Last week, the Earl and Countess of Wessex were “the royals” in attendance at the Royal Variety Show, an annual fundraiser for senior entertainers and entertainers who are struggling with illnesses. Every year, a royal or royal couple gets assigned to attend the event and the expectations are pretty simple. They’re supposed to watch the event from the royal box and then greet some of the performers backstage while photos are taken. I would argue that there’s an expectation that the interactions between royals and entertainers be kept breezy and nice – after all, most of the performers are donating their time for charity, right? Especially coming right after the Susan Hussey debacle, where Hussey’s racist interrogation of Ngozi Fulani caused international headlines, you would think “hey, Sophie and Edward were on their best behavior, right?” Nope. One of the entertainers, Frank Skinner, told a radio show that Sophie and Edward were horribly rude to him backstage.
Frank Skinner has revealed that the Countess of Wessex criticised his performance of “Three Lions” in an uncomfortable exchange that also involved Prince Edward. The comedian and actor opened up about the unprecedented conversation during his Absolute Radio show at the weekend.
Comedy duo Skinner and David Baddiel performed their hit football anthem at the Royal Albert Hall on Thursday (1 December) as part of the Royal Variety Performance. The 65-year-old explained that he had arrived at rehearsals feeling unwell, but went ahead with the show. Playing to a full house and a host of celebrities, the 65-year-old revealed that the royal reception they received was less than complimentary, however.
“I was gradually getting more ill, and more ill, as the day went on,” he explained. “I was struggling. We were singing “Three Lions”. So I croaked my way through the dress rehearsal. And then, on the night, we did the show. It actually hurt to sing it. Four minutes of hurt never stopped me singing. I was in physical pain. Then we had our royal thing. Prince Edward and Sophie Wessex.”
Rather than the usual small talk, Sophie was forthwright in her opinion of his performance.
“Sophie led the way, bearing in mind I’d had a really hard day and I battled on like a trooper. So she comes up and she says ‘Well, don’t give up your day job’. I thought ‘This is not how the royal walk thing works’. And we honestly said ‘Pardon?’ It’s supposed to be just banal compliments. I said ‘Was it that bad?’ And she said: ‘Well, you know, I could tell, you know, it’s not what you do’. And I said ‘Erm, well, normally we’re like comics’. She said, ‘Yeah, but you’re on screen aren’t you, you’re not used to a live crowd’.”
“I said: ‘Well we’ve done a bit of live stuff you know, stand-up and stuff’. But she’s sticking with it and she said ‘Yeah, but you haven’t done anywhere the size of this’. I said ‘Look, I did the Palladium last Sunday’. She looked at me like ‘you’re not supposed to be arguing, I don’t think you’re supposed to be arguing with me, you’re supposed to just nod’. It was like a really awkward thing.”
Skinner went on to say that Prince Edward also came up to him and Baddiel and criticised their performance. He said that while he could not recall his exact words, he remembered sarcastically replying “that’s a good review”. The comedian felt their conversational efforts were somewhat lacking for people of their stature.
“I think what’s happened is they don’t really do this stuff much, and they’ve (the royals) been reduced in numbers for various reasons, and so they’ve been pulled out to do this – and it’s a bit of a skill just talking to someone for 10 minutes and not upsetting them.”
He added that Prince Edward eventually ran out of things to say to him: “There was a bit where it just died, the conversation – it never happens with the royals – it just like died. There was a moment where it was probably three seconds, but it felt like 10 minutes, he said ‘So, things are well?’ And I thought ‘No. Come on’. And in the end I started to think I wanted to put my arm round him a bit. I think it’s tough,” he said.
No, this is honestly hilarious? “I think what’s happened is they don’t really do this stuff much, and they’ve (the royals) been reduced in numbers for various reasons…” The king is so under-royal’d that he had to send two rude idiots to one of the most glamorous events of the year and they f–ked it all up. Sophie and Edward are incapable of merely standing around celebrities and entertainers for ten minutes without insulting them and barraging them with nasty comments. This is reminiscent of the Susan Hussey debacle too, even though the Royal Variety situation was a white-on-white crime. It’s reminiscent because: how are these people so terrible at their public-facing jobs? Besides the need for racial sensitivity training, there’s a need for just plain TRAINING. Like “this is how you do the royal job, this is how you make small talk, this is how you say something nice to someone who is donating their time.”
Photos courtesy of David Parry/Avalon and Avalon Red.
