We’ve finally reached a point where the Sussexit drama has died down significantly, and we’re just left discussing the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Pussybows, busy-work, buttons and five-question surveys, oh my! At long last, Kate launched her Early Years initiative this week, following about 18 months of hype about how Early Years would be her legacy project, that it was the culmination of EIGHT YEARS of duchessing, that it would be full of groundbreaking… stuff. Vague stuff which would be super-important. And it turned out to be a basic survey, the results of which would inform Kate where to go from here. Katie Nicholl at Vanity Fair emphasized that while attempting to embiggen Kate’s struggle-survey.
Speaking about the new survey and the work she is spearheading, Kate said, “As a parent, I know how much we cherish the future health and happiness of our children. I want to hear the key issues affecting families and communities so I can focus my work on where it is needed most. My ambition is to provide lasting change for generations to come.”
The Duchess has spent months doing a deep dive in to the early years for children, and the importance of positive experiences and a secure upbringing for pre-schoolers. The new online poll, conducted by Ipsos Mori on behalf of the Royal Foundation, is thought to be the biggest survey of its kind and aims to encourage a nationwide conversation on early childhood. Parents are asked to answer five key questions about child development.
It’s “thought to be the biggest survey of its kind and aims to encourage a nationwide conversation on early childhood.” Well, that’s appropriately vague. Is the survey supposed to inform Kate about what she should do next, or is the survey the beginning and the end, because Kate started a “conversation”? Seriously, Kensington Palace half-assed this so badly.
Meanwhile, Katie Nicholl has been talking a lot about the emotions Kate and William have been going through post-Sussexit. Earlier this week, Nicholl said that the Cambridges got a “huge boost” from their joint appearance in Bradford and “They’ve stuck to the tried-and-tested approach, promoting a united Royal family and it’s a success.” They literally shoved Meghan and Harry out the door out of jealousy, but go off. Now Nicholl says that the Cambridges are “still reeling” from Sussexit:
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are ‘still reeling’ from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s decision to quit the royal family, according to a royal expert. Commentator Katie Nicholl revealed Prince William, 37, and Kate Middleton, 38, were still ‘coming to terms with the reality’ of the Sussexes choice.
Speaking about Prince Harry, 35, and the Cambridges on-going relationship, she told Entertainment Tonight: ‘I think the severity of what’s happened has had a huge impact on his brother, on his sister-in-law.’
Katie went on to say Meghan and Harry’s shocking decision to step back from had left the Cambridges stunned. She said: ‘Both of them are still reeling from the news, coming to terms with the reality of this situation.’
I do wonder if the Cambridges are feeling a bit like “be careful what you wish for.” William clearly wanted to exile the Sussexes for more than a year, and he was working steadily towards that one goal. But did Kate want to see them gone? Kate’s press was never better than when the press had Meghan as their favorite punching bag. Anyway… get used to this, all we’ve got is this dull couple now.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid and Avalon Red.
I definitely think its a matter of “be careful what you wish for.” I think despite the bullying and lack of support, the Cambridges probably never really expected the Sussexes would actually walk away like they have.
And now, here we are. Have fun, Kate and William!
Looking forward to watching the next episode of “Fun with Rose Bush Gardening” starring Bill & Cathy.
Rose Who?
@BayTampaBay
the laugh i needed to get me through the day!
This. At the very least, British tabs are going to go for Kate – if they’re in any way on Will’s leash. But if they’re smart and want more clicks, they should go for Will’s Gardening Adventures and expose that hypocritical, lazy clown. United family, my ass.
@Bay – its going to be interesting, that’s for sure. They’ve shown they can build up royals and tear them down – they’ve been building up Kate for years at this point, I’m reminded of a line from Evita – “don’t look down, its a long long way to fall.”
Why are The Cambridges reeling from the sussexit, when William was part of the decision to make it difficult for them to stay. Had Kate genuinely taken Meghan under her wings and shown her the ropes, or take her for teas and be photographed together, atleast, the bulldogs would have retreated, but jealousy got the better of her and William. No, I don’t think William or Kate are racists, I think they are riddled with jealousy and obssesed with hierachy. So many of the old foggie, are wishing Canada doesn’t work out.
Agreed. And all these snarky articles about the Cambridges’ sadness is all slanted towards their deep love of Harry and how much they will miss him. I saw one just a minute ago where the article was about a body language expert reading Kate’s body language at their big evening function with Edward and Sophie. According to the expert, Kate appeared deeply saddened and subdued throughout the evening although there where times when she laughed and smiled. But — according to the expert, it was obvious that she was deeply saddened over HARRY’S leaving. It’s important to Firm PR right now that the entire family is slanted to be grieving Harry’s exit, but obviously it’s still — throw Meghan under the bus time. Supposedly, Harry follows hs own press. Do the clowns really think he won’t get that they are still throwing S*** at Meghan?
William and Kate can both KMBA. I’ve always believed William was at the center of the smear campaign, ever since Harry and Meghan received that enormous welcome in Australia and NZ. Can’t have baby brother and his exotic wife showing up the heir to the throne and his dull-as-dishwater consort. Put them in their place, hard. And although Kate may have been a more or less passive bystander, don’t tell me she wasn’t thoroughly enjoying it.
I can’t imagine Kate taking somebody like Meghan under her wing. Meghan is a very smart and intelligent American lady who knows more about life than Kate, who would have probably advised Meghan to say as little as possible and just keep in the background and smile. Meghan on the other hand had planned to hit the ground running left , right and centre, so it would never have worked out. I actually remember Michelle Obama advising Meghan not to feel that she had to do everything quickly.
I do believe that the relationship between Kate and Meghan would have been helped by more photo opportunities of them happily interacting together, but William would probably not wanted that.
If Charles lives as long as his parents and grandparents, William will be an old man of nearly 70 when he is finally able to pry that scepter out of his dad’s cold, dead hand.
they really are a bloody bore.
I am not sure they tried to exile them. William did I think want to control Harry and wanted Harry and Megan to conduct themselves in a certain way. He just didn’t approve of the choice to marry Megan but I don’t think he ever thought Harry would leave.
I would have given william the benefit of the doubt but he intentionally did that dumb and stupid flight PR. Those leaks about exiling them to Africa came from somewhere (an argument, group idea, etc) for a reason.
The exile leak was a test run from somewhere. My bet is that Harry had been floating around and William caught wind, added Africa and leaked it.
I remember the video and the still pictures of Easter Sunday church service with the Queen and Harry did not speak or look at William the entire time. This was the day after that “exile to Africa story came out with the line that William was behind the push to relocate them.” Harry was furious with William. So furious that he couldn’t even look at him. And William knew it because he barely looked at Harry. Talk about body language!
@JA Lowcountry Lady – I just went to view that video and noticed something….William does not appear to bow to the queen. He keeps his head in exactly the same position the whole time. Am I nuts? And now that you point it out, I see Harry looking to keep a particular distance…but then, he’s engaging with Mike, Kate, etc. Wms face doesn’t change one whit from that to the Queen passing by. I never watched a video focusing only on Wm. I found that …. I’m a little surprised and … wow, he’s …. pouty? Is that it? It’s such an odd expression on an almost 40 year old adult.
I think William wanted Meghan to leave but didn’t count on Harry leaving too. This family has severely underestimated Harry.
I think there is definitely some truth to that.
Be careful, Kate. William seems to have a disposable wife attitude if he considered Meghan garbage that she and Archie could be discarded so easily. I hope Harry threw that in his face.
William is a typical selfish older sibling that thinks he knows everything, that everyone else must do as he says and that he is the only adult in the room. He’s wrong, and has been wrong all his life but no one has ever stood up to him really until now.
On a Karma tip-what you resist persists. Meaning, he resisted Megan, who was prepared and willing to work. It simply means that H & M will end up being ridiculously successful and popular. He’s cut off his nose to spite his face.
I agree, I don’t think that William or Kate really have it in them to purposefully plot to exile them. Especially Kate – I just can’t see her even taking a stand on that other than to behave indifferently to all the drama surrounding Meghan and herself and Meghan. If anything, I think that she was just quietly hoping that her prim and proper demeanor would not in some way be compromised or that she would not have to speak up or be challenged in any way on the relationship with the Sussexes. I think she continued to make use of her biggest weapon which is to smile, look gracious and at all times be inoffensive. This really is effective with the vast majority of Brits who care at all about the Royal family. I’ve read comments on other more conservative sites and they will forgive Kate for anything just because she doesn’t rock the boat. The press use her vanilla style to their advantage to frame the public’s opinion of her. Although I personally think that Meghan was very misguided in many choices she made, and not entirely a victim, it would have been nice if William at least could have been less cowardly and demonstrated some kind of defence of them, even just on a human level. He more than anyone is probably aware of Kate’s inadequacies in many ways as a Royal, (I’ve seen him look embarrassed yet tolerant at her public speeches) and he should have recognised that Meghan had many natural qualities that if toned down a bit, would make her an asset to a ‘modern’ Royal family.
@greendress do you think Carol middleton is a leak? I’m curious
“Meghan was very misguided in many choices she made, and not entirely a victim,”
“ have recognised that Meghan had many natural qualities that if toned down a bit, would make her an asset to a ‘modern’ Royal family”
Could you please elaborate more on what you think Meghan should have done differently? Curious to hear your perspective since Kate’s “vanilla style” seems to be preferred by Monarchists.
@Jess, I never thought of that to be honest. I know she was a plotting and ambitious mother to ensure Kate rose through the higher echelons of society and that she would basically never have to work properly, but I feel she is now satisfied that the Middleton’s have been forever carved into the RF dynasty in generations to come…
What were Meghan’s “misguided choices” that made her not entirely a victim? I hear people say stuff like this but never give examples.
@Guest2.0,,
1. I think guest editing Vogue, at the time she did it, was a mistake.
2. I think she made many wrong choices in her wardrobe for Royal. I think the people of the UK expect their royals to dresses a certain way due to all the resources they have. Example: The evening gown she wore for one of the engagement photos and many outfits not being properly tailored.
“Meghan had many natural qualities that if toned down a bit, would make her an asset. . . .” Are you implying M did not ‘know her place?” I’m pristine white and can hear this as a ‘dog whistle’ (whether you intended it to be or not ) a mile away.
@Guest2.0 – Well, I am British, and I don’t know if this is an American website but I get the feeling it is and maybe its readers are. In some ways I can identify with more traditional British sentiments of showing modesty, not drawing attention to yourself etc etc, which Kate has to perfection (or at least she adopts this demeanour and runs with it as she has nothing more outstanding in her personality or attributes otherwise). My mum’s family are traditionally conservatives who support the Monarchy. They disliked Diana because she was too much of a loose cannon and her brand was of the more emotional kind. I have heard Meghan compared to Diana a lot in this same way. But I think the press/public were more savage to Meghan because she is American and mixed race, no doubt about it, whereas Diana was an aristocrat from lineage that actually predates the Windsors, who are ‘nouveaus’ in comparison!!
But Diana was still recognised as a good speaker and people person, as is Meghan. But I think because of her ‘foreigness’ they tried to pull her down for it. When I say Meghan could have “toned down a bit”, I mean that she should have tried to conform a little more even to make life easier for herself. For example, she could have talked less about feminism and female empowerment as I really don’t think your average Brit could relate to that, even to me it sounded straight out of LA. Her lavish baby shower in NYC also didn’t look good as your average Brit could not afford that level of stuff for their child in a lifetime. Also it made her appear hypocritical from a climate change poerspective – jetting across the world just to have a party. The whole thing is, monarchists beleive that ultimately your position as a Royal is one of huge public privilege, largely at the taxpayer’s expense. They also see the RF as very symbolic of British values and history. So ‘vanilla’ and less lavish suits this conservatism.
Finally, Meghan’s Vogue cover editing did not go well. People felt alienated by her choices of women, as they were deemed too ‘woke’ and trendy, and basically like her celebrity circle of friends. Consensus was that she could have chosen less glamorous, yet more relatable role models, like doctors, teachers, community workers whose contributions often go unnoticed. I think that this showed she was kind of out of touch with Britain and ordinary people. Britain likes ‘ordinary’ it has to be said!
Well, surely an ill-fitting dress on a post-partum woman is reason enough for years of vitriol! (At least she didn’t literally flash her ass several times in public.) And guest editing a magazine! The nerve. I mean she was only following the example of her father-in-law, sister-in-law, and husband. Tart. Naturally she should have toned down her natural enthusiasm and intellegence. She shouldn’t have helped all those people either! My eyes can’t even roll any more. Jesus.
Greendress – Carol Middleton is probably not at all satisfied with what she managed to carve out for her family because Willie is wandering and she knows even royal marriages don’t necessarily mean forever. She’s probably the hardest “working” person in the extended family with all the leaking and spinning she does to ensure her position.
I agree @BayTampaBay. I think her strategy was to go in and be herself and force modernization, and I think she should have been a bit more strategic. ie. get a British stylist and start sort of halvsies between vanilla and her own style.
And don’t just go for big initiatives, but do some bread and butter, ribbon cutting meet and greeting as well.
I like all the things she did, I just think she should have strategized better.
You can’t just walk into a 1000 year old institution that the Brits have an almost Stockholm Syndrome about and get very protective of, and blow the doors open. You need to take it a bit more slowly and do some give and take…it’s like getting a frightened cat to like you.
There’s no way someone who has been trained to the royalty thing FROM BIRTH should be incapable of controlling his expression at an event. Which means he has CHOSEN to let others see his embarrassment at his wife’s public gaffes or weakness in her role. That is not even a little bit okay. William is hella toxic and disloyal.
Also, for those saying Meghan should have toned it down and done more “bread and butter” events- you mean like all that walking around shaking hands and meeting people she did at various events with Harry and also without Harry?
These comments make Britain sound extremely oppressive to women and women’s success. How disappointing. But now you’ve got your Mayo Queen to be, Duchess of Congealing Oats. You could watch paint dry and get the same effect as watching her give a speech. What’s most important, though, is that she doesn’t shine too much or draw too much attention. She really doesn’t say or do anything at all and apparently that’s what is preferred. Enjoy!
The issue with criticism of Meghan (besides the fact that its hypocritical – Kate and William flying to Mustique for an exclusive vacation where they party with rock stars is okay, but Meghan flying for a party hosted by her friends is a problem?) is that it just didn’t matter what she did.
When she didn’t wear expensive clothes, she was criticized. When she laid low and didn’t make a lot of public appearances, she was criticized. When she tried to have privacy and not behave like a celebrity, she was criticized. etc.
