Harry is doing now with her press, her podcast etc.
I liked that this interview gave me a really good sense of the writer’s impression of Meghan and didn’t hold back. I also liked that this was a long, in-depth article about Meghan when it’s been so long! Really looking forward to Harry’s memoir now!
@Julia K: Why she should remain silent? She did that for 5 years. Plus when she was silent the press didn’t hesitate to talk about her. At least this time, her words and thoughts are there for everybody to see.
Like Harry said, they will criticize either way. H&M need to live their lives doing what makes them happy and provides for their family. Doing interviews to get people ready for content does that.
I mean they basically already criticize her for breathing lol. Yeah I don’t think M&H are scared at this point..
Hi @Julia K I understand your fear but they misrepresent her silence as well as her words. They misrepresent her absence as well as her presence. At least when Meghan speaks she can counter the nonsense and her words are what historians will use and will determine her legacy and how she’s remembered.
Meghan looks stunning, and yes Madame Duchess, when you are ready to talk about anything and everything, we will listen. The firm should be afraid, very afraid. Lol.. As for Harry and his worst father ever, Charles is a punk , Thomas is a worm. . So happy Meghan and Harry have love, togetherness and happiness
Why would I give the very people that are calling my children the N-word a photo of my child before I can share it with the people that love my child? You tell me how that makes sense and then I’ll play that game.”
Whew. That. Right. There. She is no about these racists and their games. And all these raggedy ass fools like Wootten, Morgan, Tominey and the like are gonna get f*cked up. I am here for it and I am ready.
The press are going to be screaming about that comment but she’s telling the truth. I suspect the press said a lot of things in her presence that she overheard.
Yeah, I kind of took that as something she knows was said but was obviously not reported on.
Just this one line about Harry marveling, “you were gone for ten hours yesterday!” I’m tearing up at my desk. The LOVE, my god.
Harry truly is too good for this world. He is the best thing ever to come out of the royal family (other than his mom)
I am reading the book Attached about attachment styles and Harry remarking on how long Meghan was gone (when they live together and literally work *right beside each other* every day they’re not traveling) tells me that Harry has a bit of an anxious attachment style. I’m sure Harry and Meghan are ultra-secure in their relationship but we all have attachment tendencies and Harry’s is anxious. Which is no wonder given how early he lost his mother, who was his primary (only?) source of familial love and comfort growing up. Btw the book is clear that our attachment styles are not healthy or unhealthy (iow, it’s not “bad” that Harry is anxious in relationships, it just *is*), and that once we recognize our attachment styles we can talk about them with our partner and make sure the relationship is built in a positive and nurturing way for both people. I bet H&M talk a lot on the phone or via FaceTime etc. when one is traveling without the other.
Bit of a reach there with the anxious attachment assumption.
That’s quite a diagnosis, doctor.
As opposed to a man who can barely spend 40 min in the presence of his wife, every other month..
I love the excerpts! Meghan reaffirms she’s done with Bad Dad even with his latest “stroke”. Harry’s done with Chuck too. And the broadside for the rota wanting pictures of Archie? Chef’s kiss.
LOL, the carnival of clowns, might have been right, when they said the Sussexes timed the release of Archie’s pictures to the US tv audiences 🤣.
I was wondering about that. He said father, not father and brother.
Anna, there have been CH sources trying to make it seem like Chuck and Harry talk and have a relationship. I think this is Harry’s way of putting a stop to that even though the message came through Meghan. We all know that the brothers are “space”.
Cue the meltdown from the rota.
And it will be vicious.
Did you not read Jan Moir’s so-called article? That was vile and vicious, calling Meghan a dumb mutt. But I think most people have the tabloids number now and are not just eating up what they put out. I think Meghan is done living in fear of those folks. She has a business to run. And lawyers on speed dial.
Seriously, there’s nothing worse they can say at this point, certainly not after Moir’s disgusting article, which has to be as close to rock bottom as the BM can go. It’s been going on for so long, I believe they’ve finally overplayed their hand, and it’s now like a comedy act; Meghan says something, cue the usual responses from the usual suspects. The fact the podcast is number one in so many markets means people are interested in hearing from her themselves, and can make their own conclusions; they don’t need to rely on supposed information from so-called “experts”. This article likewise.