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- The Countess of Wessex meets (left to right) Ian Broudie, David Baddiel and Frank Skinner, at the Royal Variety Performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.,Image: 741760611, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: David Parry / Avalon
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- The Countess of Wessex meets (left to right) Ian Broudie, David Baddiel and Frank Skinner, at the Royal Variety Performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.,Image: 741760639, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: David Parry / Avalon
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- The Earl and Countess of Wessex attend the Royal Variety Performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.,Image: 741761826, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: David Parry / Avalon
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- The Earl and Countess of Wessex attend the Royal Variety Performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.,Image: 741761897, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: David Parry / Avalon
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- The Earl and Countess of Wessex attend the Royal Variety Performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.,Image: 741761900, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: David Parry / Avalon
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- London, UNITED KINGDOM – Celebrities seen on the red carpet for the Royal Variety Performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Pictured: Sophie Wessex, Sophie Countess of Wessex, Countess of Wessex, Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, Edward BACKGRID USA 1 DECEMBER 2022 BYLINE MUST READ: BDC Images / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- London, UNITED KINGDOM – Celebrities seen on the red carpet for the Royal Variety Performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Pictured: Sophie Wessex, Sophie Countess of Wessex, Countess of Wessex, Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, Edward BACKGRID USA 1 DECEMBER 2022 BYLINE MUST READ: BDC Images / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- London, UNITED KINGDOM – Celebrities seen on the red carpet for the Royal Variety Performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Pictured: Sophie Wessex, Sophie Countess of Wessex, Countess of Wessex BACKGRID USA 1 DECEMBER 2022 BYLINE MUST READ: BDC Images / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
So I guess the tactic of trying to rouse the rabble to demand the DoE titles for them probably won’t work.
My guess is that Soph and Eddie DGAF anymore – they are gonna say WTF they want until they’re stood down.
I wonder if this will also affect their marriage now that Sofiesta won’t get the prize for all those years of her ‘support’.
That’s a really good point. The Mail has been telling us for years that Sophie is the queen’s favourite, the queen’s confidante, etc etc., to the detriment of Camilla and of Kate, whose sole claim to fame, queen-wise, is the nickname Duchess Dolittle. Well, the queen is gone now, and Charles and William are not going to tolerate their wives being placed beneath a mere countess – after all, it reflects on the men themselves. They have pulled rank on the Wessexes, starting with the Duke of Edinburgh debacle which is very clearly down to William just as much as Charles. The Wessexes are still needed, but they will never again hold the privileged positions they held under QE.
@Loki sadly the Wessexes will have to sing for their supper now for as long as King Chuckles demands it.
They have no other means of income so they have to play along – no titles and all.
This is what Bill wanted to do to Harry & Meghan.
Yeah, this sounds like they are doing this to make Charles look bad to get back at him. Either that or people are feeling more empowered to speak against the royals. People respected the queen but not king tampon. It’s gonna be a long reign for him. What’s the saying, be careful what you wish for?
What I am struck by is how unglamorous these two are and how entitled they must be to insult others. Manners matter.
That’s the thing – these people think they have class but being rude to anyone regardless of your position is gauche darling.
That’s what I got from this: haughty entitlement. Take take take. Before these comments o thought oh Sophie looks nice in that dress. After those comments, wow she acts like she’s the queen but she’s grown out of her looks and into nasty character.
“‘Well, don’t give up your day job’.
‘Was it that bad?’
‘Well, you know, I could tell, you know, it’s not what you do’.”
This conversation SHOULD have taken place, just with the roles reversed. Clearly, Sophie and Edward don’t have the skills for their new jobs.
And this was the woman that was supposed to give Meghan training on how to be a royal? 😂😂😂
It probably takes training to get the arrogance down pat, you know?
Like with Lady Susan, the unfortunate victim of royal “manners” gave them every opportunity to buy a clue and gracefully exit the conversation, and the royals just doubled down.
They were so clueless to the social cues they got, just like Lady Racist Susan. The poor guy felt the need to justify this rudeness by admitting he was in pain. They are assholes.
That interaction also reminded of the Susan Hussey event as well. And it wasn’t just about talking to strangers without insulting them, it was also about doubling down when you say something rude or insulting. The royals and royal-adjacent just don’t know how to be gracious and when they’ve committed a faux pas, they keep digging for some odd (entitled) reason. The comedian had it right when he said that she looked at him as if to say, “You’re not supposed to talk back or argue.” Imagine a lump like Sophie putting on airs with anyone, much less a working person.
Wow. They’re utterly incapable of the slightest, most passing of courtesies, aren’t they?
I believe she trained Kate. Also, her dress is really ugly and unfaltering.
I read another commentary where they were saying something about lack of 24-hour support, meaning the girls aren’t supported. I don’t think that England has underwire bras, or that the anti-royals have made a secret arrangement with foundation garment companies not to sell their most supportive bras to the senior royal women: i.e. Camilla, way down low, and Sophie I can’t keep my foot out of my mouth. Come on, I’m getting up there in age, but I’m not down there in support. May I suggest Shapermint if one doesn’t like underwire.
They all should’ve begged Meghan to train them!
You can understand why Meghan might have said no, thanks.
SOPHIE WAS IN PUBLIC RELATIONS…. AS A CAREER. HOW IS SHE SO BAD AT THIS.
Matthew, you beat me to it! Yup, Sophie’s being given a lesson by a comedian in how to do her former job. That should go over well.
Well she has now been in the BRF almost as if not longer than she has been in PR, so that arrogance and haughtyness has well and truly rubbed off on her. Also, if I remember correctly her PR firm didn’t do all that well. Lastly, I remember in the run up to Kkkhate getting married she was photographed screaming at one of her guards in the face outside a fashion designer’s studio. Should not be surprised by such behaviour.
Was gonna say! She worked in media & PR for a good while, and Prince Edward worked in entertainment back in the 80s. This should have been a doddle for them.