I’m American, but there are a lot of british posters here who disagree with you, so its not just an American vs British thing.
@Robin Keefe, no I am not being racist as I am mixed race myself, and I’m seriously not making that up. I just didn’t see it worth mentioning as I am not commenting on Meghan’s choices from the perspective of her race, but rather as an individual and a non-Brit. Race does not have to define everything or even Meghan’s perceived victimhood in some areas. As with every story there are nuances, rather than just a black or white version that forces you into the pro/against camp.. I am ‘for’ Meghanyet it doesn’t mean I see her as faultless or beyond criticism.
@GreenDress – you are painting an absolutely horrific picture of the general public in the UK. Driving the only really interesting people out of the country and across an entire continent? Tragic. Enjoy your extremely white and staid royal family and Brexit. It’s what you all deserve. And take your fretting over her privately-paid-for baby shower and choke on it. The Cambridges are constantly flaunting their wealth in the face of a truly broken Britain with their vacations, helicopters, and various homes and their improvement, but it was only when the bi-racial woman showed up that the royal family being austentatious became an issue? And her Vogue issue was fabulous and well received – except by creepy racists who don’t want “those” people intruding into their lives. Nobody is beyond critisism and she has received her fair share here when warrented, but the stuff you are critizing her for, you’re giving a pass to other members of the royal family. If you’re bi-racial as you state, you need to do some research on unconsious bias and be better to yourself.
@Becks1, not trying to make it an American v British thing, I was really just curious. I don’t see why it has to be divisive to simply point out certain things from my perspective. To accuse someone of dog whistling (seemingly used in a racial context here) is also very judgmental and based on the assumption that I am white. It’s patronising of people to always define certain viewpoints or positions from the basis of colour. Who is to say that my own experience as a mixed race person does not enable me to have certain views that go against a person of another mixed race?
GreenDress – you are getting push back because all of your criticisms ARE hypocritical. You are lauding Kate as the ideal royal and Meghan as “feigning victimhood” or however you said it and offering all these criticisms of Meghan – that are all pretty much Piers Morgan talking points. Most of the things you are criticizing Meghan for are things that Kate has done. Maybe Meghan should have guest-edited Huff Po instead of Vogue?
Kate’s 20 minutes of ‘guest editing’ before she left to go shopping? That was done in exchange for getting HuffPo’s US-arm to stop web publishing photos UK paps were selling outside the UK. Since W&K were so strict about not allowing any photos of their kids in the UK media.
Now we have the Fail publishing a calendar of ‘Kate’s Cuties’. W&K’s PR-driven sell-out of their children continues. Rose Who?
@Greendress, I get what you are saying, and I appreciate your take because you grew up there. You understand what many Britons feel, and you are explaining conservative Britons to a liberal American audience. Brexit alienates outsiders, but our country is also very nativist lately, too. Trump is a symptom of our larger problems with racism and sexism, and it’s all about keeping men in charge and women and minorities in their place. Your explanation makes it clear that the British can be conservative, backward, and hypocritical, just like conservative Americans.
The sexism and racism are real in conservatism. Kate stays in her weakened place hoping to please her husband and her mother. Meghan remained the person she was before she married who, in my opinion, is pretty great. I can still hear the Black woman in Briton interviewed about Harry and Meghan’s wedding saying that nothing would change for her or other marginalized people in her neighborhood (paraphrasing).
I once met a bunch of friends of a new friend at a Club in San Francisco. We had a few drinks and then went to the dance floor. One of the men in the group was British. We e all dancing together and getting along very well. Next thing I knew, the British man had come up to me and squeezed my breasts – hard – in front of everyone. I was raised near where Meghan grew up. I was an up and coming person, not sexually promiscuous. I was dressed as a professional woman. He treated me like I was just what conservative British mean see as American slut there for his pleasure, like Epstein’s “bagels”. I was stunned, screamed at him, and walked off of the dance floor.
I am delighted that Meghan walked off of the dance floor. She is no one’s American slut.
@notasugarhere – I felt physically ill when I saw that calendar of those children. What level won’t they stoop to for popularity?! Truly disgusting exploitation.
@ Christina, Many thanks for your reasoned comments and sorry for your experience with a boarish British guy…I too have met his type if not been unfortunate enough to have been grabbed like that! Yes, unfortunately there is that stereotype amongst some Brits about ‘hot’ and less inhibited American women.
@GuestWho: “If you’re bi-racial as you state, you need to do some research on unconsious bias and be better to yourself.” I’m afraid I see that as a racist comment because you are assuming for me that my experience as a British mixed-race person is not a valid one. You may consider yourself to be enlightened and liberal but that statement to me screams narrow-mindedness and unconscious racism in itself. Have you even read the opinions of some black women who don’t feel that Meghan is truly ‘proud to be a woman of colour”? They may be wrong but they also are entitled to their dissenting opinion.. However, just like me, I don’t think she would would like it if someone was assuming for her that she is not good enough as the person she is.
You’re actually serious, there is a calendar of the Cambridge children? Who gets the money?
I agree with this. I don’t think Kate has much for backbone, and I think she’s made a practice of just standing in place and doing as she’s told. I think brushing Will’s hand off and not inviting Rose over for tea are as confrontational as she gets.
In any competition, Meghan would come out miles ahead of Kate. Did Kate make some bad decisions? Well, remember all the Marilyn moments? Remember her chucking a 115 year old St. Patrick’s Day tradition of handing out shamrocks to the Irish Guards? Her work-shy attitude? She’s no more Queen Consort material than I am. Meghan outshone the Lamebridges in every way but has had to put up with blatant racism, death threats, intrusive photogs and morons like Katie Nicholl and Piers Morgan frothing at the mouth and slagging her any way they can. The BRF shot themselves in the foot when they refused to stand up for her, especially his idiot brother the “Leaker”.
@GreenDress. Thank you for sharing your perspective. It’s always helpful to listen and learn from others viewpoints even if we have a differing view. British conservatives sound just as bad as American conservatives, hence why have Boris and Trump. I don’t agree that Meghan or any other woman should have to dim their light to placate others and I’m glad Meghan didn’t and decided to exit.
@Greendress, your whole submission is irritating, laced with disapproval of Meghan, but yet you cannot give one single example of how .Meghan was misguided. Also, what qualities should she have toned down, so others could shine, at 38yrs old? I am waiting with bated breath.
@GreenDress as a fellow Brit, I have to disagree with pretty much all of that. They are old fashioned, outdated values and while I’m sure there are some stuffy people remaining, I don’t think that your sentiment is representative of the majority of British people.
There’s certainly an underlying tone built into us all from birth about class an old money vs new money but most people can also see this for what it is. The people that cling to those values are the ones with something to lose, like the aristocrats.
I would agree that there’s a big element of Brits not liking anything too showy and thats a big cultural difference between UK and US. It’s been talked about before how in the US people are proud of social climbing and rags to riches stories but in the UK, only new money shows it off and it’s not good to be new money. That’s a good thing in terms of remaining humble but it’s also a point that keeps the aristocracy in control over the class system.
Right @Becks1? Like the very essence of elevating Kate because she’s never put a foot wrong (well except exposing her private parts on purpose) , doesn’t fly private (except when she has 2 empty aircrafts flying hundreds of miles to pick her and her family up so they can stage a budget flight image, or maybe except when she’s holidaying in Mystique ) , never does expensive baby showers (except she actually did), does nothing to rub her wealth in poor British people faces ( except live in a palace, just like all the other RF members), while slugging Meghan for flying private to go to NY ( well except she didn’t, she hitched a ride) duchessing while black, or doing the exact same things you praising Kate for is mind boggling. It doesn’t get any more hypocritical than that. And accusing Meghan of being a hypocrite while you yr yelf are being hypocritical is just laughable Like in one post you “I’m British’, the next one you “as a non-Brit” like pick a side a stick to it. And who made you the judge of what ALL Brits like of their Royals? 🙄🙄
@Guest2.0 You are welcome. I think that Shazbot also put it excellently. Simply in recognising these facts does not necessarily mean that I agree with the institution of the Monarchy and how it in some way forces women to “dim their light to placate others” as you so nicely put it. Also, thank you for being dignified enough not to use the race card or to try, as others have done here to somehow minimise my views as a mixed race person which I consider to be racist in itself. It is not healthy to label everything or to use demeaning sentences such as “you’re looking through white eyes” as Okurr said below. That is demeaning to both the person of colour you are referring to as well as white people. Clearly not all white people think the same way.
@Babs Orig – Oh dear. I was referring to Meghan as the “non-Brit”, sorry if that wasn’t clear enough for you. I am sorry for being British, for having my own p.o.v even. Noone appointed me as a judge of ALL Brits, darling, just you. What is your own experience, what place are YOU speaking from other than clearly Pd off and angry? If you think that I’m actually “praising kate” by merely explaining WHY she has been more accepted then you lack critical thinking and objectivism. You seem way too emotionally invested in Meghan and her misfortune. There is other stuff happening in the world to care about and many who are suffering worse injustices than this. If Meghan herself care so much about feminism and underprivileged, then why on earth did she marry into the RF, a family who built its legacy on oppression???? She is an adult and cannot be that naiive.
@greenDress “Have you even read the opinions of some black women who don’t feel that Meghan is truly ‘proud to be a woman of colour”? They may be wrong but they also are entitled to their dissenting opinion.. However, just like me, I don’t think she would would like it if someone was assuming for her that she is not good enough as the person she is.”
I have read those opinions, and, yes they have a right to have them, but they should also be called out on them. Loudly and often. Because it’s bias (and doesn’t hold up to even the smallest amount of scrutiny) and it’s damaging.
I never assumed or stated that you are not good enough as the person you ARE. I said you should be better TO yourself. Explore the unconsious bias you’re spewing. It’s glaring.
@GuestWho: “I never assumed or stated that you are not good enough as the person you ARE. I said you should be better TO yourself. Explore the unconscious bias you’re spewing. It’s glaring.”
By advising me to be better TO myself you are implying that how I AM is not good enough because you assume that I am unconsciously biased and therefore NOT good to myself. Your statement continues to be extremely ‘white saviour’ to imagine that you even know what is best for any individual of colour. You are deciding for me that I am not good to myself because I dare to have an opinion that does not fit an ultra-liberal narrative and am willing to call out some of Meghan’s BS? To me that is like an arrogant liberal saying get ‘back in your box’. Your detached analysis (which is all it is) is never a substitute to be able to speak on behalf of all experiences of any person of any race, ethnicity or gender. You think that I am unaware of unconscious bias in the UK having grown-up here? I even pointed out the racism directed at Meghan by the media. I can just as easily say to you, gosh, you don’t see the unconscious and patronising bias you are spewing here, you should be better to yourself as a self-appointed non-racist person.
There always seems to be someone who claims to be Black or mixed race and just because THEY don’t think the abuse that Meghan has endured is racist, that means it ISN’T racist. Well, thousands of people disagree and we’re deafened by the dog whistles that keep blowing every time Meghan’s name is mentioned.
The royal family should have been on their knees thanking God that someone like Meghan who actually had other options in life and hadn’t been groomed to snag a prince for HER ENTIRE LIFE, agreed to join that toxic mess. Meghan could actually meet and and mingle with people over the age of six. She could put two sentences together without using a FAKE ‘posh’ accent that made Hyacinth Bucket sound like the Queen Mother. Harry and Meghan gave the appearance that the royal family was looking ahead to a British future that wasn’t lily white and deadly dull.
But the British royal family decided to throw it’s lot with the tabloids and the Brexit bunch. Good luck when they all die off.
@GreenDress:
“Also, thank you for being dignified enough not to use the race card or to try, as others have done here to somehow minimise my views as a mixed race person which I consider to be racist in itself. ”
THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A “RACE CARD.” Jesus.
I am merely quoting GuestOne because I agree with her:
January 24, 2020 at 10:13 am
Meghan’s vogue was the best selling British vogue for a decade so it was enormously successful but didn’t go down well with people who don’t understand original meaning of ‘woke’& who didn’t like that so many black/brown faces were on the cover. Many ordinary businesswomen, scientists, engineers, artists were profiled inside the magazine. It’s a magazine that wants to make money& get advertising so it would feature people with profile on the cover.
The country life magazine that Charles edited had him calling for changes around agriculture policy- why didn’t this or Kate editing HuffPost which is regarded as left leaning receive criticism for being ‘political’ but her Vogue did?
In terms of style it HAS been quite vanilla. Wasn’t the complaint here about too much navy or black& people upset that as a former actress she wasn’t the fashion leader people were hoping her to be? The edgiest thing was probably not wearing tights all the time. She even stopped the messy buns.
Sophie, Camilla&Anne have talked about women’s issues& importance of women’s leadership so why is it a problem with Meghan? Philip, Charles, William, Harry all have campaigned around conservation, climate change etc for years whilst using Concorde, mega yachts, private jets, helicopters etc so why haven’t they received the level of criticism Meghan had for her baby shower in country where most of her friends are& which her friends paid for? We have been in austerity for years yet wasn’t there same level of criticism for Charles lavish 70th party where they were all decked out in designer gear, jewels etc? People don’t seem to say zip when royals are at state affairs decked out in tiaras, expensive jewels.
Meghan DID do bread& butter events especially during the away days her and Harry did including pre wedding. She unveiled plaques, opened new shopping centres, education centres, visited theatres, schools, colleges, playhouse, nursing home etc in the U.K. She’s also been pregnant& on mat leave during the time she was a working royal or might have done more plus she was deployed on foreign tours.
Like any newcomer to the role she’s had missteps but none to justify the vitriol she’s had. A guardian report found that her press honeymoon period after marriage was only 2 months- negative press started in July 18. People are reporting now that 8 years in Kate has grown into her role. Why wasn’t Meghan given that room to breathe& make mistakes?
@GreenDress
“Your statement continues to be extremely ‘white saviour’ to imagine that you even know what is best for any individual of colour.”
Now who is making assumptions about someone’s race?
When you use a phrase like “race card” that flies in the face of self awareness. It’s a give away.
@GuestWho. ‘THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A “RACE CARD”: Still claiming to know it all.
@kerwood – You suffer from the same symptoms of unconscious bias as GuestWho. By dictating to me that I only “claim” to be who I am and dismissing any perspective I have as wow, a real mixed race person couldn’t possibly have those views!! You are also another who hasn’t read my comments fully or appreciated the context and starts citing random statistics to back up your claim, like ‘Well, thousands of people disagree”. I at no point said that I “did not think that the abuse Meghan has endured is racist”. I actually said the opposite in terms of the press’ treatment of her. I said some nice things about her and wasn’t even flattering about Kate. Wow, I thought that my opinion of Kate was low, but if what I said about her is not nasty enough then that’s your issue. I even drew some analogy between Meghan and Diana…and Sarah Ferguson come to think of it. But people fixate only on the race thing and interpret everything as racist. It’s really pathetic.