Re read the interview but the second time read the comments. Big mistake. They are mostly hateful and vile. This is not tabloid fodder, these comments are from The Cut readers. Holy cow.
“[C]omments are from The Cut readers” Eh???
There is zero proof that negative commenters actually read the article before going on the attack.
They may have read the article because it had to do with Meghan. Not sure if they’re the regular “Cut” readers
I’m sure her abusers (BRF and UK media) would prefer she remain silent but I’m glad that she has the balls to call out their racism and vindictiveness.
I got a lot of things from the snippets of this article. Meghan confirms that she’s still healing and maybe the fans should stop demanding that she make appearances or get back on Instagram. I’ll read the entire thing later but I’d say one thing, the Royal Family and the British press better brace themselves for Harry’s book. He’s not going to bash his family but he’s going to say a lot of things that the family and the press won’t like and I’m here for it.
I love how her and Harry are like salt and pepper. They move together. These two were just meant to be, soulmates as Harry has told us. I0 bucks says Kate is in a serious lockdown mode copying and trying to buy everything Meghan is wearing. Charles is crying about how hurt he is how he gave Harry everything. What more could he do? That will be tomorrow’s salt isle headlines. Ungrateful Harry hurtful comments is the last straw, poor Charles can do no more for his deeply disturbed son. Demon Meghan has corrupted him with her Hollywood woes and sex appeal. Lol. . You know those unhinged bitches in the British media and Charles always the victim never the perp will be pushing this bullshit.
Can we have a separate fashion post? The cover and then the fuller dress reveal: a modern princess, black turtleneck with tulle. ❤️ The photographer and stylist did an amazing job.
Yes please!! I am not really into fashion but Meghan brightens my day.
They did do a great job. Reminiscent of Dior, Charles James, Audrey Hepburn, and a big dollop of Grace Kelly in Rear Window.
The white suit from Proenza Schuyler was totally bad-ass fabulous. Can’t help but think of Waitie parading in her white bread suit trying so hard to be edgy and stylish which she is not.
I haven’t read the full piece yet, but what an amazing surprise it was to see this pop up in my Twitter feed! I have it open and ready to read in full as soon as I have a few moments. I’m thrilled to see her looking so gorgeous, healthy and happy, and I can’t wait to see what she has to say. I really enjoyed the Archetypes podcast too (still have the last 6 minutes to listen to). We are truly in the Era of Meghan and it’s like Christmas morning for us fans! Between their upcoming events and then hopefully Harry’s book later in the fall…the drought is over, guys. And I truly hope the RRs and the palace gets what is coming to them VERY soon. Ms. Karma is hopefully en route as we speak.
that cover is STUNNING. She seems like “Meg” again. I need to read but the tidbits i’m seeing On Twitter and here got me feeling a way. She was really a shell of her former self in 2018/19. Thank god, THANK GOD she got out. Thank god she’s still with us. Her and Harrry both.
THANK GOD, this sounds like a nightmare. I really believe that Meghan and Harry tried everything they could, but the Royal Family and JEALOUS WILLIAM wanted them out. They were just too beautiful a couple for them to handle.
This whole article is amazing. The little snippets tell so much. If this is what we get from a profile I can’t believe how many little details could be in Harry’s autobiography. Not surprised the BRF are fucking terrified.
Harry said to me, ‘I lost my dad in this process.’ It doesn’t have to be the same for them as it was for me, but that’s his decision.”
Oh wow. Chuck better get on all those reconciliation leaks because things aren’t looking good for him.
Meghan saying a few times that she could talk but she isn’t is just **chef’s kiss**. Keep your heels on the BRF’s neck, Meg! And squeeze whenever you’re ready, I’ll wait until then.
Love, love this article. Finally, Meghan is back! So happy for both Meg and Haz…they’re still healing and recalibrating, but their path forward is clear. And a gigantic shout out to Tyler Perry and his kindness and generosity in helping them. And gifting them a baby grand piano! Tyler Perry is the friend everyone needs.