Didn’t her PR company fail spectacularly and the queen had to financially bail her out?
That may be, but I don’t think this (her role at that event) should have even required any professional training. I mean, it’s nice that the Wessexes have had some PR experience or background. But all it required minimally was showing respect for another person (titled or not). That’s it. Then, if they wanted to go for extra credit, they could learn how to make small talk at social events. Am I missing something?
but did she actually earn and do her job or was she given it and allowed to do nothing and keep failing up? i’ve learned that so many people in high positions are really just good at doing nothing and pretending to have earned their positions and salary. she strikes me as someone whose position was purchased for her.
This is what I don’t understand, both Sophie and Kate grew up “common” so why are they so bad at this? People make small talk everyday, you don’t need training for it if you are neurotypical. I grew up middle class, went to public school, and I make small talk everyday with various people from my kid’s school, to the grocery store, to the doctor’s office. It’s so not hard to NOT be rude but they make it sound like it takes years of training and is just sooooo hard. I believe they are just straight up awful people. All of these assholes are from the same family, so it’s not a coincidence and if they really cared or anyone thought they neeeded special training in not being assholes they have every resource at their finger tips.
I just want to follow up with the fact that I know not all people who aren’t neurotypical “need” some help with interpreting social cues or the like but some do like my cousin who is on the spectrum and just needed some help because he didn’t understand that some of his questioning was really awkward and made people uncomfortable especially with people outside of the family that didn’t know him but he’s learning and growing, more than I can say about the royals.
Okay for those not from the UK – Baddiel and Skinners three lions is almost a national anthem and was not supposed to be sung on an artistic level bc of what it represents – i.e. England fans hope of winning another world cup.
This is spectacularly bad soft diplomacy…. WOWZERS with trousers…
Exactly! This is a football anthem, not Eurovision. Good grief they are so bad at this!
This IS their day job and they are woefully incompetent.
I love that he disagreed with her.
Thank you for giving this important context. To be rude to baddiel and skinner, during the world Cup, after a performance of Three Lions, is sacrilege!! I can safely say for most Brits Three lions provokes more emotion than the actual national anthem, and that’s whether you like football or not! I was interested in the headline already but when I saw Frank Skinner of all people was saying it, goodness gracious me!!
This song is held in great affection in the UK, it’s basically 3 lads in the pub singing about their hopes for the national football team to win the World Cup – not a professionally written rock classic or operatic aria.
Even THE TELEGRAPH is outraged, they printed the whole conversation in full and included a bit where Edward says that people mistake him for Charles’s son🤣
@Roseberry, that bit you included where Edward said that people mistake him for Charles’ son is the funniest thing I’ve seen today! Imagine how that was received by big brother KC3.
I was gonna say, I’m not British and even I know of Skinner and the Three Lions thing just from watching the odd panel show on yt.
Also if you see a performer having an off day thru illness or whatever, how is your first impulse as a hostess to go, “Wow, you really suck, huh? Do you know how much you suck? Cause that was BAD. ”
Pure class, all the was s/
How are these people lauded (by themselves) as “better than” the rest of society? They barely function in public, insult people who donated their time and efforts, and fail to do any research on who they will be interacting with. If you depend upon and court public favor, you need to bring your A game when you do your monthly work function. SMH.
the people who think that they are “better than” are a huge part of the problem. demand more, people!! you are paying for these people to be absolutely horrible human beings!
I am having the best time with all these stories!! Loving it. Hopefully the final nail in their coffin will come on Netflix over the coming weeks.
This family has to be some of the dummest, rudest and awkward bunch of trolls. Just say “Thank you for coming for this event” and then move ON. What is wrong with this family???
What is wrong with these people?! Who greets performers like this? And they are supposed to be professionally diplomatic, basically.
They lack the most basic manners. My mom took me to lots of local theater stuff when I was little, and when I was five years old I knew better than to say something rude when we met the performers afterward in a sort of receiving line (so I could get “Cinderella’s” autograph, lol). WTH?
This is so egregious that it’s *almost* funny; I’m glad the guy spoke out and told the entire world exactly what the Wessexes said. Because what the RF needed today was another negative headline, lmao.
What is wrong with these people? They are aristocrats in a society that where social class are still deeply entrenched in an archaic pattern where you are perceived as better because you have a a title and come from an old lineage. Merit has nothing to do with it – it is all about birth, and that is why people who climb up into the aristocracy will never be accepted regardless of the title/family they marry into.
These people simply don’t feel the need to be polite to those below them in the social pecking order. I bet they have this idea that politeness is “too middle-class, darling”. That’s why so many members of the BRF are known for being famously rude or someone like Lady Hussey acting in such an unacceptable way. They think that their are worth more than anyone else because of their birth and thus the opinions of those below them on the class ladder don’t matter. Except that is actually not true anymore – and they haven’t caught up because they live in a social bubble of privilege, and because Britain is very behind the rest of Europe when it comes to the dismantling of the feudal class pyramid. And that is because Britain hasn’t really had a strong left-leaning political culture. The Tories have been too successful – and too many powerful and influential people all hail from the same environment of public schools (which are actually expensive private education).