@GreenDress
“@GuestWho. ‘THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A “RACE CARD”: Still claiming to know it all.”
I do not claim to know it all, but i do know that THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A RACE CARD. That is something that racists have made up to shut down conversations. Congratulations on your obvious self awareness. /s
BTW I have read your comments fully, and they are, taken as a whole, hypocritical and not well thought out. You are attempting to twist responses from people who don’t agree with you to make some sort of point that everyone else is racist or something. Why not actually read what people are telling you and maybe learn something?
@GuestWho; “Now who is making assumptions about someone’s race?
When you use a phrase like “race card” that flies in the face of self awareness. It’s a give away. ”
As I said, I’ve never claimed like some are here to be an expert on race or racism (I’ll leave that to experts like you), other than simply knowing who I am and the experiences I’ve had. If you’re telling me that using the phrase like “race card” “flies in the face of self-awareness” then possibly you know something more about it than I do. I know it as something people pull to allege racism, often as a lazy or knee-jerk resort. By merely commenting on some of Meghan’s weaker points (yeah, hate to break it to you, she’s not a saint) I have been falsely accused of racism/unconsicous bias without anything substantive to back that up.
Yes I am making assumptions about your race but whatever you are, it does not change the fact that your moral reasoning and know it all approach continues to be flawed. It says, very loudly: I am only interested in listening to myself and to others that confirm my own bias and my own narrative.
@GreenDress, I’m not ‘suffering’ from anything, but thanks for your concern.
I say ‘claim to be Black or mixed race’, when I don’t believe the person really is. I know people of colour who don’t like Meghan. My cousin blew my mind the other day with a rant about Meghan that sounded like she was channeling Piers Morgan. But there are certain cues and clues that are hard to ignore and your comments are chock full of them. When you’ve heard dog whistles all your life, it’s hard to ignore them.
As an American, I think the British as a collective suffer majorly from Tall Poppy Syndrome. And Meghan is definitely a tall poppy. There is really nothing Meghan could have done to win over a certain segment of people. The kind of people who think Archie’s not her kid and that her dad is a wonderful guy. But even among the sane general public, she was always going to be a bit “too much”. But she did literally nothing wrong. I do, however, think “The Firm” could have made things easier and smoother for her though. The fact is, her Americaness and her blackness was new and different for the royals and royalists and she should have been handled differently. I wish she’d had Michelle Obama and her team to guide her, as she’s the only other high profile woman who has sat on what is still believed to be “a white woman’s throne” and come out alive and respected. Black girls aren’t supposed to be princess and First Ladies in a lot of people’s minds and it that has to be navigated a certain way, fair or not. I think it would have been beneficial for her to do a tour around the UK as a way to introduce herself to the British public. It could have been fun and lighthearted. Not to ingratiate herself with them but to let them see she is American and biracial and there’s nothing wrong with that, this is who she is and doesn’t have to be anything else. And she’s new here and wants to learn all about her new home. I don’t think she was properly introduced to the people at all and that hampered her. As Michelle Obama has said, it’s hard to hate up close. Instead, her introduction to the people came almost completely from the tabloid press. And that created a problem that was impossible to get around. People will believe almost anything when they don’t know you on top of already thinking you’re “too much”.
@kerwood: as I’m sure you’ve surmised, “Green” is an obvious troll, who is playing cards of “I’m British!” “I’m mixed!” “I’m (a) female!” Which all come off as fake.
I put in the “a” because – to me – Greenie comes off as an american incel. And it all sounds like lies and finger pointing. Moving the goal posts. Dog whistles.
Accusing everyone else of the shitty tactics “she” (I know, there are women trolls… but…) uses “her”self.
Anyone can say anything on the internet.
That’s one of its strengths and also one of its weaknesses. Readers must practice discernment.
If it barks like a dog and farts like a dog… it probably is a dog.
Greenie would tell me not to believe everything you read on the internet. I would say the same as “her.”
@Nyro, tbfh, the more I think about it, the more the whole Tall Poppy Syndrome thing irks the crap out of me. It strikes me as a mask for one’s own insipid insecurities. People can’t cope with the fact that someone else might be good at something, might relish being good at something, might be proud of what they’ve done and how hard they’ve worked. The British really do expect everyone else to cater to their own inability to develop a sense of self-esteem. So they demand that other people sell themselves short so that they don’t accidentally make everyone else feel bad by doing well.
Are you actually the Queen, GreenDress, because your arguments don’t make any sense – Diana was extremely popular with the British public, so much so Charles was jealous of the attention she received. William and Kate are jealous of the charisma that Harry and Meghan have, and I sympathize. Charisma is impossible to fake or attain, either you’re born with it or you’re not. The RF and the press tried to bully Meghan and shut her down, because she and Harry were going to be Diana 2.0+. After all the racism, and harsh criticisms for ridiculously minor (non)points, the RF and pressed are pissed their victims refused to stay victims. Now Harry and Meghan can do what they want, and they will show up the royal family for the dull, dysfunctional, lazy family they are. (What can you tell us about Andrew, GreenDress – do your mum and dad like him? Shouldn’t he have ‘toned’ his behavior down? You guys can dance around this all you want, but you are racist snobs.)
I agree. I think he wanted to take them down a peg and “put them in their place” but I don’t think he thought they would say screw this and leave. Be careful what you wish for, for sure!
Green dress and Baytampabay, you’re coming off like that side by side comparison of articles where Kate is praised for eating avocados and Meghan is shamed.
She wore dresses that didn’t fit properly? Are you kidding me here? Kate has worn dresses that flew up above her head.
Keep the same energy there…
She made many mistakes and was very misguided? That seems really overstated. Go ahead and list all the times she ate avocados??? Very misguided?
@Elizabeth – right? Its like the saying, the dog whistle has become a bullhorn.
@Elizabeth, thank you. The dog whistles in @Greendress, @BTB and @Shazbot posts are pretty deafening. Yeah the black duchess who didn’t know her place dared to breath and duchess in racist UK while black. I guess they thought throwing Diana in there will district from their “oh it wasn’t racism that upitty Meghan experienced” nonsense. The white Kate Middleton has it all down, I mean, she’s white, right? Nevermind that white Kate edited the WaPo UK, on numerous occasions flashed her butt, is dumb as rocks and has done absolutely nothing with her role as a duchess, but hey, let’s dump on the black Meghan because we can 🙄🙄🙄
@BabsORIG, Meghan is Elizabeth Taylor and Cathy is Meryl Streep. No really cares what Meryl Street wears or does. Everything LaLa Liz Taylor wore, did or said was front page news. Liz & Meghan have the IT Factor” in spades. Meryl & Cathy do not have the “IT Factor” and never will.
Other than Piers Morgans personal vendetta, this is all about generating revenue producing click$ and selling newspaper$. LIZ & Meghan sell newspapers; Meryl & Cathy do not sell newspapers.
@Greendress You might be mixed race but you’re looking through white eyes.
You’re in the sunken place.
@Okurr. As I pointed out to someone above, you may wish to examine how the very essence of your statement is highly offensive. When you start to use identity politics, colour and racism for everything, including speaking on behalf of somebody of colour, you are dragging them of your own accord into a “sunken place”.
@BTB, please quit reducing and minimizing the racism towards Meghan as just “nothing racism but all about generating clicks” it’s so effing frustrating and annoying at the same time.
@Greendress, no one mentioned anything about race, when responding to your ridiculous statement, till you injected race into it, and since we cannot tell what race you are, though you claim to be muxed race, let me commit a fallacy and say that,I have a hunch that you are White, and have disliked Meghan unconsciously, that is why other Royals get passes for the same crime, including; Prince Charles flying private to talk about climate change. Meghan’s gig is feminism, and we are proud of her. not the environment. ‘Ill fitting clothes, you said? So being a cover girl for Vogue is more regal, than editing? Hmm!
@Abetswana. You sound like a very hateful person. As regards race, you may wish to read Robin O’Keefe’s and Becks1’s offensive inferences to dog whistling regarding my statement above which is where I saw fit to mention my race. Comments like yours and theirs are damaging to progressiveness because they continue to infantilise people of colour and make them victims. They cannot do wrong or be called out because if they are, it’s racism. How dare your kind (and I say kind because I don’t know your colour either) always assume that we cannot be persons or have views independent of our race?
Plus, you’re not reading the comments thread clearly, just hurling random accusations. I was not the one who mentioned “ill-fitting clothes”.
@BabsORIG, It seems to me that you are saying if Meghan was 100% Caucasian then none of this mess would have happened. I disagree, what with Down between William & Harry would have happened no matter what “strong & independent” woman Harry married. Race is is just one, but a very big one, of the reasons/attributes the RRRS of the tabloid press have used to bury Meghan. If Meghan was 100% Caucasian the RRRS would have just found another stick to beat her with.
IMHO, William was “out to get” Harry and RRs & RRRS were “out to get” Meghan plus make as much money as the could in the process with one swell swoop.
“…use the race card”
Omg, did you really just say that? 😳Wow girl, you are way out of your league talking about nuanced topics like race. A person speaking about racism isnt “pulling the race card”.
Again, Green Dress, you are getting push back because you are parroting the racist talking points that have been lodged against Meghan for the past year and ignoring the HYPOCRISY in those talking points. People keep pointing this out to you and you are ignoring it.
@Becks1 Who are you to assume I am “parroting”?. Some people are capable of thinking for themselves. Of course if you come on a site like this you will have YOUR own biases and preferences confirmed because you have hundreds of people “parroting” what you’re saying and from what I see you’re also parroting the pro-Meghan talking points. I AGREE that there is HYPOCRISY in Meg’s treatment and that evil Kate is guilty of much of the same thing. Again, I merely pointed out ways in which Kate has used her blander ways to her advantage and the press also.
So, yes, continue with the “push-back”. It’s part of life to encounter others with a different viewpoint. But I do find it amusing to see just how intolerant and hypocritical the same people are who are preaching about Meghan’s unjust treatment on this very issue.
I find it amusing that GreenDress thinks anyone is drinking her Koolaid.
I completely think William wanted Harry to leave but on his terms- that he would tell them where to go live and they would bow to his will (no pun intended), go live as royals under his thumb in Africa and eventually fall in line and kiss his butt. I don’t think he wanted them to leave altogether on their terms. Honestly when this first happened I worried Will won and Harry and Meghan lost big time and gave in but I think (hope?) i was wrong and time will show they did the smart thing and are now happy. Wistful thinking?
I think William wanted Harry to want to leave, but not actually leave, if that makes sense. And that it could be something William could hold over Harry’s head – “well if you leave you aren’t a working royal and you cant use your HRH and you cant get sovereign grant money” and so on and so forth and thought that Harry would say “fine, I’ll stay.” But instead they peaced out anyway.
Will was very lucky with Harry because, unlike other siblings over the years, Harry wasn’t envious of Will’s position as heir. He wanted to do something meaningful of his own, but still working in support of the monarchy.
As far as the criticism above about the “traditional British sentiments of showing modesty, not drawing attention to yourself” – I don’t believe Harry and Meghan were interested in a popularity contest. A big reason they started to shine was because there was a vacuum waiting to be filled. If Will and Kate had been out there all along, doing events and making appearances, they would have shared the spotlight. The very successful Pakistan tour, which was widely covered, is an example of how the presence of Harry and Meghan likely raised the profile of both couples.
Sure, Will and Kate overall don’t have Harry and Meghan’s charisma, but the bigger problem is any events/tours they did prior to Harry’s marriage were few and far between. They made it very clear they didn’t want to work, and by the time Will decided he cared about how he looked, it was too late. He was left playing catch up, which played into all his (and Kate’s) worst instincts of jealousy and competition.
They really expected Harry to do what Princess Margaret did, which is choose to remain with the RF out of fear that she wasn’t good enough on her own without the status that being a part of this family afforded her. Instead of working through her own insecurities, she dug herself deeper into reinforcing the systems that were responsible for her own misery and became a rude snob who asserted her inflated sense of authority in increasingly petty ways, all because she had never developed a sense of self that extended beyond being a member of the royal family.
If Margaret had been even marginally more mature, more aware, more willing to do the difficult work it takes to stand on your own two feet mentally, she would have not taken any of the nonsense that she endured, which included her own family siding with a husband that treated her like total garbage. She might have never married Anthony Armstrong-Jones and saved herself a world of misery.
Letters from the archives prove HM put a plan in place for Margaret so she could have Townsend and a royal life. She was allowed to marry Townsend, keep her royal housing, keep her royal stipend, and would keep doing royal duties. In exchange, she had to remove herself and her children from the line of succession. Margaret chose not to marry Townsend.
I agree, Becks1. He wanted Harry cowed and afraid, back in the family fold as the scapegoat.
@nota, I’m not talking about the details of why Margaret didn’t marry Peter Townsend. In fact, I’m not referencing Peter Townsend at all. I doubt that she would have been happy with him even if she had chosen to marry him.
My point is that Margaret never developed a proper sense of purpose or place within the family and her public role at large. Moreover, she was hugely unsupported by her family in general. Her sister cared for her, but she was busy being the Queen, and she was by and large the priority, always, not just to her parents but to everyone else. My point is more abstract in that Margaret never received the attention she deserved from her family to have a proper, ironclad sense of *self*. And in her later years, she never received the emotional support she desperately needed from her own family, especially from the Queen Mother, who sided with Armstron-Jones and blamed Margaret for not suffering through her marriage for the sake of appearances. The Queen Mother by many credible accounts was cruel to her as a way of exerting her influence, in the same way she was cruel to Prince Philip in order to protect her influence over the monarchy and the Queen.
Your mention of the letters and Margaret’s ultimate decision to not marry Townsend actually illustrate my point. If she had been raised to be a more grounded personality, someone who was much more secure in her identity and place in life, she might very well have had the courage to marry Townsend and actually make a success of that marriage. More to the point, she might have never actually fallen in love with Townsend to begin with. By all indications, she was attracted to him because he was an older, wiser, more stable figure in her life, and she gravitated to him increasingly after her own father’s death which left her even more bereft of an identity–hardly the sort of thing that makes for a healthy relationship.