There are so many things to love about H&M, but that salt and pepper quote really captures what is so lovely about them as a couple, and what the BRF will never ever understand — they’re a team. They have true partnership with mutual love and respect for one another. Neither is more or less important than the other and it shows in every single interaction what a strong unit they are. I love that about them.
That and Harry’s palm trees comment. So sweet.
I F%€KING LOVE IT!!!🎉😎
I immediately looked up the photographer, Campbell Addy, as soon as the photos dropped.
His website has some of his work and it is beautiful. He knows how to photograph Black people, of all shades.
Representation matters.
Has anyone seen an id on those green cluster earrings???
Lanvin Brass & Green Strass Melodie Earrings.
I love this piece! I thought it was so wistful/beautiful/reflective/kinda sad when she described returning to Frogmore and seeing her not-yet-unpacked Toronto things and the life that could have been. When she said “It was bittersweet, you know? Knowing none of it had to be this way,” and when she says “I don’t know” to the question about why the arrangements didn’t work… that seems like a quiet, thoughtful moment that really hit hard.
Also Harry is the absolute best. He is a light of joy in all this. The nugget he said about “Most people that I know and many of my family, they aren’t able to work and live together” !!!! Lol who do we think is not working and living together 👀👀👀
Doesn’t Cam have her own house? And most likely W&K. Interesting that he says “many” though.
Well we know Philip and the Queen lived separately. Charles and Diana and now Camilla and Charles. Peter and Autumn went kaput. And those are the ones we know about for sure, lol.
I think the shorter list for that family would be who IS working and living together. And all I can come up with is possibly Edward and Sophie. Eugenie and Jack don’t work together, AFAIK. I genuinely don’t know what Beatrice’s husband does for work, so maybe them too? That’s all I’ve got.
I liked how she said, “I don’t know,” to the question of why the BRF wouldn’t let her and Harry do their part-time idea. I think, similar to the author, she probably doesn’t want to put words in the BRF’s mouth either. But, just like the author, people can put some of the facts together, and arrive at maybe 80% of the actual conclusion.
The interview from reading was fairly decent to me.. I had no issue with the interviewer or Meghan. Meghan is very caution as she should be so anyone interviewing her will have to use their inference skills to interpret many of her utterances. Meghan knows the gutter UK media will do their best to paint her words negatively. Was happy to be able to see her happiness through the page of this article and for her to be using her beautiful voice. What the gutter UK press put this young woman through in that country should be investigated as a crime. The constant gaslighting, lying and misogyny was so unnecessarily brutal. No wonder this young lady is very cautious with what she says. I cannot imagine her trauma and how very hard this must have been on her mother as well. Something we seldom mention here is how her mother must have felt seeing her child suffer.
Meghan looks so beautiful! This is her “relaunch” as her own person and not just as part of “Team Meghan and Harry” . Hurrah!
I read it. The photos are stunning! Archie seems so adorable! So much to unpack. Based on his snippets of conversation, Harry’s book is going to be something else. She has a lot to say and the hints reveal it was quite an experience. Her saying that she was afraid to leave the house in 2019 shows how bleak it was. She still has her nerdy-girl, wonky vibe too, which I love about her. Honestly, not too into the sappy lovey bits but she has every right to say it, because to her, it was love that saved them. I know it seems a bit cheesy, but whatever bond they have, it’s gotten them through so much. So much she can say. Like she said, the silence is part of the song. Regarding Archetypes, I like the upcoming themes and looking forward to it. I’m glad she called out the Rota. In case they were not clear, she thinks they’re scum.
The Vanity Fair cover was in 2017, not 2019.
I loved the article! Thanks for the heads-up, CB. Y’all, do yourselves a favor and do not read the NYMag’s comments on this article. They range from fake boredom to absolute cruelty to racist dog whistles. How a woman who gives backpacks of supplies and hauled ikea frames overseas (relatable lol) is absolutely beyond me.
Unfortunately the vast majority of comment sections about Meghan (and Harry) are going to be like this. The derangers, royalists, and obsessive haters are committed to spewing bile everywhere. Like, these people have multiple accounts for this nonsense and it’s quite embarrassing. I’ve only known this site and Pajiba (on the rare occasion they write about the royals) to be normal.
Ugh, that saddens me no end. No wonder she backed down on rejoining Instagram.