@ArtHistorian – 💯
Yep. And it’s way too forgiving to suggest it takes skill to speak to someone for 10 minutes without upsetting them 😂 billions of people, from children to office workers, manage it just fine, two grown adults whose entire remit is pander to the public shouldn’t be so inept.
@ArtHistorian, I can understand it more with the “blood” royals who were born into it and treated this way for their entire lives. But both Kate and Sophie — even though they’ve both been in the RF for a long time — were grown women when they married into that family, and spent decades as “peasants.” (And neither were even aristocratic.) So I wouldn’t think it would be quite so ingrained? Like, how do you forget the first half of your life, which shapes you, and lose all compassion for “normal” people? But apparently they have short, selective memories.
@lorelei- Not sure their memories are short but that they are desperate to be a part of that higher class and so mimic the rudeness, at the expense of whoever’s in their path. But as @arthistorian said, the aristocracy is based on being born into and they will never be allowed entry. And yet they still try? That’s the baffling part.
“it’s a bit of a skill just talking to someone for 10 minutes and not upsetting them.”
It’s a skill most of us learn in early childhood. And I don’t think it’s a “skill” at all to not walk up to someone and insult them. Why would you do that?
Hah honestly I laughed out loud at this. Like, is that really a skill? What the f*ck skills do they have, if they consider this to be a skill, and aren’t capable of it?!
Its also literally their job. This is what Edward and Sophie are supposed to do – meet people, make small talk, make the person feel comfortable, and then move on.
I think its interesting we’re hearing this though. I wonder if we’re going to start hearing more stories about the royals and the royal-adjacents being unpleasant, rude, or racist.
Lol! I need them to all keep showing themselves! Meg and Harry told us about these fools! 😂
This is only tangentially related, but I’ve been wondering for *days* — is this dress that Sophie wore the same Erdem that Kate wore here, except Sophie added a belt? Because it really looks like it to me!
https://whatkatewore.com/2017/02/27/the-duchess-shines-in-shimmering-erdem-dress-at-palace-reception/
You have the good eye, Lorelei. Sophie’s looks to be a bit longer and has a bathrobe belt, but otherwise it’s essentially the same dress.
Good eye! Different cuffs, too, but essentially the same dress.
It was reminiscent of the SH debacle in that after the royal or firm person opened incredibly rudely, the target tried to move on, but the rude person doubled down, then tripled down. As the the peaon the deemed to grace with their presence had somehow not understood that they were purposely badgering or insulting them, as part of making breezy conversation at an event.
There was a cycle of :
banal basic mixer introduction-
rude-
bat it back, try to move past it –
more ruder rude –
try again to politely shut it down –
more even ruder rude –
oh ffs are you kidding me with this c..p?
What even is the point of these people? They are so horrendously bad at their jobs
Could that dress be any more unflattering? Her boobs look like they’re down to her waist, and the limp bow just draws your eye right to them. Good Lord.
@Miranda, I’m dying because I really think Kate wore the exact same dress a few years ago (I posted above, but idk if the link went through).
We know Sophie is known for being frumpy and unfashionable, but I would have thought she’d AT LEAST be smart enough to realize she wouldn’t want to be in the same dress as rail-thin Kate, inviting all of the “Who Wore It Better?” type comparisons.
Because while Kate is also frumpy and unfashionable, lol, she looked a hell of a lot better in this dress. I think I posted it here once as one of her “least hideous Erdems” when we were discussing it after she wore some truly hellish Erdems while pregnant with Louis. And Sophie adding the belt made it worse, somehow.
If the link didn’t go through, there’s an article on What Kate Wore entitled “Duchess Shines in Shimmering Erdem at Palace Reception” from like 2017 and I swear I think it’s the same dress.
What was Sophie thinking??
Yes, Miranda, it’s awful and don’t forget her wide and ineffective bra straps! Does she own a full length mirror?
It looks like they share William’s insulting brand of (attempted) humour.
Let’s be honest, Edward and Sophie are not new to the royal engagement circuit. There are no excuses for being so incredibly rude!
I think that’s the thing – this is their attempt at ‘banter’, the sort that you’d normally do with close friends because everyone understands it’s a joke and they’re comfortable with a bit of light piss-taking/self-deprecation. Or the kind of thing someone like Harry could actually carry off successfully because he wouldn’t be a dick about it. It’s not really the kind of thing you should attempt if you don’t know the person you’re talking to well because you can’t be sure how they’ll react. But if you’re a royal, you expect everyone to simply give way to you and humour you and you’re not used to people not playing along so you can’t think on your feet and change lanes.
This is spot on. Notice how he says, “She looked at me like ‘you’re not supposed to be arguing, I don’t think you’re supposed to be arguing with me, you’re supposed to just nod’.”
It’s obvious that the Wessexes (and the Royals in general) have NO idea what to do when someone disagrees with them. When you’re as privileged and sheltered and bolstered with a sense of superiority as these people are, you really do just expect everyone to play along and humor you.
@belli, exactly right on “Williams insulting brand of attempted humor”..
Jack Whitehall is a posh brit comedy guy with a Netflix comedy special. There’s a bit about performing for the royal family at some private function and William ushering him out after saying ” maybe next year we’ll get a magician.” Whitehall was laughing but you could tell how even he was shocked at the rudeness.