‘conduct themselves in a certain way’? You mean like showing up, engaged in their work, actively trying to make things better. I can see how William wouldn’t like that.
William actually caring? You expect too much!☺️
When other people show up, do the job, and make him look back by association? You bet your a$$ Billy cares about that.
After the African tour the surviving not thriving comments in the documentary on Africa took everyone by shock. That tour was very positively received. They were planning on pulling back leaving then. Megan had some smart insights that could have helped the RF change. They (the firm ) don’t want to change, the fear it. So Megan was seen as a threat just for being different, half black, that was change, not to be tolerated by the men in grey. Kate defers to William and I doubt Megan was interested in any ‘help’ from Kate. If Megan had approached this deferring to Harry walking two step behind him, wore frumpy grey outfits and said nothing, I think the press still would have gone after her if she 100 percent changed her behaviors, because she was different. In the USA Obama was half black, Intelligence, charming, slick, and different. Half the country couldn’t handle a black president and that’s how we ended up with Trump. Looking at MegExit, Similarities exist. I don’t think it was so much Harries family caused their leaving (maybe 25 percent) vs the climate of racism negative perceptions reflected in the press (75 percent)that made it unbearable. I hope they can manage and are happy with the new situation.
I think it’s the other way around. I think it’s more like most of the family that attacked. If it was reversed and they were getting 75% protection from the family, they would have never left. It was his family and their leaks that led to them booking it to Canada. I too hope they are happy now and stay that way.
“Conduct themselves in a certain way”? You mean, keep a very low profile and avoid the spotlight so they won’t show up Whiny Willy and his bland wife as the stultifying bores they really are.
All this back and forth about Meghan. I’m going to quote this from Touré’s column on this in AfRopunk: “ Her brief time inside the House of Windsor is proof that respectability politics doesn’t work. You can’t conform yourself past other people’s racism. Even if you do everything right, they’ll still hate you”. All this nonsense about what she wore or editing magazines is BS. She could have worn floral frocks and coat dresses, had a high tea webcam, cut a ribbon a day, but they would still hate her and said she was fake and attention seeking . She worked hard because she knew anything else was not acceptable. I don’t care what happens with the rest of the Royals. They’ll go back to being wallpaper and window dressing, which is what the conservatives and Brexiteers want. If they were looking for conformity and modest womanhood from her, they were barking up the wrong tree. Who she was in that regard was always there, even if they were willfully blind or in denial about her, and Harry for that matter. Them being gone isn’t going to fix that country. Your problems are still there and they won’t be the scapegoats for it.
Yes, exactly what they meant. As someone above commented why on earth should Meghan have had to dim her light? By not dimming her light she did much for charity. She has already left a legacy in the UK ie Hub Kitchen, Smart Works etc.
Women should NEVER have to dim their lights.
Harry has Sentebale and Invictus. What has William got to show for himself?
They are the laziest couple . Shame on them.
Its honestly sad that the only way these two are able to show some form of humanity and relateability, it’s through always namedropping Meghan and Harry. The fact that they’re not able to do this on their own says A LOT.
William and Kate are reeling from the reality that they’ll have to get off their asses and work!
No they aren’t. They will continue to do as they please.
+1
I think they wanted Meghan to be gone – bu didn’t expect Harry to follow afterwards.
Yes. I went and looked at some videos of Harry, William and Kate and Harry was more attentive than William. William seemed so inattentive and sometimes begrudging. Even if he didn’t like Meghan because of her race or background, to think that that bald headed fool couldn’t muster up enough courtesy to treat her as well as his brother treated his own wife, speaks volume of his character. Just co-exist. They didn’t have to be friends.
Exactly. Not being boorish would have been enough. It was understandable if they were all never friends – Meghan came from a radically different background than the other 3. Harry loves her for it though. But I could understand a lack of closeness.
I think of how Harry treated Kate and how they seemed to have a fun and loving friendship. (I bet she misses that.) Then I even think of the example Charles set at Harry and Meghan’s wedding. He was courtly, generous, and kind, seemingly delighted to escort Meghan and supportive to Doria. That one day changed my impression of Charles. But not William. He just couldn’t bring himself to support his brother and his sister-in-law, even for a few hours at public events. Maybe he thought Meghan was a flash in the pan and he would just wait her out. I think the future will be full of times that William mis-judges other situations.
Harry went out of his way to support his brother and his sister-in-law, and they didn’t even lift a finger to support him and Meghan in return. Harry has spent years contributing to the RF and doing what was asked of him. He chose to remain because his grandmother asked him to stay. And in return he’s gotten people in his own family betraying him and his wife to the press and covertly helping their targeted harassment.
William couldn’t even muster up basic respect and human decency towards Meghan. It’s really unbelievable if you think about it.
Bingo!!!!!!!! They were fine with a Meghan leaving that was the intention. But “be careful what you wish for’s cousin” – “ actions have consequences, sometimes unintended ones” stepped up to pay them a visit. Harry said bite me and left them to their messiness along with his wife. They can’t believe he left and robbed them of the opportunity to keep abusing him. ENJOY WHAT YOU WISHED FOR WILLS AND KATIE KEEN. You worked hard for it.
@liz the only thing they’ve ever actually worked hard on
William has worked very hard silencing the media about his affair. Threatening lawsuits about ‘right to a private life’ in European court, but not filing libel lawsuits with proof no affair happened. Any SM posts that references the affair disappear instantly. Good thing people know how to screenshot and save the evidence, like when reporters tweet they have proof and were ordered to cover it up. #pigeonflinch
Exactly!
I think they’re “reeling” because it’s probably the first time they’ve worked so many days in a row. Lol
I’m pretty (petty) sure that I read that Will and Kate are going to be taking a break in Ireland. OMG.
Well of course. Jealousy is hard. Jealousy and petty machinations are exhausting, don’t you know? Poor Wills and Katie-keen. So tired. So disappointed to have favorite targets removed from the game. They need a restful vacation to recover.
Bullying is exhausting they need a rest poor nuggets.
Listen, it’s incredibly difficult to deal with the consequences of your behaviour that for once you can’t escape from because your usual scapegoat and blame target is gone and there’s no one left except yourself.
I hope you’re right, A. Might be the first time he has to deal with consequences he can’t control. I wonder if he’s sleeping well?
If anything, I think the jealously still lives on. Think about it, if William and Kate had their way, what kind of life do you think they would want to live? They would want the money, the fame, without the restrictions of royal life. Harry and Meghan are now setting themselves up to be the aristocrats without the regiment and toxicity of the Firm, without owing anyone anything. While the they were all under the Firm’s control, William wanted to be top dog. Now that Harry is gone, he is just the second in line until the Queen dies and will forever belong to the Crown. And Charles seems petty enough to try to live past 100.
And William and Kate don’t really want to work, whereas Harry and Meghan have worked and stress that they plan to continue to work.
The jealousy may increase.
William has always wanted out of the royal family, felt trapped by his place in the succession. Now his scapegoat has gotten out and is getting global support for getting away from the Family Firm. William’s ended up taking negative PR hits. Looking like a jealous fool, attacking his brother’s mental health, and appearing racist and abusive towards his SIL.
Harry and Meghan happily married, away from the royals, free to do as they want. vs. William filing lawsuits and threatening press to keep quiet about how close he is with the neighbor. Jealously from Kate as well, who has always been competitive and anti-other women. She and Carole thought she could show up, pose, and be loved. The fact that Meghan has global, vocal support must have them seething.
@I know, I do not think Billy and Cathy have interest in fame. I think Bill & Cathy just want to be in the top 1% and do as they please whenever and wherever they please.
They absolutely care if Harry and Meghan earn reputations as global humanitarians. W&K do not want to work, but they don’t want anyone else getting the glory.
Perhaps. But I think Harry is now living the kind of life William wished for himself. A little notoriety would suffice to be out. The thing is, William believed he had the thing that Harry and Meghan wanted – to be King and Queen. Hence all the reminders of Queen Consort Kate.
I tend to think the ‘Queen Consort Kate’ push came from
1) Carole and Kate who were angry and scared in the face of Meghan accomplishing so much in so little time
2) the obsessed Kate fans who would have hated anyone who showed up and showcased Kate’s laziness and lack of accomplishments
@I know, there has always been a persistent rumour about William that says that he really considered just up and leaving the royal family completely and constantly had to be convinced to not do that. I’m of the partial opinion that he really felt that way, but he also saw it as something of a wistful pipe dream outside the realm of possibility for him because he didn’t want to do the work it would take to leave and establish himself elsewhere. He just wanted the perks of what he think is an ordinary life, which was to not do royal duties or be a full time royal, but he wanted to larger benefits that it afforded him, like a sense of authority and comfort in the fact that he can get what he wants by simply throwing a temper tantrum or two.
Oh, puh-leese. They’re just stressed about having to actually put in the hours now that Harry and Meghan have peaced out.
I don’t think either of them has the emotional depth to truly ‘reel’ from anything.
Agreed! It’s a mere ripple for them and they’re still the media’s favourite so no big deal.
I think they wanted them out of the public eye but weren’t smart enough to realize “Oh wait. Then we have to work!”
This is total nonsense. William and Kate will not be expected to anything more than they have done for the past eight years. No one is going to risk pissing off William now that another path is viable.
But William is the heir, and so he’ll be warned about the consequences for the monarchy if he thinks he can make a path of his own. It will also be impressed upon him just how much he will lose if he tries to leave. It goes both ways. And if there were any chance that he could actually find someone who he’d seriously prefer to have by his side instead of Kate, he can’t do anything about it. He’s effectively ensured that he and Kate are stuck together, so he’ll have to settle for playing with the neighbors.
They’ve set the precedent titles-and-styles should be removed from the younger W&K children now. No need to have this conversation publicly when they’re older, remove all of it now and make them plain old Mountbatten-Windsor kids. They really didn’t think this through.
I’m sure Andrew would be glad to step up to save the monarchy.
/sarcasm
William can’t leave. Unlike Harry, he has no vast personal fortune of his own since he supposed to inherit it all after Charles. He and Kate have never really worked at all in their lives so trying to earn money on their own would lead them into Prince Andrew Fergie territory. Kate would never want to leave. She wants in on the royal family. She put up with too much to give up the crown for her and her son now. Will is stuck and he knows it.
William and Harry inherited the same amount from Diana, her estate was divided equally. William also inherited a few million from the Queen Mum. He doesn’t have as much personal wealth as Harry, but he is by no means poor. If he wasted a large piece of that fortune buying the Middleton’s new home as a kind of post-nup? That was his choice.
Now would Kate and Carole forgive him if he wanted out? Maybe not, but what Carole cares about most is her grandson as future monarch. William and Kate are expendable in the long run.
How would Harry have more money than William, nota? Are you counting Harry’s military service income?
I also thought Harry got more from Diana than William did on the understanding that William as heir would inherit so much more than Harry will ever have? I didn’t know it was split equally.
@Lady D – Harry got more from the Queen Mum on the assumption that William would be king, so Harry would need the additional funds more than his brother
Kate looks awful. You can tell on her face that there’s a lot going on behind the scenes.
Can you imagine the tantrums Will has been throwing the last few weeks? I’m sure they rival any of the children’s.
People with anger problems are like rust, they corrode every good thing around them. And when they test relationships, they’ve no idea how much damage they’ve done and the relationship disintegrates. While I’ve lost patience with Kate on several levels, I remember how hard it must be living with Will and I cut her some slack.
HK9 – true. William’s rapid aging is testimony to what must be going on in his mind.
Think of the movie “Portrait of Dorian Gray.” The internal ugliness is magnified from The external ugliness.
I really feel like that’s why she looked the way she did on the Christmas walk. So much going on behind the scenes.
I honestly don’t think will and Kate live together the majority of the time. Or I think they live like ships passing the night, on opposite sides of their huge palaces, hardly interacting. So I don’t buy into the whole “poor kate, she has to live with William!” thing. It’s not like they’re stuck together in a one room apartment. But maybe she did look extra worn out at Christmas because that would be a time when the family would likely all be under one roof for the holiday.
@Amy what are you basing these assumptions on? Perhaps she looked exhausted on Christmas morning because her kids woke her up at 5 am to open presents.
@Amy, I agree. His own comments about finding it difficult to see his children indicate as much. I feel like William tends to reveal more about himself/his family life than intended when he speaks like that.
@mac, it wasn’t just exhaustion imo. In the videos there was a tenseness to Kate and she looked irritated to be there (and with William, judging by their interactions). She tends to put on a much better game face, especially for the big family events like the Christmas walk.
It felt like a performance, on order from the Queen. Make nice with the neighbor (mistress) in public. Walk and pose, walk and pose.
I’m basing it on what BeachDreams said. He made comments that sounded very much like divorced dad stuff. He finds it hard to see his kids, he doesn’t spend as much time with them. And the fact that he has time to have “platonic suppers” with Rose specifically when Kate is out of town and he’s alone in Norfolk. I just get the vibe that they are separated but put on a show when needed. They don’t act like they’re very close.
I wonder how much pressure there was to trot the kids out – that must have been really stressful. I think W&K would have waited longer for G&C to do the walk but the family wanted some good wholesome PR to distract from the Andrew debacle. Those poor kids…I can only imagine that H&M are doing what they are doing in large part to protect Archie from all this. Especially him being mixed race, I think there’s going to be a lot of weird scrutiny and racist attention on him based on what Meghan has had to deal with.
@Amy Too, I feel like Will and Kate have genuinely drifted apart. The one thing I can’t fault Kate for is being a mother, and the extent to which she’s a hands-on mother to her children. I think that she has sort of created a whole life for herself that is apart from his and that distance accounts for a lot of how they’re feeling towards each other right now. They’re still a family and they probably care about each other, but this strikes me as somewhat similar to the whole Princess Grace and Prince Rainier situation during the later years of their marriage where they were essentially living separate lives.
She looks sick to me.
I know I oscillate between neutral and mocking with her but I hate concern trolling so when I say this I mean it. She looks unwell, physically and mentally. She is swimming in those clothes, she looks so thin she reminds me of my neighbor who just died of cancer. So angular that she’s folding in on herself like a jack knife. I really am concerned about her health.
Sass, I agree. It’s her thinness but also she just looks sick. Her face looks pinched and drawn. She can’t stand up straight. She wears clothes that are meant to add volume but she still looks like she could break easily. She looks fragile. Like an elderly or very ill woman.
Definitely agree with you there. She’s risking serious osteoporosis down the line if she doesn’t take care of herself. She’s getting that alarming old woman hunch.