The comments were unadulterated vile. How anyone can spew so much hate is unfathomable. I saw a few names commenting and responding over and over again. Can’t help but think it’s some deranged person sitting in a dark sweaty basement in the bowels of hell somewhere (or palace or the DM or Samantha or all of the above),
The Markles better sweat. They contributed to maligning Meghan’s character in the UK & Australian media. Meghan may come for those leeches with a vengeance and receipts.
Meghan is using the authority of her voice without fear.
(It is now time for me to be silent and let her speak on her own behalf, I suspect that good energy vibes may eventually lead to her sharing her ideas.
Looking forward to more Archetypes, may it resonate with good and necessary conversations.)
It is all about the family, nurturing and loving.
So happy for the Sussexes, they have demonstrated that it is more important to focus on one’s reaction to a given set of circumstances, than the circumstances themselves.
Life is also about priorities.
Healing and forgiveness go hand in hand, the latter can be difficult but is the only way.
It is a joy that they have somewhat managed to emerge from the particular state of affairs with exactly what they wanted in the first place; although at a personal cost.
Irregardless of the situation always choose love, when all else fails choose self love, one always have a choice.
Father Bhutto, our English teacher used to say that when one is given a platform, one must always consider what one says.
Maybe Meghan had a Father Bhutto.
Now it is time for me to listen.
It is the end of that.
Lovely post. <3
My Biggest pet peeve is when people come out the woodwork when Meghan speaks and do the whole concern troll about how Meghan a woman who has been a victim of racist abuse lies spread about her for years . Saying oh I wish she would have not say anything it’s just going to give the trolls and the royal reporters something Meghan went years without being able to defend her self while the royal reporters and the British media made it their mission to drive her to dark place and now that Meghan has platform people want her to keep quiet . I’m glad that Meghan is being open and doing interviews the more people hear her words for her rather than a royal reporter the better .
Fully agree, I love her even more for speaking out.
I’ve seen the outrage from the royal rota. It’s been fabulous. All I will say to the press, is what goes around comes around.
It’s concerning how people are taking aim at the writer because she made observations that showed potential flaws in Meghan. People need to not hold Meghan on such a pedastal that any slight criticism is seen as the writer being a hater with an agenda. Meghan is human and will make mistakes. Those comments jumping on the writer for not fluffing everything up are doing Meghan no favors. The writer (and Kaiser, as she’s mentioned this before as well) pointed out that her observations could be taken a certain way, which makes it difficult to say anything that’s not fawning praise, without fear of being attacked.
Doing this will lead to more hate on Meghan as well, because if she does ever make a mistake or do something that’s bigger than seeming overly rehearsed, those who held her up so high will turn on her right quick.
Also, this wasn’t simply an interview. It’s a profile. That’s an important distinction. The writer is involved in the story because a profile is essentially “a day with” and not sitting somewhere and doing a 1-on-1 q&a. The writer wasn’t “inserting herself.” She’s part of the piece.
I thought it was a fair article. I don’t like when people act like she’s a selfless angel. She’s a person who has gone through a lot and is not going to do or say the perfect thing. Yes sometimes it comes across as being deliberately naive or too cutesy, but that’s her. Also, to the writer, some of this may have been surreal. These people are larger than life, so to be in their space is probably quite an experience. Did I like everything about the article, no, because some of what the writer dwelled on seemed a bit irrelevant like palm trees, and I felt she deliberately worded that comment on Meghan’s father to be misinterpreted. But other things I did like, and I appreciate the candor of the interview, especially how she called out the Rota directly and said she didn’t want to leave the house when things were bad in 2019. These are snippets of a bizarre and stressful period. Also, I like how matter-of- fact she was about Netflix, especially since the UK press and trolls have blown it up to larger than life. She really is fearless.
It was, all things considered, a very candid profile, and I think Meghan was ironically aware that she could come off as “too” practiced and polished, so she made an effort to let her guard down and say some stuff that she knew would open herself up for criticism. And that’s okay. The person doing the profile approached the subject with curiosity, and that comes through pretty evidently in the piece. I think many of Meghan’s fans are, rightfully, very protective of how the media portrays her, but hopefully, on re-reading the profile and thinking about it a little bit, they’re able to see it for what it is, and appreciate it. I know I did.