Then the harpist at some event talked about being a bit late and William made her feel really flustered by saying they were just about to ask Harry to play. She made a point of saying that Harry was lovely and complimented her playing.
Like, Harry seems to be the only one born into this whole entire rotten lot who can interact with the public successfully by expressing interest in THEM – knowing what they do, listening, engaging, making them feel SEEN. And then moving wider – making everyone else around see that comfortable connection with the spontaneous human acts like hugging, holding, crouching down to kids… It’s what makes those photos of Diana, Harry and Meghan so special.
The rest see the public as an audience, there to reflect their royal glory back at them, with no intrinsic value or anything to offer of their own….
>>>>>EVEN AS THE WHOLE POINT OF THE EVENT IS TO DRAW ATTENTION TO THE INTRINSIC WORTH OF THE PEOPLE/ CAUSE<<<<<
With H&M we know exactly what each cause is, its name, who it supports and how.
I just read this article and I don't remember what this event is for. No one knows who won 🌏💩 or what they do that's helping the planet.
Being good at this is supposed to the ENTIRE point of the royalty. They're supposed to be better at this than anyone else. "trained" since birth to meet the public and use soft skills. They eat unseasoned no garlic food to avoid breath issues, put weights in their hems to guard against outdoor gusts, etcetera… the point is to be always "on" for god's sake!
These people kept all the trappings of being ready for the public while completely and utterly missing the point, which is to center the public.
I'm starting to wonder how Meghan didn't scream at them every damn day.
Agreed! I’ve long felt that the key to Harry and Diana’s popularity is that they’re more or less “in on the joke.” They understand that they’re royal, but they also seem to understand that there’s an element of ridiculousness to the whole system. And that makes people like them more because it comes across as relatable. Meanwhile, the rest of the family seems to actually believe that they’re different/better than others.
I get not being good at small talk (I’m not either) but if I were in their place I would have asked my staff to give me a quick little dossier on each person I’m expected to meet (doesn’t have to be longer than a paragraph) so I can prepare some points of conversation and think of expansions from said points. That way I have a rough idea of where to take conversation and where it could go.
But with 20 years of experience as working royals, I imagine it’s as simple as neither of them care enough to even bother being polite.
Frank Skinner is actually really famous in the UK, so they should know who he is and be able to make polite conversation with him for a couple of minutes without prep.
I’m an introvert, I hate small talk, I used to suck at it. It was horrible. Then I got a job in the gastro service industry to support myself during uni and I learned to get my shit together and just blah blah my way through a shift. If it doesn’t come natural, it’s a skill that can be learned. I still don’t love it but I can go on autopilot if I have to.
I would hate to be a royal whose only job it is to do this, shake hands and make small talk. I think the Queen didn’t always get enough credit for this, it must be exhausting as hell.
But yes, 20 years. I think they just don’t care (anymore).
But was the lack of similar rudeness stories about the queen because she was so good at it, or because she spent very little time interacting with people (at least on a one-on-one basis), or is it that people simply didn’t question her? I don’t know what she was like, but after seeing how these people conduct themselves, I’m frankly not inclined to give her the benefit of the doubt.
I got nothing. Dang.
Really wondering if there’s always been these terrible and awkward conversations with royals, but now that the queen is gone, people are talking about them more. Before, it’s a story they would have just told a few friends, but now, it’s shared far and wide.
So are they like Kate still learning? Wish I had ever had an employer who thought that years to learn a job was acceptable, especially at their pay.
I think (being kind) that S&E thought this would be a bit of light banter (given that they’re talking to comedians) and it didn’t go according to plan. Have you ever told a joke and ended up accidentally offending and then having to double down on it? I really like Frank Skinner too, and it is fine for him to feel crappy and ill and be offended. But it also kinda sounds like he could have laughed it off and said ‘no I’m not a singer by trade and I am also under the weather” but he was a bit of a wind of merchant and let her dig herself in deeper? IDK.
I think social cues are a thing, and if someone looks at me askance when I say something, and then says well I’m not a professional I’d realize we weren’t on the same page and move on. Also, I really don’t like the idea of telling people they should just laugh of rudeness, whether intentional or not.
Can’t say that I have. I have certainly had attempted humor fall flat, but then the thing to do is to back off and say something else. Maybe even apologize, tho I know that is a lot to ask of the fancy people who are ordained by god as better than everyone else. They’re supposed to be gracious and diplomatic, are they not?
Frank Skinner is LEGEND! If you’ve never seen his season of Taskmaster, please check it out. And he’s as kind as a koala. He’s very affable and wickedly funny. If he went from being put out to feeling he should comfort Prince Edward, to me it shows just how gracious a human he is.
The Royal Family is the original dysfunctional family.
i am just skimming here but “kind as a koala” would be such an underhanded way of describing someone as incredibly rude. koalas are basically evil!! lolllll (i don’t think you meant it that way ahaha)
Also – I think these rude exchanges have been happening for years but people are sharing them now that Liz has departed this mortal coil.