I agree. Some months ago – maybe last spring? I made a similar comment – and was dragged for it. But in the pictures in the post she really did not look well. Dark circles, extremely thin, etc. Now the circles or looking tired etc can be explained by having young kids, but over the past year she has not seemed to look better, and we are seeing her composure slip in public more than it used to (Shrug-gate, the Christmas walk, etc.) And she keeps seeming to lose weight.
I really don’t think she’s well and I hope people close to her are helping her.
Yup…she’s clearly showing signs of stress and it’s not just being the “busy mother of three” that’s doing it. She has all the help anyone could ever need – nannies, chefs, house-cleaners – she probably spends more time at the hairdresser and gym than she does doing anything domestic. I think living with Willnot is causing the majority of the stress, He’s shown himself again and again to be a petulant, manipulative, unfaithful ass. While I don’t think much of Kate’s work-shy ways, I do feel that she’s unable to muster enthusiasm about anything more than her children and she’s incapable of taking on a senior royal role. She doesn’t have the speaking skills, the confidence or desire to expand her horizons and, unfortunately, her knob of a husband likely plays to her low self-esteem. I see sadness in her face, not just exhaustion.
Becks1, spring was when the news of Rose, long walks, and intimate dinner hit. It wouldn’t be surprising if strain show up then, esp. next to Meghan and Harry looking glowing, loved up, and expecting their first child.
This is for mac. Lol 5am Christmas. They are german and they still follow german tradition like opening gift at Christmas eve. There are tons of articles of brf opening presents on christmas eve. Like many ppl said I dont think they live together. They just come up together for the major events. It’s one of the benefits of living in palace where you can completely avoid each other. There are more rooms to hide
@nota – I went back to try to find the specific post where I was heavily criticized for “concern trolling” lol but I couldn’t. I did find a bunch of posts from early 2019 when Kate looked good – nice bouncy hair, well rested face (fresh botox maybe) and she seemed confident in her role. I feel like that only lasted for a few months and then the Rose rumors hit and she lost that brief moment of confidence.
Found it! Its from late fall 2018. She definitely looked better after that, and then has sort of gone back around the time of the Rose situation. It makes me think the Rose affair was during the pregnancy with Louis, it was a big problem, and then they moved on and then the gossip about it broke.
https://www.celebitchy.com/601449/duchess_kate_on_meghan_harrys_baby_its_such_a_special_time_to_have_little_kiddies/
Sass I agree on this. I hate risking sounding like a concern troll; but she looks unwell. Does anyone step in to help her? She has a family aside from the royal ones (who have shown who they really are). Does her mom not look at her and worry? Even though I don’t think she was a good SIL at all I hate to see her looking so Not well.
It sounded more to me like the affair was ongoing, or still happening when the rumors were getting out. We got those strange leaks out of William’s camp about long country walks, cozy dinners. It read more like it was happening concurrently, oh Rose is having trouble in her marriage *now*, William is the friendly shoulder to cry on.
Like…I know she’s lazy and definitely wasn’t a good SIL to Meghan. But god. I just want to ask her how I can help. She looks like she really is suffering. I don’t really think her mom is very affectionate tbh and probably tells her to suck it up. I don’t think she has much in the way of emotional or mental support.
I’ve always thought she was a beautiful woman and to see her looking so much older when she’s not even 40 is alarming. I lost a lot of weight really quickly during a traumatic event in my life and the same thing happened to me. I know people age etc. but this seems to have happened fast and hard, I really do wonder if it’s stress over Rose, an illness or possibly both. I do hope people she’s close to are noticing and working to help her.
I don’t defend her often, but I tend to think it’s because she has 3 small kids. I have 2 and I am wiped, I can’t imagine a third. I realize she has nannies and help, but the one credit I’ll give Kate is that she does seem to be hands on and enjoy motherhood.
No doubt there is also stress from everything going on, but I think she’s just mom-tired.
I have three small children and it is exhausting but she has 3 full time nannies and a night nanny. When she’s tired or stress she’s got immediate help to save her with multiple hands. I do not but boy do I wish i could afford that! And we have no idea if she really is hands on or not. We won’t get that real glimpse into their lives until the children are older and start talking about their childhood.
I think this is a part of it, but frankly, she does not look like she’s tired from running after 3 kids. I thought the same but she looks alarmingly exhausted, like she’s ill, in some photos, especially a few recent ones from a couple weeks back. I’ve seen people with 3 kids who are juggling full time jobs and don’t have any of the help she does. They do look tired, but it’s different. It’s a type of tired that happens when you’ve done a lot of work but you’re satisfied because you know it’s something important to you, y’know? Kate looks like the type of tired who can’t sleep at night because of the stress, not the kind of tired where it’s lights out for her as soon as her head hits the pillow. One is infinitely worse than the other.
Their reeling because in the attempt to put the spotlight on themselves more than H&M, they’ve actually succeeded in having it all to themselves and they now know they are screwed! The media will turn on them eventually and they know it.
It appears these two are straining to enjoy the spotlight, furrowed brows, forced smiles, and all. “Be careful what you wish for” — no kidding!
People keep saying “they know they’re screwed.” I kind of disagree. I don’t think they have the capacity for self-reflection that they’d need in order to do that. They probably don’t think this is a bad thing at all. They probably think this is gonna go really well for them.
Is she getting any negative press for this stupid survey? I haven’t seen any and I can’t believe no one is talking about how BS it is …
No. I tried to point this out on the site of a paper who adores Kate, and the comments I received were that I must be Meghan writing in disguise. The only reason I bother is because I am tired of Joe public being so blinkered about Kate and her achievements, yet so vicious about Meghan. In many ways I don’t think they actually care how much Kate achieves or how hard she works which says a lot in terms of what the Royal family means to those who support it.
If it’s the paper I’m thinking of, a good chunk of those comments are likely “bot” (ahem) and paid for.
The language surrounding this survey is ridiculously over the top. “Landmark study”, “the biggest survey of its kind”! Oh please. It is a very basic 5 question survey that is most likely a PR tool to gauge public interest, it is certainly not any kind of scientific survey. To dress it up as some kind amazing, land mark achievement is just another case of The Emperor’s New Clothes. The RR should just throw in the towel as journalists since they are basically just doing propaganda for the BRF now.
Meghan’s vogue was the best selling British vogue for a decade so it was enormously successful but didn’t go down well with people who don’t understand original meaning of ‘woke’& who didn’t like that so many black/brown faces were on the cover. Many ordinary businesswomen, scientists, engineers, artists were profiled inside the magazine. It’s a magazine that wants to make money& get advertising so it would feature people with profile on the cover.
The country life magazine that Charles edited had him calling for changes around agriculture policy- why didn’t this or Kate editing HuffPost which is regarded as left leaning receive criticism for being ‘political’ but her Vogue did?
In terms of style it HAS been quite vanilla. Wasn’t the complaint here about too much navy or black& people upset that as a former actress she wasn’t the fashion leader people were hoping her to be? The edgiest thing was probably not wearing tights all the time. She even stopped the messy buns.
Sophie, Camilla&Anne have talked about women’s issues& importance of women’s leadership so why is it a problem with Meghan? Philip, Charles, William, Harry all have campaigned around conservation, climate change etc for years whilst using Concorde, mega yachts, private jets, helicopters etc so why haven’t they received the level of criticism Meghan had for her baby shower in country where most of her friends are& which her friends paid for? We have been in austerity for years yet wasn’t there same level of criticism for Charles lavish 70th party where they were all decked out in designer gear, jewels etc? People don’t seem to say zip when royals are at state affairs decked out in tiaras, expensive jewels.
Meghan DID do bread& butter events especially during the away days her and Harry did including pre wedding. She unveiled plaques, opened new shopping centres, education centres, visited theatres, schools, colleges, playhouse, nursing home etc in the U.K. She’s also been pregnant& on mat leave during the time she was a working royal or might have done more plus she was deployed on foreign tours.
Like any newcomer to the role she’s had missteps but none to justify the vitriol she’s had. A guardian report found that her press honeymoon period after marriage was only 2 months- negative press started in July 18. People are reporting now that 8 years in Kate has grown into her role. Why wasn’t Meghan given that room to breathe& make mistakes?
The country life magazine that Charles edited had him calling for changes around agriculture policy- why didn’t this or Kate editing HuffPost which is regarded as left leaning receive criticism for being ‘political’ but her Vogue did?
Charles – No one really cares about agriculture policy except farmers.
Cathy – No one really believes Cathy guest edited HuffPost because no one can imagine Cathy saying anything worth listening to.
They look awful in that first photo. Looking haggard and tired. Whew.
The British media and RRs are also still reeling from Sussexit just like William & Kate. They didn’t think Harry &Meghan would actually leave and now that they’re favorite whipping posts have left, they’re all dumbfounded. Just wish American and Canadian news outlets would stop giving the RRs space to spout their no nothing nonsense.
The media are pissed and they think they can start harassing and hounding them all over Canada. There was some write up in the Daily Beast about how the Sussexes were treated with kid gloves but now it’s time to go in on them. Didn’t read the rest of article behind pay wall but we’ll see how that goes.
Racist British press: This biracial American woman is RUINING our country!!! If she doesn’t like our ways, she should just LEAVE!!
Meghan and Harry: Ok.
Racist British press: *shocked pikachu face*
Okay I’m about to put on my conspiracy theory hat now so bear with me. What if this whole ordeal was a plot gone awry? What if the BRF had a pact – whether implicit or not to drive Meghan away? What if QE gave Harry what he wanted by allowing him to marry Meghan hoping the marriage age would eventually fall apart? I dont think any of them expected Meghan to get pregnant so quickly and that through them for a loop and that’s when sh*t got real. That’s when the smear campaign went full throttle and suddenly there were leaks aplenty. It was also around that time that Will and Harry had their huge fallout. I think the deafening silence from every single member of that family supports my theory.
What I think NONE of them counted on was Harry leaving with Meghan.
Okay I will now take my tinfoil hat off, but…my theory rings true doesn’t it?
I’m reluctant to believe that due to the fact that the smear campaign happened after their Australia/Oceana tour ending on a high note at the balcony looking like the heirs to the throne instead of being the spare. That success scared the living shit out of them.
Jess – I think both you and VV are correct. I think it was the pregnancy announcement coupled with the incredible success of the Oceania tour and the obvious fact that H&M were superstars in a way that the royal family hadn’t anticipated.
I think the royals probably assumed Meghan would be a temporary fixture, but her pregnancy changed that and her popularity changed that.
@Jess The Oceania/Australia tour and the pregnancy announcement all happened at the same time. So the timeline still fits for both.
I think something like that was certainly a low-level expectation if not an outright plot. These are passive aggressive people who never say directly what they think. I think they just assumed that she would leave if they bullied her out–hence all the leaks from courtiers about “three year duchess” and such. They likely thought, we’ll look like racists if we don’t let them marry, so let’s give them the wedding, then give them no support, and leak shit about them, so the American black chick leaves on her own. Then we can shrug and say, “she couldn’t hack it.” They thought, 36, nearly 37 yr old won’t get pregnant easily. She’s just a problem for a few years, then a clean break.
@Valiantly Varnished, your theory makes total sense. However, I think there is a metric-f*ck-tonne of stuff we no nothing about and will not know about for years.
I would really love to know when all the problems really started and what was the event that kick off the PR war by the BRF against Meghan
@Bay I think the event was Archie. Anyone who thought she might not get pregnant easily is a fool. Everyone could see those two couldn’t keep their hands off each other. The thing that is most important to these people is blood. That’s where they claim their power from. It’s why there was so much cousin marrying, to keep the blood “pure.” Archie was now the living embodiment of the blood being diluted (in their minds). Plus, now Meghan would always have a place in the family. She was Archie’s mother even if they got divorced. And Archie was now in line for the thrown, higher up that most of QE’s kids.
The BRF didn’t ostracize Lady Davina Windsor and her bi-racial children. All are welcome at family events and remain in the line of succession (#31, 32, 33).
@notasugarhere Lady Davina isnt the son of the heir to the throne and her children arent 7th in the line of succession (which Archie is). She isnt a senior royal either. All major differences
Not denying any of that, merely pointing out there’s more at work here.
@nota, I have said the exact same thing. There is more at work here than just race and racism.
There’s plenty of racism at work here, that is the majority of what has been happening to Meghan for the past three years. And what is still being done to other her now, it is all based in racism.
I honestly don’t think the Queen or Charles cared or disliked Meghan, even given her blackness, Americanness, being divorced, being an actress or able to form a sentence. I think any of those things might have bothered them on some level but they’re aware that the monarchy has to adapt and if they have any self awareness at all, they know that some of their beliefs are outdated and we all as adults have to work at letting go of that type of thing.
I think the wildcard was William. I think he’s a spoiled turd who has never been appropriately curbed or brought to heel and he didn’t like any of the aforementioned qualities of Meghan OR that she made effortless connections OR that she seemed truly to enjoy the work OR that people seem drawn to her naturally. What Willie wants Willie gets and he’s getting his.
I think you are giving QE and Charles far too much credit. The BRF has proven time and again how utterly tone deaf they are on a myriad of things dating back to Diana’s death and right up to how they have dealt with Pedo Andy and Harry and Meghan. And Charles’ radio silence while Meghan was being attacked by the press shows how little he actually cared. Harry has basically eluded to the fact that both he and Meghan weren’t supported. Ans Meghan did as well in the Africa documentary interview. We know William is a jealous insecure spoiled brat. But he would not have been able to get away with the things he did if the Queen and Charles had stepped in. They chose not to. And that says it all.
I do think a huge part of this is William’s jealousy. Of their happy marriage, Harry’s maturity and professional successes, Meghan being a modern fit for the royal role.
He showed up, once, to meet with Grenfell survivors and promised big things. Big PR, oh isn’t he wonderful. He went back once, with Harry, three months later. Cared so much, he went twice in three months. Give him his halo now.
Two weeks later, Meghan’s Together cookbook launched. Which of them was truly spending time with the survivors, getting to know them, finding out what they needed, and making it happen? Visiting repeatedly without any PR photo ops?
Not only is he jealous of his little brother’s accomplishments and happiness? He’s jealous and angry Meghan showed up to work, and by showing up and getting things done? She made him look bad.
@NOTA – you’re absolutely right. Willnot was clearly seething with jealousy that suddenly Meghan and Harry were grabbing all the headlines and coming through with some truly amazing projects (I have the cookbook, the recipes are amazing!). Unintentionally, Harry and Meghan showed them up and now they’re paying for it. I also think Willnot is jealous as hell that Harry landed such an accomplished, intelligent, compassionate and beautiful wife, and that they are madly in love. I don’t think that petulant little prick loves anyone but himself.