I love Meghan and Harry… go and enjoy your lives together God Bless!!!!!!
When will the podcast with Mariah drop?
I’m (im)patiently waiting!
Pretty sure tomorrow (Tuesdays)!
Just read the whole article, and wow. It’s great. the great things about Meghan (and Harry) we already knew are apparent. One thing that stood out to me was what she said about returning to Frogmore in June and packing up the rest of their stuff. It gave me a visual of the two of them and their baby having to leave in the cover of night without their stuff. Obviously that’s not true, but then it kind of is, you know?
I love all the anecdotes about their life in CA and how embraced they’ve been by the community there. I used to think very little of Tyler Perry (and even wrote a big paper in grad school about how his particular use of black stereotypes in his earlier films upholds the white capitalist power structure). But damn, my feelings on him changed when I heard what he did for them in 2020 and I loved reading some more of the details on that. What a guy for what he did for them.
I think both things can be true at the same time, right? Tyler Perry absolutely used certain harmful black stereotypes in his earlier films and profited off of that, but he also recognized and came through with help and support for Meghan and Harry in a time of great need, and he deserves to be lauded for that.
I mean, recognizing off the bat what Meghan was walking into, realizing what she’d need down the road, making it clear to her that this help was available if she ever needed it. Not a lot of people would have thought that Tyler Perry of all people would have the wisdom to know all this so far ahead of time, but bless him for having it and doing something with it all the same.
I don’t like most of his films, too schmaltzy,but this is what he’s been doing for over a decade. He’s an decent actor, but he has a lot of pull in Hollywood, and we’ve heard the criticisms before , some of which I agree with. Not my style. However, he did a very good thing getting them out of a bad situation and they are forever grateful to him.
I think the author acknowledges the issue very well: “ The result of trying always to do and say the right thing is the impression that [Meghan is] constantly policing herself, and in a meta-twist, I find myself worrying that the words I write about her will be misinterpreted and dissected — rudely, maliciously — too.”
Well at least she gets to experience that firsthand. Based on some of the reactions, the Rota is is not only mad, but scared. Her reach is huge and she did not mince words on calling out their racism, especially since they were just putting out nasty innuendos in that article about the beagle. The part about hierarchy is upsetting them too, but how many times did we hear they were stealing the spotlight, they don’t know their place, Meghan will never be queen, etc. etc? It upsets them because it’s true. I get the impression that they do want to move forward and, yes, forgive but it is still a lot to process. Now we know why she doesn’t give too many interviews.
The troll-fest in the comments for the article and on other sites is unreal. Some of the crap they’re accusing her of saying she didn’t even SAY! One idiot was mouthing off about her lying about sending Archie to school when they were in the UK. Heh? She was hypothetically talking about what might have happened had she brought Archie to school there, vs. her experience in their new community.
We don’t care about those bots. Daily Fail reporters and KP staff. And of course Scamantha. I wish people would stop concern trolling here.
I know. It’s just so maddening, though.
Also, I get so tired of critics who think they’re hyping themselves. Of course they are! They’re promoting their charitable concerns and their business ventures. What are they supposed to do?
They’re “hyping” themselves, eh? In that case, don’t tell those people about Charles’s “I’m very much not quite racist” article today; or the queen’s having 2 “birthdays” each year, or her Jubbly celebration because, of course, those people never “hype” themselves.
HennyO, I caught that warning, too. I liked that the writer stated that she said that with an intent look. I think she’s definitely sending a message to both the brf and the bm that they will not have it all their own way. The article left me with the feeling that there’s so much horrible things during her stay in the brf that has never seen the light of day. It’ll be interesting to see if this makes a difference to the brf and bm in how they continue to play their game.
One of the things that I thought about when their home purchase was mentioned was that it made it clear that they did it on their own. I know the derangers want people to believe that Chuck helped pay for that, but I’m left with the impression after reading the article that Chuck’s involvement has been put to bed. Well, except for those who just like to lie to be negative.
I really liked the fact that she conveyed Harry’s feelings about his family (verbal eye roll). I thought the writer’s confusion on how to address Harry when he walked into the room was real. The interactions between Meghan and then Harry with the kids felt honest–and made it very clear that they’re hands on parents.