This is about to get so good – bc the public DGAF anymore…. LMAO
It really has to be understood that all these racists are also terrible to white people. Maybe not their fancy friends, but to anyone they don’t see as a peer. But they don’t get called out on it, because the targets are just supposed to accept that their inferiority is why they are being treated this way.
It’s why I always call people out for being rude and then point out that their behavior could be considered racist. They’ll have a million reasons why they weren’t racist. But they always seem to know they were rude.
Racism is a twisted sense of hierarchy/superiority, so it’s no surprise these folks would be horrible to just about everyone, including each other.
I wonder if these two comedians will be attacked like Ngozi Fulani was after she made her complaints public? I have no doubt that the Wessexes are buttheads after their Caribbean performance. But I wonder at the timing since it seemed like they were trying to launch a sympathy campaign for the DoE and ding Charles? Hmmm…
Again and again they show us. These people have no class.
I would tell the Wessexes not to quit their day job… but…
I will watch or listen to anything Frank Skinner is in. He is a very well-read, straightforward, interesting man.
I’m still annoyed that Room 101 got cancelled. I loved that show.
Frank Skinner has always been sharp as a razor, and twice as smart/funny than almost anyone else in the room. He is also known to be kind and empathic. If these two numbskulls don’t know who he is, and couldn’t make conversation with him politely, there is really no hope for them as working royals. The time is coming when “royal” privilege will no longer be an excuse for treating people poorly, especially those who are giving their well known professional services freely, for the benefit of charity! We see you!
Same! 🙂
I mean… Is anyone surprised? This is the same couple who told the St. Lucia prime minister that they couldn’t answer his questions bc they weren’t paying attention when he was speaking directly to them. The same couple who told crowds offering their condolences that he wouldn’t deign to be touched by them after his mother died. There’s a reason they’ve been kept in the closet for so long. They are assholes.
AND this is the same couple who during their royal tour brought gifts for the hosts that were signed photos of themselves.
Thank you for this reminder!
Ngozi opened the floodgates. I bet you more and more people are going to recount exactly how rude the royal family was to them at various events.
After all that caping for the Duke of Edinburgh title and campaigning for a bigger role, they demonstrate how shot they are at the job.
Slightly off-topic – did Charles not have anything going on the last few days or is there just a lack of coverage? Because I find it hilarious if it’s the former, he probably pegged that W&K Boston trip would be a PR disaster and that the Wessexes were probably gonna screw up this easy peasy glamorous event somehow and chose to keep quiet and let the negative spotlight shine on just the Drab 4. Camilla’s event was supposed to be an easy positive thing – probably why they were swift to take that racist ol biddy out, must have been so angry at her for spoiling it.
I was seeing on Twitter that he had a documentary released while they were here. I didn’t see any further details or confirmation though.
Steph, last year (October?) there was info on C-Rex making a deal with Amazon+ for a TV show of some kind. Perhaps environmentalism, who knows. Other than that, I haven’t heard anything.
There was a tv show about his house Dumfries house. The grounds are open to the public. Someone said they met him whilst walking their dog there, and Charles asked the dogs name. Five months later they met him again and he remembered the dogs name.
I don’t think they took out the ol biddy, I think they just moved her like Charles did with Michael Fawcett a million times.
Now Charles’s minions are trying to destroy Ngozi. They are FOS and need to be flushed down the toilet.
@Mess, I skimmed past one headline that said something like, “Charles Seen in Public for First Time since Sussexes’ BOMBSHELL Netflix Trailer dropped!” — I think he was photographed going to church.
Not a royal, have no idea who this guy is, and not British so I don’t know the song but good gravy – I could google for two minutes and have better boring questions: “Did you enjoy singing with the group?” “How long did you all rehearse together?” “What does this event mean to you personally?” Thank you for donating your time to such an important cause – what an honor for us to be here” blah, blah, blah. It’s not hard to not offend people. My kid could do better.
All of Liz’s children are rude assholes (so was her sister and her mother). They have no home training.
@Nutella Toast, seriously. And if these people— who are supposed to be professionally “charming” — really couldn’t come up with ANYTHING, just say, “I enjoyed your performance, I hope you have a happy holiday season” or something and move on. FFS. My child behaves better than these two (and he’s not even super well-behaved half the time! Work in progress).
Hmm So Royal Splaining is a thing it seems like.
-Hello you peasant whom I never laid eyes on before. Where are you from ?
– No you are not from there, where are you really from?
By the way I will keep asking until I get the answer I want that will confirm my worldview.
-Hey you Jester yes you. Can you just stand there while I will tell you my opinion about your performance. I know you didn’t ask but as a person who is of a much higher quality than you it is my obligation to let you know the cold hard truth so that you might better yourself. After all we have blessed you with our valuble time. If we deem you a beginner then that is what you are. No talk back you uppity trash.
It’s the arrogance of Sophie thinking she can be nasty to a performer but get mad when that performer defends himself. I always knew Sophie was awful but even this surprises me. How hard is it to be a decent person?
Well, maybe the Wessexes need to give up their day job if they can’t handle a 10 minutes interaction with people…
GASP! Is Sophie wearing black nail polish!?
No, perhaps there is a bit of red in the color.