He’s been jealous of Harry his whole life, from Harry’s easy-going manner to the fact Harry doesn’t have to be king. William has always showed up for PR, never done the work, but expects to get all the glory.
Harry does the work (Sentebale, Invictus Games), Meghan does the work (Together, SmartWorks) and get credit for it. William wanted them under his thumb, under his control, keeping them under KPs office staff who are pro-W&K.
The cardamom/chickpea/pistachio shortbreads are a new staple of mine.
I think William is also aggravated because he sincerely feels like Harry is monopolizing the attention and praise that he fully believes is his own due.
William has spent a life time not doing very much of substance and getting praised for it anyway. His middling accomplishments seem huge to him, and he wants people to congratulate him and show him the appropriate level of deference that HE feels is his due. This is how people in his immediate family and circle have always treated him, and he expects this to extend to the world at large.
But things don’t work like that in the real world outside of his small little bubble. He can’t stand the fact that people see and appreciate the work that Harry does. William fully believes that he does just as much work, if not more, and does not get a fraction of the credit. So he resorts to undercutting his brother to make himself feel better. And Harry, who is used to this, just lets it go to keep the peace in the family.
I’ll bet $10 that William tried it with Meghan as well, and Meghan just didn’t respond as he thought she would. I’m gonna write myself some fanfiction here, but I definitely think that William was snide and condescending and rude towards Meghan, and he fully expected her to feel hurt and embarrassed and suitably chastised, forgetting the fact that she’s a grown woman with a sense of self that doesn’t come from being the first born in an overwhelmingly inbred German family, but rather from actual accomplishments that she has worked for and that no one can take away from her.
I think your theory’s basically proven at this point, after everything that’s gone down since the wedding. The family made a big show of welcoming her (Charles at the wedding, the solo engagement with the Queen, and hell even William seemed civil (more than Kate) at first), and that essentially ended after a few months. I think the fact that the Sussexes has the biggest crowds of any Royal in Australia kicked things into overdrive and the royals tried to nip the popularity in the bud before the public got too comfortable with Meghan as a royal family member. Also the mystery senior royal member’s “degree wife” comment shows just what the royals as a whole were thinking and hoping for.
What’s a degree wife, Beach?
Lady D – in the UK one completes their degree in three years, and that by implication Prince Harry will be “done with” his wife within three years.
When I was watching everything going on around them, I said “Shit is going to get really real when Meghan becomes a mother.” I think that’s what made her realize how bullshit the whole situation was. Becoming a parent clarifies things in all kinds of new ways and the same ridiculous fuckery you might have been willing to tolerate yourself because it came with the territory, is revealed for how stupid and/or toxic it truly is.
There’s no amount of access, privilege, platforms, or wealth that would make it worthwhile to remain in a radioactive gilded cage and have my child grow up being treated that way.
@yup I agree. When my husband and I married our families started showing their asses BUT I became a mom very quickly after and my whole worldview changed. I set up boundaries so fast nobody saw the walls slamming down in front of them until they were closed out. I wanted to protect our kids from the toxic behavior that was allowed to go unchecked for decades on both sides. It has resulted in our overall ostracism from most of our extended family. But my kids aren’t fucked up so far, so I’m fine with it.
Yup, i completely agree. My husbands family is amazing for the most part but certain things with certain members were always a problem for me and I mentioned it and he used to just kind of shrug his shoulders, like it’s just that way. We can ignore it. Then i had my kids and I said oh heck no! I made clear certain things were not okay and I wasn’t standing for it. I saw how it impacted my husband and I wasn’t letting that happen to my kids. It was like his eyes opened for the same time and he agreed. The cycle had to end and he wasn’t allowing it either.
Now that the dust has settled I’m wondering what has really been won. Yes Meghan is gone, but so is Harry. I think that an unexpected complication (to some extent). Popularity? They’ll never be as popular. Ever. As disgusting as it was, Meghan was a good shield. Gone. H&M are still going to be doing charity work and this time they can do without anything standing in their way so I don’t know if W&K have escaped looking bad in comparison. I wonder what will happen when the children stop being enough to pacify the press. I see Dan Wooten has already dug into Charles a bit about flying privately to Davos. War of the Wales already?
I’m wondering if what they wanted was for Harry and Meghan to take a step back. Do fewer engagements, not take any of the praise and attention, stop doing big projects that make it clear that there are no big projects happening elsewhere, and just focus on fewer, lower-key engagements.
That seems incredibly possible.
That IS what they forced Harry and Meghan to do at first, judging by what’s been said in the last few weeks. Apparently it wasn’t enough to satisfy them.
Isn’t that what they did over the Christmas break? No engagements, no pictures, nothing. All holy hell broke loose after that. Now they are gone for good (I believe) and W&K are whining about how “hard it is” with them gone and now they have to pick up the slack. I can’t with these folks.
I think the intention absolutely was to force Meghan and Harry into a position where they felt like they had to set aside their own aspirations and sense of self for the sake of William. That is the dynamic that William has gotten used to. The people he keeps in his orbit are the ones that cater to his ego, such as Carole Middleton. He keeps the people who have the real power to challenge his self-styled sense of authority at arms length, aka Charles. Harry was sort of half in and half out, and once he got married and felt more comfortable challenging William, he was fully out. I think William expected that Harry was not serious about ever leaving the royal family, that he just harboured the notion as a pipe dream that couldn’t ever happen. We don’t know how William actually feels about all of this, because I doubt William himself knows how he feel about it.
I think Charles is next of the hit list. Kate and ma Middleton can not wait the next 30 years to make it to the throne. Charles will most likely out live Ma Middleton if he reaches the same age as his father, so Carole might not ever see Kate as queen. Now they have seen just how effective their hate campaign against harry and Meghan has been, this might start giving Carole ideas. All the press talks a few years ago about ‘skipping a generation’ most likely came from them. With Charles and the queen out of the way Ma Middleton will probably think she’ll get the run of Buckingham Palace.
They can’t just skip a generation! It is not legally possible – and I bet that no one in the political establishment wants to make it possible because that will literally undermine a key aspect of the entire institution. Because if this is seriously raised, then it’d open the question of abolishing the whole thing.
It is NEVER going to happen – unless Charles die before the Queen.
I don’t think they can skip a generation either, ArtHistorian. If nothing else, it endangers the questionable tax-free inheritance of private property. As long as it goes monarch-to-monarch there are no taxes. If Charles inherited and stepped aside? When Charles passes, William would have to pay huge taxes on the inheritance.
@arthistorian of course they ‘cant’ but that won’t stop ma Middleton from trying. I bet William, kate and the middletons didn’t think they would be able to push harry out of the ‘firm’ and they did, so anything is now possible in their eyes, especially as they now have a tried and tested formula to work with. All they need to do is push as many negative articles as they can whilst embiggen themselves, and hope they public believes what they read.
@February Pisces
I’ll try to say this as gently as possible: I think your imagination is running away with you at this point. At least William knows that he can’t skip a generation – and I very much doubt that he wants to given earlier statements.
Tin-foiling can be fun once in a while, but it has begun to run rampant on this site, which is starting to be annoying. Tin-foiling is not my thing so I guess it is time for me to bow out of Celebitchy.
@ArtHistorian. I do hope that you will continue on CB. I enjoy reading your posts and learn a great deal and appreciate your historical knowledge and perspective on matters. You and several other posters are a wealth of knowledge and add greatly to this site. Please stay.
@FebruaryPisces, I wish Carole Middleton WOULD try and take on Prince Charles! PC survived Diana’s death. No former airline hostess is going to take him down.
And what other people say is true. There’s no constitutional way that William could become king over Charles, unless Charles dies before his mother. And if that happens, I think we might see the end of the monarchy with QEII. William might be popular with the tabloid set but the establishment KNOWS him and what kind of man he is. I find it hard to believe that they’re waiting with bated breath until he and Keen Katie perch themselves on the throne.
The history of Great Britain is full of battles between heirs to the throne. Not every heir made it. William isn’t man enough to take out his father and I think they both know it.
@arthistorian I think you have taken what I said out of context. Ma Middleton has thrown Charles under the bus before. There were calls to ‘skip a generation’ from the press a few years ago, a campaign which in retrospect could have been orchestrated by Middleton PR, not to mention the stories of how they great grandparents they are to the children. I NOT SAYING IT WILL HAPPEN, but I’m saying it won’t stop her ATTEMPTING it. Did anyone think she and Kate would be able to get harry to leave? He was the most popular person in that family, and they managed to turn everyone against him. all this will do is give her IDEAS that it’s possible.
@arthistorian also my imagination is not running away with me. I didn’t “imagine” Harry leaving the royal family because he was pushed out by William, kate and the middletons, that actually happened for real. I am very well aware how how the line of succession works thank you.
Sorry one more thing. Diana, harry and Meghan WALKED (emphasis of the word walked) after they were relentless pushed by the press. Anyone of them is free to ‘walk’ themselves. Charles will never ‘walk’ no matter what, he will super glue his ass to the throne if he has to. He will never be ‘kicked out’ either for ‘skipped over’ Doesn’t mean he isn’t a target, if discrediting him elevates the W+K.
@February Pisces, I wouldn’t put it past Ma Midds to try it if she thought it would work, but I think she knows better than most people exactly how the royal/aristocratic pecking order goes. And Charles is on top. I think she is content with needling him and smearing his reputation in the press because that makes her daughter, the child of middle-class non-aristocratic people, look better than the royals. Not just any royal, but the son of a queen, the prince of wales and the person next in line to the throne.
Please reconsider, Art Historian, your posts are very informative and your observations make the commentary much more enjoyable. We need more voices to help keep perspective, not fewer (even in little things, like how many languages it’s necessary to learn as an art history major in Europe. That was fascinating). Of the wealth of information in these comments, you help make this site a richer place and are of great value here, please don’t go.
Sorry Guest 2.0, I inadvertently plagiarized you. When I tried to reword my comment to give you credit, it was too late. I’m not entirely sober so I’ll shut up.
How can the pathetic, intern-written survey encourage a nationwide conversation when anyone on the planet can take it, repeatedly.
@nota this survey is so general and vague. It’s mind blowing that Kate couldn’t even specify the country she wants to do this for. It doesn’t take much experience to think hmm this survey should only be available for Britain since that’s the country I’m focusing on.
The lack of attention she has on her own project are both really alarming and telling of who she is.
Hahaha! One of many good questions are
I also don’t get the idea that it’s going to show her what to focus on. One of the questions was “nature vs nurture?” What are you going to do with that? Make designer babies who have the right “nature”? Or the question about which age is most important for development when she has already told us this is an “early years,” birth to age 5 thing she’s doing. So what’s the point of that question?
I think that was deliberate so they can then turn around and say that it can’t be used to explain why they won’t release the results.
I’m calling the above scenario.
Would love to know what really happened. The Shipman piece from April last year suggested a plot to exile the Sussexes& there were articles in December about more royals needing to be fired, Andrew& the Sussexes needing to be separated from rest of the royals, public wanting the monarchy to be streamlined ASAP. Coupled with lack of support from the family especially with contrast to visible support for Andrew& ongoing press battles, did the Sussexes know that their position was becoming untenable& make moves to jump before they were pushed?
I always thought the smear campaign after the Australasia tour was really to put Meghan in her place& also to force friendlier relationships with the media but mutated beyond its initial purpose because of the toxic climate brought about following the Brexit& Trump votes& Meghan being in the crossfire of this latest culture war.
So I can believe that some in the palaces regret that things have come to this. Remember at the beginning of the year William saying he wanted all family involved in Earthshot initiative? Maybe that was plea to pull at least Harry back knowing that Canada discussions were happening in the background.
The Duchess has spent months doing a deep dive in to the early years for children
——————————————————————————————————————–
“Deep dive”?! Lol Katie Nicholls, you mean a face plant.
Wiliam looks like he’s been sucking on lemons and does not look like a man in his thirties.
I’d call it more of a belly flop.
Now that is funny 😆
Let’s evaluate the various parts of her deep dive.
Approach. Hasty decision of an overly ambitious project
Takeoff. Launch around same time as Sussex cookbook
Elevation. She is embiggened, so very elevated
Execution. Vague flawed survey
Entry. Bellyflop
lol
Kate looks like Skeletor in that top pic
Okay that IS body shaming.
Maybe, but we aren’t blind, and I find her extra weight loss very worrisome. I hope that it’s not an illness. I find Kate boring but basically inoffensive, and would never wish her Ill. I think she has been going through huge stress and hope that the stress is responsible for her weight loss and not illness.
@Giddy – you’re right, she’s clearly under a tremendous amount of stress. To me she looks not only exhausted but sad and I actually feel sorry for her. She’s door-matted for that prick of a husband for so long she looks like she’s lost her soul.
It happened to Diana too. I think, similar to anoerexics, both feel/felt like their weight is one of the only personal aspects of their lives under their control.
@Guest with Cat, I must say I agree with you. I believe that after the first couple of months and then “proven” with the birth of Archie the press began to realize that Harry was the one actually driving the PR bus. The RRs and RRRs could not launch a sustained negative attack on a blood member of the BRF so they decided to transfer all ammunition to Meghan to get back at Harry.
ETA: Do not forget the Piers Morgan’s attacks on Meghan are a personal vendetta as he has said so on many occasions in front of TV cameras and in the written press.
“Kate looks like Skeletor in that top pic”
How disgusting to be told you look like the former governor and current junior US Senator from Florida. GOOGLE IT!
Lol!
That’s just mean. Sadface.
I always thought Kate adored Harry, so I think she really is sad. But I also think she is better Suited (pun) to being royal than Meghan. What American woman these days would want to work in that family? You are so tied down with no personal freedom.
Kate may have appreciated Harry acting like a gentleman, as he does with everyone, in opposition to William’s dismissive treatment of her.
Meghan is a good fit with modern royals. Other royal married-ins have the freedom to accomplish whatever they want. See Maxima, Mary, Letizia, Daniel, Charlene with her swimming foundation. It is only the BRF that has a problem with accomplished married-ins.
I think you hit the nail on the head here Nota! Maxima, Letizia and Mary have all worked with and spoken at the UN but none of the British royal women do. Mary has her own foundation which allows her to focus on issues that are dear to her, none of the British royal women do, they are aligned with their husbands. The BRF has problems with many things and now the world is aware of it.