It is edgy and I won’t pretend to know what to do with that. I think the writer was being as even handed as possible but haven’t read any of her articles before this one so I’m not quite sure what to think. It’s very readable and I think she got across a few points that Meghan wanted out there. I did appreciate that she said that she wondered if she missed everything that Meghan was trying to say. I wonder how much, if any, that added to this article?
I did not read the article, but not too many women can wear a center part, hair slicked back and look that gorgeous!
There is SO MUCH in this article that I really love, and so much that I keep discovering each time I re-read it.
When I first read the article, I felt really irritated at what I though were some really shady undertones throughout the piece. What salvaged the article and changed my mind was what the author herself wrote towards the end there, where she kind of acknowledges this by saying, “The result of trying always to do and say the right thing is the impression that [Meghan is] constantly policing herself, and in a meta-twist, I find myself worrying that the words I write about her will be misinterpreted and dissected — rudely, maliciously — too.”
It changed the whole tone of it, at least for me. The parts that came off as shady and subtle criticism or eyerolling of Meghan and Harry became something quite different. Not empathy, exactly, but rather, a sort of respect, or at least an understanding and a compassion for Meghan as a subject.
“Attempts to learn what those other projects might be, or what their plans are, are met with an institutional paranoia by a team that responds to press inquiries as if it’s protecting nuclear codes. Contact with nonapproved employees invites fear and suspicion, confrontation.”
This is EXACTLY what the racist tabloid gutter press DESERVED, and it’s hilarious how they were NOT ready for this at all. It must be absolute torture for the whole crowd of them that they have absolutely nothing and no one to rely on for sources and leaks anymore. No wonder they’ve all been absolutely unhinged about EVERYTHING over there. They were confronted by how limited their reach actually is, but also, just how many people know and care about these two and their well-being. No wonder those sad, impotent little f-cks are constantly enraged. It’s great.
There are also so many references here to the sincere affection & love in the Sussex marriage, that I know for a fact will make certain pasty, white ghouls absolutely combust themselves with rage and jealousy. The bits about the pair of palm trees in the front yard. How both of them refer to each other as “my love.” “Salt and pepper are always passed together.” I can already see the likes of Jan Moir, Sarah Vine, Camilla Tominey, Angela Levin, Ingrid Sewage seething, & furiously typing out their various articles on how it’s ALL A LIE, & how Meghan actually trapped poor hapless Harry in a loveless marriage & that they actually hate each other.
Harry and Meghan are right to be paranoid. Remember when they signed with that speakers agency and one of the rota catfished the company to get a copy of the contract? I remember they interviewed the president of the agency and he called the reporter unprofessional and he had never dealt with a reputable paper that behaved that way. So the Sussexes are on guard because they know those folks play dirty.
Exactly what I think too. The hostility from Meghan and Harry is very well earned by the British tabloid gutter press. Thankfully, given that they don’t live in Britain any more, they can actually surround themselves with people who do not feel the need to play ball with those rags at all.
I have to leave another comment, bc like I said, there are so MANY things I really like about this profile. One of the other things I liked were the observations on what went wrong between Meghan and the RF.
“Her desire to ask lots of questions and to never be involved with something she couldn’t totally have her hands on seemed to violate an unspoken social norm,” summarizes the issues that I think the royal staffers in particular had with her. I don’t think it was bc they were used to other royals doing very little. It’s because Meghan was a sincere & earnest person, & that specific crowd that she found herself in in Britain are instinctually primed to be deeply suspicious of such sincerity & earnestness.
“just by existing, we were upsetting the dynamic of the hierarchy,” is another great observation. Popularity & public adulation are not things that, in this day & age, adhere to rules of rank & hierarchy. The BRF struggles to grasp this bc of the deeply rooted jealousy that people like the Queen, Charles, & William feel towards any member of the family who outshines them in any way.
“That specific type of very American ambition just isn’t really compatible with being a princess.” To be more specific, this very American ambition isn’t really compatible with being a member of the BRITISH Royal family. There are lots of other countries with royalty, & princesses, & many of them absolutely have that sort of ambition, & manage to make it work. It’s only the BRF that found itself incompatible with this sort of American ambition.