What a relief! She was about to be placed under house arrest!
Oops , the royal third disaster of the week. When it rains , it never stop.
@Noor, I’m enjoying it immensely. It’s so well-deserved. And we haven’t even seen anything yet- Friday is going to be INSANE.
Noor, the brf should be thanking Netflix for the teaser and the trailer–it took some of the focus off of them!
Was it Prince Andrew who wondered why people did not treat the royals with “proper deference”? Well now he knows why.
No excuses for rude comments. No excuses for being a mopey non-contributor socially.
Kaiser is right. There IS training. I grew up in a public-facing family. After protection, before diplomacy, there’s etiquette. It was certainly drummed into us daily: No leaving the house without three timely, safe-for-all-consumption, interesting topics of conversation. We’d be reminded the way other parents remind children to take an umbrella.
Sophie, I’m aghast. Honestly. It wasn’t her place to know ahead of time that a performer felt unwell (even though the fundraiser was actually FOR older performers who aren’t in the best health) but she made another person feel so uncomfortable and unwelcome. Manners are to make people feel appreciated and wanted. All she had to do was say, Thank you for coming. She could have added, You being here tonight means so much to so many people. SHE could have just nodded
carrot, I was raised in a low, middle class family. Manners were taught to us, because it mattered how you conducted yourself when in public. I realize since I was born in the 50’s society has marched on, but manners still matter. I think the introverts here would have practiced a few comments to get them through the meet and greet and with graciousness. There is no reason for bad manners.
May I say that coming up with 3 topics of conversation that were timely, safe-for-all-consumption and interesting before leaving the house is quite a feat!! It probably wasn’t much fun when you were a child, but as an adult I can see that it would be a great skill.
Saucy&Sassy, without your generation making so many differences in (I’m guessing Western) social perception, who knows if we’d evolve to here? I think we’re still on the edges of accepting that artificial constructs of class, rank, caste etc, don’t define us.
Manners aren’t supposed to be a social weapon, aren’t about which spoon to use right? Good ones change according to time and place, make our world bigger. They’re our entry to taking part. Even for an introvert [me!] if the taking part is small, who is to say what’s small has less value than what’s grand?
What the hell is a public-facing family?
What I love the most about this story is that Frank Skinner is WHITE. So nothing about this being a hit job by we awful “coloured” people to ruin the Boston tour or the family’s reputation by making them out to be mean and racist. This time, it’s one of their own calling them out. Now WHAT? NOW WHAT??? I love it. I love this for them.
Maybe they’ve stopped trying now the DDoE titles are off the table, both are known to be arrogant at times.
I came here to say that exact same thing Esline Mills. Both have a bad rep for being pompous twits going way back. Now they’re teed off at not getting the DoE titles and quiet quitting. They got a bad reception on their recent Caribbean tour from Gaston Browne, PM of Antigua and Barbuda, telling them straight up his nation wants to become a republic. This after they gifted him an autographed photo of themselves. Payback’s a bitch!
Those two are incredibly strange.
These people are so gross and disconnected from reality.
Also, the meanie needs to find some bras that actually fit her. Swing low.
You know it was mentioned to Sophie and Edward that the performer was feeling under the weather. How hard is it to say “you soldiered through, good job!”? That’s not hard. Just be nice. Jeez.
Right? And maybe a little something else like “oh man, I had a bad cold a few weeks ago it’s going around, great job” and that’s it. Like, is it really that hard to make small talk? They are so terrible.
Sophie and Edward are just terrible people and not up to the “job”. The Palace tried to make Meghan seem to be difficult for allegedly not wanting to take advice from Sophie. I think this incident explains why she may not have wanted any help from Sophie. It makes me admire Meghan even more because, against much hostility, she stood up for herself and her principles.
it’s entitlement. again and again, always the same. there’s a reason the word comes from their literal titles of nobility. it’s not just ‘i think i’m better than you’. it’s a lifetime of thinking you have rights others don’t have. that things are OWED to you – whether it’s the right to make a rude remark and have it laughed off, or to question someone about where they are from, or the idea that you are owed respect and deference without any work to earn them.
most people learn respect and politeness and small talk and all things like that because we need to practice them to move through the world- the social contract of treating others the way you want to be treated. the way is so smoothed for these royals that they have no idea that you give respect to get respect.
They had the EASIEST of jobs! Shake hands with the comedians/entertainers/etc., say “Thank you for putting on the show! It was wonderful. *Insert nice thing about the performer’s act*.” and you’re done.
Definitely the model of conversation skills that Egg and Waity adopted.
Wasn’t she praised when they married for being a commoner whose father sold tyres?
Look what happens when the BRF get their hands on previously sensible people
I appreciate that we’re just going to keep getting stories of how poorly the Windsors are equipped to survive in this day and age. They literally can’t do even the bare minimum of small talk. How difficult is it to avoid directly insulting your guest (Sophie) or running out of things to say (Edward) about a topic which supposedly you are passionate about (performing arts).
Also loving the quiet shade here:
“It’s a bit of a skill just talking to someone for 10 minutes and not upsetting them.”