This! Meghan would’ve been perfect if the BRF was actually interested in becoming modern. They’re not. I’m sure they were fine with Meghan on a surface level because they were then able to say “Yup we’re diverse and modern SEE??!?!1!1!” But they didn’t want her ideas, her input, her anything. I think they wanted the diverse look without the diverse actuality.
If William had been a better man, imagine what a future Queen Consort there could have been in Jecca Craig? Intelligent, well-spoken, dedicated, no nonsense.
Diana was trying to do more like the other European royals but they didn’t like it. Sophie could easily do the same, but she doesn’t go too far because she’s trying to “know her place” and wants the Queen on her food side. Meghan went ahead and did it and they drove her out. It’s pretty sad that it seems the only acceptable version of womanhood for the BRF is the silent mannequin.
I think that the BRF have problems with accomplished married-ins because they aren’t very accomplished themselves, they kinda know it but they are so emotionally stunted as human beings that petty jealousies and overblown egos rule the roost.
@ArtHistorian, a lot of their behaviour is because of the fact that they are really insular and ensconced in their own little bubble. They do not mingle with anyone outside of their little circles at all, and what’s worse is that they don’t care to. Very few of the royals or even the aristocrats have any type of intellectual curiosity beyond their own narrow interests. The ones who do are scoffed at for wanting to do something different from the rest of the lemmings in their crowd.
I think Megan adjusted just fine, and the work she did is a testament to that…I think it’s the BRF that didn’t like how well she was working, and the treatment which they gave her and allowed the media to give her was very telling.
I also don’t think American women are by definition unruly people who can’t exist within a system. On the contrary, it’s a country where “rules” are still in effect where race and class are concerned and as a mixed race person she’s had to navigate more rules than you can shake a stick at. I think she knew exactly what to do (and not in a negative way either), and that’s why the BRF didn’t like her. She’s got their number and they didn’t think it was possible. Instead of realizing how well that could work, they freaked out and acted like jackasses.
I agree HK9
Kate may be better suited to being in the British royal family, but other royal families do seem to actually appreciate the hard work of their family members. I’d rather NOT be suited to the life Kate is living.
But Countess Sophie and Princess Anne work circles around Kate. So not working hard on duties seems to suit William more so than the RF.
William and Kate have been so lacking over these years, despite the press buildup.
Sophie and Anne do work more and can give proper speeches, with Sophie even focusing on women’s issues, but the media doesn’t cover them as much so they don’t get the same flack. Meghan did get media attention and it made the comparison to how much Kate is lacking in work ethic and ability quite obvious.
@mom, you have to become a handmaid as a female marrying in to the family. You lose your identity of who you are and your sole role is to support the male spouse. In the year 2020!
Yep. Be careful what you wish for. Once H&M go underground the press will turn on W&K (or Charles) because there’s always gotta be a fall guy. It’s still a ways off but I see it coming.
I really do think it will turn into a PR battle between Charles and William. And when that happens…WHOA. The s*it will REALLY hit the fan. And I think Charles will prove to be far more ruthless than William.
I think so, too. Charles WANTS to be King. He wants his place as #1. If William stands in the way or tries to mess with that in any way–Charles will squash that fly flat. Of that, I have no doubt. If Charles launched a full-court press against William – William won’t know what hit him. Coupled with the fact that William believes he’s smarter than he actually is — his pushback against Charles won’t be nearly as effective as he thinks. There will be only one winner in that fight, and even at 70+ Charles will be on top.
William and Charles have spent years sniping at each other through the press at this point. They are both pretty adept at it, they have plenty of fodder to use against each other. The question is how long that will sell for, and whether it’ll sell at all. If the press can’t get clicks or move papers with stories about these two, then what will they do to get their scoop?
At any rate, Charles is the Prince of Wales. He outranks William, and William knows this. He knows how it works in his family. He knows what the pecking order is, always has known, and he can rage and seethe and stamp his feet, but nothing is going to change the fact that Charles get top priority over William because he is the next monarch, and William isn’t. Who is William going to flex on in order to assert himself now that Harry is gone?
Maybe him and Andrew will go head to head. That could be fun, gossip wise. Me, I’m going to sit back and wait for Andrew’s reaction when Charles strips the daughters of their HRH. I can see Andrew physically attacking Charles when that happens.
I’m impressed with her ability to squat while wearing heels (photo in nusery)
I’m impressed if you’re able to squat with your heels on the floor! I don’t wear heels ever but I don’t squat with my heels on the floor unless I’m making a concerted effort.
The media is trying to make fetch happen with these two. They are blander than oatmeal and wheat toast. The Canadian press is really going to reap the benefits of the Sussexes presence.
Can you elaborate on your point about the Canadian press?
The Sussexes no longer have to cooperate with the Royal Rota so the Canadian press will likely get first dibs and exclusive photos of any projects the Sussexes unveil.
We Canadians are more in the mood to protect them than make money off them. I’m in North Vancouver, BC (not on the island) and we are not getting endless stories about them at all. We are getting some stories about the rudeness, the invasive and some downright dangerous behaviour of men lurking in neighbourhood trees, bushes and the like.
That’s good to hear Shirleygailgal – I suspected as much. My hope is that those individuals eventually get the message that they are not wanted here and they leave. It must be so unsettling for people out for a hike to see these guys lurking around. So creepy.
Lordddddddd if I saw a creeper with a camera hiding in a bush or tree on my street I’d call the cops 😂
I live in Victoria and the only press they’ve had here is a guy who refused to ferry a tabloid photographer on his boat close enough to the house where they’re staying that he could get some photos. He could have made big money but his conscience wouldn’t let him do it. Another couple who live near where M&H are staying were filmed giving another photographer total sh*t for stalking them. The paps are definitely not welcome here.
Dont see anything about them in our Canadian press except surveys and petitions saying heck no we dont want to pay for their security
@Sass if I saw a creeper with a camera hiding in a bush or tree on my street I’d mace them! With bear spray grade strength!
When it gets warmer, you can turn the hose on them.
Oh, enough about the security trolling! They already said they do not want public funds. That means Canadian too! FFS.
Wills/Kate/Carole thought they had the upper hand by their constant dribble of leaks to the press and their stupid budget flight stunt. It was a way to keep the narrative about the Sussexes from getting too glowing. I doubt they EVER thought that Harry would up and leave the country on his terms (not an exile handed down by Wills) and they were blindsided by it. That is why they are reeling. Kate has prostrated herself to be a Royal and it must be a kick in the stomach for her to realize that Meghan waltzed in, saw the man behind the curtain and said, nope, this sucks, I’m out.
I predict some major acting up by Wills. Harassing the Sussexes kept him entertained for the past few years, but his simmering anger will still need an outlet.
The really stupid thing about it all is…there was no need for any of this. If Carole Middleton had a hand in anything, then that’s just f-cking bizarre. She knows how it works in the RF. She knows that for all of Meghan and Harry’s popularity, they can never be a conceivable threat to William and especially Kate’s position as future monarchs. The most they could do is make W&K look bad for a few years, but these people have always played the long game. Kate got exactly what she wanted, which was to be queen, and so did Carole, and no one can take that away from them no matter how unpopular Kate and William get. That’s just not how the RF works. So if the rumours are true and Carole was leaking to the press, the only motivation she could have had was either a sense of loyalty to William, or just flat out spite against Meghan because she was making Kate look bad, and that is just so incredibly petty it beggar’s belief.
Oh goodness, I have been reading every possible variation on the Cambridge’s reaction to Sussexit from anxiety to despondency to elation. I was trying to find again the article I read last night about how Kate and William are relieved to have the Sussexes gone because Kate is hurt. When she and William went to visit Archie for the first time, supposedly as they were leaving, but still within earshot, Meghan said bitterly “I’m not taking advice from HER.”
IF that account is true, well show me any woman post partum who hasn’t said something bitchy to or about their visitors. She would be a rare saintly person indeed.
My mother-in-law and I went at it pretty intensely while she was visiting to help with the baby, but she had the sense to give me a pass on all of it, having had 3 kids of her own and post partum depression with each. Which is why I miss her and grieve her so much since she passed last spring. She and I had our scraps, but we understood each other as women and mutually respected our struggles.
I also had my first child at 38 and after enduring a move while pregnant. I needed people to cut me a LOT of slack. Meghan was living under a flight path of an airport. I was living near a noisy road. I know what I endured and I can’t imagine how strong Meghan is to put up with everything I did plus intensely focused hatred and criticism.
I wanted to find that article again so that I could give a proper reference to it. But I got distracted by finding a Yahoo News article from January 20 describing how Piers Morgan’s cohost Susanna Reid slammed him for going on and on about the Sussexes. She said “Why do you keep having a go at him?” She went on to say that Harry did what Piers said he should do, so Piers needs to just shut it and let go. Piers said he was within his rights to complain because Harry made that final speech complaining. His cohost got in one final burn to that remark. She put Piers in his place very well! Finally!
Now if only we could turn this formidable woman loose on all the “friends” and “insiders” who keep trying to spill stale tea about what the Royal Leftovers think and feel and wail and rant about Sussexit.
Whatever the Royal Leftovers think or feel, my opinion is that they should stew in it. They contributed to the exit, so they should “get on with it” as everyone was fond of saying of Meghan and Harry as they drowned in a sea of hate when they were at their most vulnerable.
And if they truly are elated, fine, soar on the energy from their joy and go and do some actual good in the world. I won’t be holding my breath, though.
You REALLY think Meghan would say something like that “I’m not taking HER advice!” within EARSHOT of someone who could be listening. Um, no. Fan fiction. That’s the kind of thing you might say behind closed doors, not where people can hear. That’s like some idiot story I read that had Meghan laying on the couch wailing “no one likes me!” in the palace.
I said before, Will’s a complete idiot, and so is the RF, because the Sussexes are now completely out of their control. When they are working, raising money, seeing projects through, and the Cambridges are twiddling their thumbs, how’s it going to look for the RF? Where’s Will’s Invictus Games? Sentebale? Where’s Kate’s together cookbook (if she were in any way a strategic thinker, she would have come out with a chutney cookbook YEARS ago)? Smartworks collection? What must burn the Cambridges is that the Sussex projects are the kind that the Cambridges should have dome themselves, especially as the FFK and FFQC. Just goes to show that assigning rank based on birth order makes no sense in the 21st century
No, that’s a completely innocent mistake, especially in the harassed light of new motherhood. Guest with Cat is totally right that that’s plausible that it happened.
I don’t think that it’s anything significant in all this happening, though.
@LANNE and @Notasugarhere,
I’m viewing this site on a cell phone so I can’t be certain if your comments are directed at me, but just to clarify, I put “IF” in all caps to indicate I can’t vouch for the veracity of this story. I was addressing the conditional situation that IF, by some miracle it were true, whodafook cares? That would have happened in the time frame of 2-3 weeks post partum. IF this really happened, as the parents of three children themselves, Kate and William are massive jerks for carrying the tale out of the house. Anyone with a modicum of parental experience would have shrugged it off.
The emotional swings from hormone fluctuations as well as the exhaustion are real and why parental leave is such an important need. In the USA it is really inadequate for too many parents. Among poor women there are far too many penalties for taking the paltry leave they might have available.
In all of the rush to judgement against the Sussexes, the whole issue of post partum recovery and how Meghan was treated during hers has been swept aside.
Meghan herself alludes to her difficulty but you could tell even in her talk with Tom Bradby she was afraid to go into it because she knew she was facing the judgement and potential wrath of a culture that does not welcome the open discussion of personal difficulty. Just the very little bit that Meghan and Harry have tried to discuss has been viciously dismissed as “whinging” and complaining.
From the moment Meghan entered the royal arena, she has gone through one highly stressful event to another. Weddings alone are massively stressful. On top of that, her own father played shenanigans with hers. She quickly became pregnant while juggling a major tour and launching charitable endeavors.
IF…IF at any time she did get a bit abrupt with anyone in the Royal family, they are absolute schmucks for not brushing it off and accepting any apologies or just moving right along. Really, they’d be the ones guilty of whinging for nursing a grudge over such a thing and worse, leaking it outside of the immediate family.
At issue is not whether Meghan was perfect or not. At issue is the fact family and the public can’t acknowledge the pressure and the strain and would expect and demand perfection and destroy a person for not delivering on it. And this all goes back to the unreasonable expectations and demands placed on women of color when they dare to enter areas that have been closed to them.
Not anything about about William’s infidelity being the problem in Kate’s life?
Looks like you found yet another lie-filled hate article, intended to blame all of Kate’s unhappiness on Meghan. Just like tiara gate. Just like ‘Meghan makes Kate cry’. Your choice to believe that drivel.
Facts.
My dear, I would take that with a boulder of salt. Megan’s not stupid.
I think it’s just more propaganda to paint Meghan as an ‘evil bitch’ and Kate as the ‘poor innocent victim’. I doubt kate has even bothered to visit Archie. I wouldn’t blame Meghan for calling Kate names whatsoever, given what she’s put her through.
They are still trying to feel out the public and get the story straight. They are not sure whether to play this from the confidence booster angle or the reeling angle which places blame squarely on the Sussexes for leaving things in disarray.
Oh that’s an interesting point. Despite the loudness of trash like Piers Morgan, there have been lots of articles (especially from international media) criticizing the UK and the monarchy. Perhaps the royals weren’t expecting the international/global backlash to be so strong.
@Beach I think it was Kerwood who pointed out in another thread that that media’s deliberate dig at Meghan would never go unchecked in the US. So for every Fox News there is MSNBC. Somehow the balance is only coming from the international media and not from within the U.K. it seems the media has slowly shifted to the Centre and is alarmingly taking a more neutral stance.
The checks are coming from WOC in media in the UK, but they’re often paired against traditional, white, racist RRs on the panel. Those women have banded together with a support letter for Meghan, and keep pointing out the racism of the people sitting next to them on the interview stage.
It will be very interesting to see will and Kate’s media strategy now that Meghan and Harry are going to be working more with an international media. Will and Kate will have to decide if they want to play to the British media with continued stunt-queening, racist crap, bullying, and general embiggening of Kate while trashing Meghan, or if they want to try to play in the same international media where H and M are playing with pieces that are less insanely hateful and more “we miss our brother and sister in law!” It will be interesting to see if there’s an obvious difference between the leaks and spin they give to U.K. tabloid and international media. I think they’ll try to play both and will come off looking completely hypocritical with many contradictory stories.
That’s a really good question. With Meghan and Harry out of the picture, who can they reliably use to make themselves look better? So much of their recent popularity has been fuelled by the blatant racism of their fans. These are the people the RF has chosen to cater to in Britain. But without the convenient non-white person to demonize, what will they do? Who will they turn to?