It makes sense why. I’m not hyping the American Revolution here bc rah rah freedom or w/e, but one reason America became America was bc it very specifically rejected the BRITISH monarchy. The colonists had experienced what it was like to have a British monarch as their head of state, & their unhappiness with a lot of the shortcomings of such a system was a reason why they wanted out.
When American culture itself was structured, from the start, to be a complete rejection of something that is seen as a major piece of British culture & politics by many, it’s not surprising that that “type of very American ambition” was clashing with the BRF. We’re talking abt a microcosm of a society that still cares deeply abt rank & hierarchy, & which probably dislikes American society & culture in large part bc “just by existing”, it, too, is “upsetting the dynamic of the hierarchy” they are used to, bc it’s proof that you can reject the British way of doing things & not just survive, but do pretty okay for yourself. Which is, weirdly enough, exactly what Harry & Meghan are doing for themselves in their post-royal lives as well.
I’m waiting for the article that says that in “polite” society one never passes the salt and pepper together.
Or a story by the RR stating that “It’s a lie! The salt ALWAYS walks two steps behind the pepper.” It’s a slap to the queeeeen to suggest otherwise.
So you’re making up a thing that isn’t happening to be mad about?
@LLP I think Athena is joking (not mad) because of how ridiculous the RR gets with their articles.
I saw 0 shade, that bit about gurgling sounds meant no matter what she says, does or even breathes will be picked a part. My only issue was that the bit about Harry’s relationship with tampon, that’s a confusing and easily construed blurb imo.
This is the most extraordinary interview. More intense then even the Oprah interview in my opinion.
For far too long the carnival of experts, royal biographers, media had their days thrashing Meghan with one salacious story after another without challenge .
The detractors and haters have really nothing credible to say against her. She continues to donate serious money to urgent, worthwhile charitable causes and live her best life, having escaped suppression, oppression and outright racism – possibly violence. I am so happy for her. Keep speaking Meghan
I didn’t see shade. I saw a professional journalist approaching her celebrity subject with respect and a willingness to form an unbiased opinion. She gave plenty of space to Meghan and Harry’s own words and described their beautiful home environment and family affection with charm. She has opinions about the rehearsed way Meghan answers some of her questions and gives context for why she thinks Meghan is so careful. She acknowledged the appalling way H and M have been treated while at the same time allowing that the couple themselves are not perfect. I liked the article because it treated Meghan as a flesh and blood accomplished woman with a story to tell that is just beginning. If all journalists treated her as the 3 dimensional real person that she is, we would all be better off. I don’t need the coverage to be about praising every little thing; I need it to be fair, truthful and open minded. This was a good profile, IMO.
I read it very slowly to pick up the nuances after reading this post. On the whole I don’t think it was too snarky to Meghan, though I thought the portrayal of Harry was slightly led (by her and bufoonish and that’s always objectionable to me (ie left to his own devices while she was out like he doesn’t know what to do with himself if she’s not there). I just felt from my pov it’s still meghan wearing the pants story /trope.
Can’t believe so many people missed the viscious snark of this piecce. It’s a hatchet job disguised as a handshake. And the outpouring of hatred in the NYMag comments, as well as on Twitter, is frankly terrifying.
Completely agree with you, I was reading it with my mouth wide open. Can’t believe one black woman wrote that about another black woman who has been vilified for years in the press. I’m shocked that this is what passes for good profile these days. And I’m an ex journalist with a journalist degree
I enjoyed the article. I disagree that it was a hatchet job. If you read the comments on New York Magazine, many times you will find yourself dissatisfied, since their articles seems to attract commenters who are anxious to attack anything that promotes critical thinking and that challenges the American turn to fascism. Showing Meghan’s lush lifestyle had to be triggering to racists and I love it.
Not likey
I really enjoyed and appreciated the article. There’s a lot to take in, a lot of choice details, and I thought Allison P. Davis did a fine job of being even-handed in what she wrote.
I thank God that Harry and Meghan are now in an environment that’s restorative and replenishing, rather than draining and depleting….
So admire this gorgeous couple’s determination to love and work together to create lives that are truly fulfilling.