I’ve come to the conclusion that the British royals are the rudest, tackiest, most uncouth, COARSEST family in the WORLD. I think that as a group, the royals display even less class than the Trumps. At least Donald Trump seems to have a desperation to connect with people he thinks are “cool”.
Traditionally, European royals were known for being exceedingly polite. It was the price they paid for all of the protocol around them (no turning your back on a royal, no speaking to a royal unless royal spoke to your first, curtseying, etc). This was to show the world that they deserved the deference, and that their politeness was due to their impeccable breeding. In fact, being able to “read” things like histility and contempt from them between the lines was a skill–you knew how royals and aristos felt by what they don’t say.
Openly rude royals destroys that image they cultivated so carefully. Rude royals are no better than rude celebrities, and the worst kind of celebrities at that. The most popular and powerful celebrities understand that their good reputations come from other people thinking highly of them. You don’t hear about George Clooney being rude to fans, or Keanu Reeves. These are celebrities that could get away with being rude but choose not to, and they get kudos for it. It’s tacky influencers and reality TV stars who are openly rude to people in the public. Their reasoning is that they’re “famous” now, so they can treat people like crap–and they are despised for it.
Sophiesta and what’shisname are basically saying they are no better than influencers on Tiktok. Will they start doing duck-face selfies in the mirror now? Real Housewives of Bagshot Park? I’ll bet Sofiesta could throw down some punches if anyone got in her face.
What is funny about this, is you know if things had gone differently it would have been Meghan and Harry there and the headline would have been about how she heard he was under the weather at rehearsal and had warm tea and honey sent to his dressing room before the big night. They blew it so bad.
How ungracious and rude. Guess it might kill them to show up, exchange a few pleasantries, and wait until they’re alone later to snipe about the little people they have to put up with. I’d love to know how much public money they have benefitted from over the years and continue to benefit from. Entitlement is such an ugly thing.
Not a surprise from Sophie, she has that mean girl vibe. Weren’t the two of them rude on their Carribean trip this past year as well?
I’m guessing Eddie, having been in the thea-tah, believes he’s a better performer than anyone who was on the stage.
Which is, of course, nonsense.
If these royals can’t do the bare minimum of what’s expected of them, what are they good for? (Rhetorical question, obviously. We all know the answer. It will be amusing to see other people realize it, too.)
What, did S&E have somewhere more important to be? I highly doubt it. So I guess they just wanted to be home at Bagshot Park, their 120 room mansion filled with art and antiques and with stables and a lake on a beautifully manicured 51 acres. Yes, they are so grateful for their incredible home and lazy lives that they work hard to justify having it all. Right?
I believe Sophiesta was a nasty B to Meghan, but let’s be honest, her and Edward’s behavior with the performers was, from what I know of them, uncharacteristic. I think they are probably snobby, definitely entitled, on a bad day, even arrogant. But full on HOSTILE??? To someone other than Harry or Meghan??
From what I know, this is a DEFINITE first.
I think EVERYONE can agree that this was THE worst possible time for them to be jerks to ANYONE. VERY bad for Charles reign! One terrible headline after another! And why should they care about hurting Charles reign?? After all, he HUMILIATED them, took away what the QUEEN and PHILLIP promised them IN WRITING!!! Watched them grovel and STILL denied them, making Edward the super lame, utterly useless, total dickhead consolation prize of becoming a Counselor of State or something. Which I don’t think has EVER been utilized.
So what if E & S are PURPOSELY trying to sabotage Charles reign?? Make his reign SO unpopular that he is forced to abdicate or witness the dismantling of the monarchy. Because THEN Will becomes king, and guess what else Will gets to inherit??? THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH TITLE!!!! Which Will can then bestow upon its rightful owner, Edward, in exchange for his loyalty and “good works” towards the preservation of the Crown, and Edward, triumphant, EVERY time he sees Charles, can stick his tongue WAY out and give him BOTH middle fingers. Statecraft at its finest!
Side note- do Sophie and cam get along?
Is this uncharacteristic or is this just one of the few times this conduct has been reported?
I’m guessing it’s the latter. Sophie’s mean-girling of Meghan did not just come out of nowhere.
Here is your slimmed down version of Royalty, part of the deal is to underperform, who is up to the task?
Sophie and Edward.
The head of the household sets the tone and not everyone can fake it.
Repressed emotions surfaces in the most inopportune time.
Clearly, the Wessexes are unhappy with their lot.
I forgot to mention in my last comment, one of the reasons that I think Will is ALL FOR trying to sabotage Charles reign and force him to abdicate, is because Will is so so so NOT trying to be the Prince of Wales. And I think he knows he is ALREADY massively unpopular in Wales. Which is just as well cuz he wants NOTHING to do with the Welsh. He doesn’t want to learn their language, or root for their soccer team, and we’ve seen how dismally bad he is at feigning interest in things. Furthermore, Im pretty sure the title doesn’t even have an income tied to it. So I think he wants to hurry up and become king ASAP so he can dump the title on George. If he does that I hope he’s smart and makes George do all the things in preparation to be PoW that he should have done
Not at all surprising that Sofiesta was rude and can’t even handle basic polite conversation. Unsympathetic harpie. Also, her rudeness does let them off the hook with the racism the institution exhibits towards others.