There is no one to blame, no one to shame, now that Meghan the Black Woman from America has left the building. And Harry went to be with his new family. Good for them. They will do so much better outside the cesspool UK environment. I don’t know why all the bad press started – like what did she DO besides work and try to fit in? I’m sure there was cr*p from both sides but gawd they had a double standard between what was written about both women — doing the same thing in photos. It was so obviously a smear. Byyyyye. I’d leave too.
@Khaveman, that is a very good question. What did Meghan do? From where I stood, she didn’t wear pantyhose and didn’t walk behind Harry. She wore Givenchy and dressed too expensively. She wore casual clothes and dressed too cheap. She wore stacking rings. She painted her nails in colors. She smiled too much, so therefore she was smug. She hugged people and that is not what a British Royal woman not named Catherine is supposed to do. She managed to always be looking into cameras somehow, so that means she was a fake, an actress. That made her unsuitable for the royal life.
But wait, there’s more! She dared to actually work! She harrassed her poor staff by sending out emails in the morning. How horribly American of her! She was bossy! And her dear father, who knows her best, maintains to this very day that she manages to be pushy in everything she does.
Sarcastic rant over.
I can’t see how anything she did was enough to earn her such focused hatred and contempt.
I think it was what she is: divorced, American, and black. Also a woman who arrived with an established record of championing women’s causes and a stated determination to keep doing so. I still don’t think that in itself played badly to real British people. She had admirers. I think she still does. But it has become almost impossible to hear them and see them in a sea of social media and a media world dominated by corrupt British tabloid press influence.
Harry amped it up with his war on the corrupt royal reporters. HE is the one who didn’t seem to know his place by their way of looking at it.
And the British tabloid press were going to put him in it by putting up a sustained attack on his wife. An attack for which there is ample evidence the other members of the Royal family and their court facilitated with leaks and speaking surreptitiously to contacts among the royal reporters.
@Guest with Cat, I must say I agree with you. I believe that after the first couple of months and then “proven” with the birth of Archie the press began to realize that Harry was the one actually driving the PR bus. The RRs and RRRs could not launch a sustained negative attack on a blood member of the BRF so they decided to transfer all stockpiled ammunition to Meghan to get back at Harry.
ETA: Do not forget the Piers Morgan’s attacks on Meghan are a personal vendetta as he has said so on many occasions in front of TV cameras and in the written press. What I am saying is that you cannot throw Piers Morgan on the same pile with the RRs and RRRs as Piers is in a class of his own.
It seems her audacity to exist at all was the breaking point for the British press.
I must disagree. With the exception of Piers Morgan, I think the RRs and RRRS of the tabloid press saw a mark that would generate clicks for revenue and sell newspapers. Harry could have married a young Jessica Simpson, a young Amal Clooney, a young Angelina Jolie or a young Elizabeth Taylor and it would have been the exact same thing.
I agree. Some royal reporter had a great distaste for Meghan from the start. Some openly converse with or have been caught retweeting Meghan hate trolls. Some were Cressida, Chelsy stans, some might have had a crush on Harry, some blamed Meghan for Harry not being friendly anymore and I also think some are politically conservative so don’t agree with a ‘liberal’ in the royal family. Even the female reporters were seen liking Piers’ misogynistic tweets about Meghan. I think it was personal for some.
@Royalblue I’ve just seen an article saying that the Queen had no idea of Meghan’s unhappiness& is bewildered by Harry& Meghan stepping back so I think you are right that the BRF are testing out narratives.
I think their problem was that she worked – too much – and, for them, that was not fitting in. They expected her to know her place, and that was not to take the spotlight off of the incumbent kings and queens.
She did the awful terrible thing of being a non-white woman who was too good at something. That can’t happen in a country where a sizeable portion of the population believes on some level that white people are superior, that the British Empire did the world a favour by subjugating those ugly brown savages. This is a country that set in motion the events that led to our modern day conceptions of race and racism and they don’t even have the decency to look themselves in the mirror and remotely entertain the notion of accepting their sh-tty behaviour. It’s more insulting to the average white British person to even hint that they MIGHT be racist than it is to actually BE racist.
In many ways, the Sussexes leaving is the ultimate burn to the Royal Family. This is supposedly the highest honor in the UK, the biggest stage, the most rarefied and aspirational setting, and the Sussexes are like, “Bye bitches! You suck! Shove your protocol up your asses.” The world doesn’t revere the UK royal family the way they revere themselves.
Apparently, they’re not even paid a lot of attention in their own country. Every time discussion about the royal family comes up, there’s always that one British person who chimes in to “helpfully” remind everyone that people in Britain don’t actually care that much about the RF, that it’s only the Americans who have an outsize fascination with the monarchy and the gossip that results from their existence. It’s really funny to see this, because the last I checked, it wasn’t the Americans who were footing their tax dollars to sustain a lifestyle of unimaginable splendor for a family of entirely mediocre individuals. Why do you continue to pay for a bunch of people you don’t gaf about is my question. Why write about them in the tabloids? Why read about their exploits? The fact that people have to stress so very much that they DONT CARE ABOUT THE ROYALS THANK YOU, on articles that are talking about the very people they don’t care about is quite enlightening tbh.
“Couple” ? I mean don’t forget Rose the church and workout and dinner companion -you meant *Trio right?;)
I believe the term is throuple
I’ve been reading old articles from 1999 up to now to see if there is a pattern with William having issues with other royals and he has had several. The one through line in these articles is that the OTHER Royal who he is having an issue with is always written up as the bad guy and William as the offended one and golden savior who was wronged.
He has had public issues with
Sophie: during the engagement interview ,he was said to be enraged by the way Sophie responded to a question of the comparison to Diana.
Sophie and Edward ,Wedding photos. William refused to smile in the group wedding photo, instead he pouted , despite being asked to several times, finally photog gave up and said he would photoshop a smiling William into the wedding photo later, which is exactly what the photog did. Williams smile was photoshopped in.
Other publicly written about William’s Rage and issues at royals over the years.
Prince Charles…numerous articles how things not good with dad. It was even reported that he wouldn’t let Charles see George much during the first few years George. Charles was barely given access , while Carole had plenty.
William has had Issues with Beatrice and Eugenie , Mike Tindall, Harry, Meghan, Prince Edward, over the years according to reports. The one constant is William being mad at someone.
Thank you for bringing this up. For years we got stories about petulant William, his temper, his selfishness, how he hated his royal role. So much has been covered up trying to re-make him as the Golden Boy.
He and Kate have both been whitewashed to be the perfect English couple and the saviors of the monarchy. I think they’re both pissed that they will never have the same private, privileged life that H&M and the aristos have. But they chose this so they get what they deserve.
Did not Diana once say “Harry is not the one with a problem(s)….William is”?
@Maxiq. How sad. I stopped paying attention to the Royals after Diana died. I had no idea that William was acting out like this for years. He and Harry publicly acknowledged how William urged Harry to seek help for his mental health issues. Did nobody recognize that William may have worse issues?
He and Kate both look miserable and Kate looks physically unwell. In my opinion nothing can excuse the parts they played in the persecution of Harry and Meghan. Nothing can excuse the way they are to each other. But when I put my anger aside, as a human being, I’d like to see everyone who needs counseling get it. These two have access and can afford it. I just wonder if their highly public roles and delicate privacy concerns would preclude them from getting any help they need.
But my sympathy goes only so far for these two, because they both reveled in their privilege too much and have used it to beat other people down. They both bought into the Toff garbage in every way, for good and for ill.
Harry and Meghan are showing that is not the only path and that others can be forged. It would be harder for William and Kate to break free, but with determination could it be possible? Do they really want to spend the rest of their lives being owned by the taxpayers and the media?
It would be ironic if it ends up being a black woman who frees white people from indentured servitude.
@MaxiQ, Excellent theory with research to back it up!
(deep curtsey to you ma’am)
I also remember stories about William shutting down Pippa’s “career” and being mad about the work she was trying to do and the attention she was getting.
Well, for starters, Kate “The Groveling Ass Kisser” Nicholl literally wrote the book(s) on William and Kate, including the Hallmark Hall of Fame titled “William & Kate: The making of a Royal Romance,” (snore) and “Kate: The Future Queen.” I rest my case.
Therefore, she has been, and still is, being deployed as a de facto spokesperson for these two clueless goofballs. So to keep her publishing gravy train going, she’s not going to bother to report objectively or seek opposing comment from the other side. So I don’t consider Nicholl as a journalist. She’s a writer with a particular point of view that has been bought and paid for by the Cambridges. Full stop.
She’s Kitty Kelley, but without the grammar and spelling. I mean, if you’ve actually read any of her pieces on VF.com, they are riven with amateur mistakes and spelling errors. That tells me that VF doesn’t give a shit about quality, just Nicholl’s apparent all-access pass in service of her one true client: The Cambridges.
But enough about Nicholl’s poor writing skills and unprofessionalism, I digress. For all the public comment about “my family,” and “reeling,” and “respect for each other,” yak, yak, yak, there is a shit ton of bitterness behind the scenes. Like, if we’re talking in natural disaster analogies, this is on the scale of Pompeii or Krakatoa. This is a 9.5 earthquake and although the true tsunami that always occurs afterward hasn’t quite gained strength – yet – that day is coming.
No matter what Meghan did or did not do, the plain truth of the matter is that she was never going to be accepted by William. And quite honestly, the press in Britain knows that, was purposely clued into that and took their clues, cues and anonymous tips and leads from House Cambridge. That is correct. Kensington Palace is 100 percent the source of most of the negative stories that were spoon fed to a rabid British press.
Turning now to the brothers, both of whom were raised in The Game, Harry knew from the outset that his brother was playing the press hard against Meghan. I mean, siblings know each other, in many ways better than their parents. Harry also knew how to read the situation on a personal level, that maybe even others in the family or the courtiers missed, the dark narrative and passive-aggressive slights that were beginning to emerge from Camp Cambridge. As a result, there were more than a few dust ups over what he, as a dyed in the wool member of the Establishment, could spot from a hundred miles away. Harry watched, frustrated and staggered, that his own brother could be such a bastard.
It has been said that William is cut from the same cloth as his grandfather Philip. I don’t that that’s true. I think he’s more similar to George V. And, his whole worldview has been utterly distorted by his upbringing. He is Little Lord Fauntleroy, but without the charm.
Here’s the thing: Life is long. And some of the decisions we make are fixable, and then we move on. This was not that kind of decision. This was the kind of life-altering decision that will impact all of the players for the rest of their lives. And the bald truth is that this did not come from the Queen. It did not originate from Charles – who has frankly been admirably supportive.
William pulled the lever.
And no matter what happens from here on out, he cast the die and he will never sleep another peaceful night.
Life is long. I’ve had that thought in my head for a long time now. We both know William has done a very foolish thing by leaving his fingerprints all over this thing. He hasn’t thought about how he will be perceived in the long run and how he will be on the wrong side of the issue. I for one, will be there with my popcorn when these chickens come home to roost.
“That tells me that VF doesn’t give a shit about quality”
Vanity Fair went to shit when Graydon Carter left very shortly after Si Newhouse, Sr. died.
I really don’t like this line of thought. It feels like it’s some type of backlash over the fact that VF hired a woman of colour as an editor-in-chief. I’m a WOC and I’m quite happy that they’ve been doing something different and trying to extend opportunities to people that might not have gotten them under the old establishment. People are welcome to think nostalgically of the content under Graydon Carter, but all of it was about white people and white perspectives most of the time. Katie Nicholls is arguably right up their alley, and I’ve suspected that she’s kept on as a columnist because they’re trying to retain at least some of their former bland white readership and they know that the Cambridges attract the same types of readers that all of their infinitely many articles about the endless Kennedy drama did.
@A,I just think the quality of writing and reporting has gone down. I was excited about the new editor, but don’t like what she’s done with it. Also she hadn’t moved the needle that much. There have been a few good stories like the one on Silicon Valley sexism and dude bro culture, but the Royal reporting sucks, and so any things are just so off key.That Beto O’Rourke cover really damaged him and his campaign before it took off, and now a lightweight like Buttigieg can use his talking points. To be generous, the magazine and new editor are still finding its footing but it’s not acceptable to use reporters like Katie Nicholl who peddle in unchecked facts and outright falsehoods. Gender neutral baby, remember that? I had a subscription but just lost interest. Even their twitter feeds are dead with no engagement.
@A
Listen up: I’m also a woman of color. I was not making any reference whatsoever to Radhika Jones. So just stop right there.
What I was specifically referring to is Kate Nicholl’s substandard writing skills and proclivity towards biased, if not racist, reporting on Meghan Markle, while at the same time exaggerating and embiggening Kate Middleton’s bland mediocrity.
That said, if Vanity Fair has gone down hill, it’s still Jones’s responsibility to right the listing ship, I don’t care what color she is. Don’t make this about something it’s not.
I didn’t know what changes happened, but, yeah, Vanity Fair’s quality has gone down dramatically. I quit them after the Hillary comments and recently one of their writer’s, K. Austin Collins, had his twitter comments on Blue Ivy’s looks and I was glad I no longer have a subscription. As soon as something says writer Katie Nicholl, I don’t bother reading.
@anon, my comment wasn’t directed towards you. It was directed towards @BayTampaBay, and many others here and elsewhere who, again, ruminate nostalgically for Graydon Carter. I read your comment, but that’s not what I was addressing here. I’m well aware that you’re only talking about Katie Nicholl.
I’m not sure whether this was your intention or not, but the tone in your comment wasn’t called for, especially considering I wasn’t addressing you in the first place. “Don’t make this about something it’s not” is a rather ironic thing to say, considering I wasn’t addressing your comment in this particular subthread. But you definitely made what I said something it was not, which is a reflection of you and your opinion on Katie Nicholl and VF.
@others, Vanity Fair is changing because print media has declined dramatically, and magazines and other outlets have had to adapt to a digital sphere. To give one example, covers have stopped mattering as much as they used to because if your magazine is digital, it doesn’t have a cover in the first place. Everyone is free to hold the opinion they want to hold about the quality of the magazine in its present form. However, I do find myself raising an eyebrow when people say the quality of the magazine has gone down at right around the time it became more inclusive and more of a digital platform. Especially considering Graydon Carter himself allowed for the publication of plenty of schlock. Like I said, you’re allowed to think what you wish about the content. But something perhaps not being to your taste doesn’t make that thing bad or lesser in quality.
@anon. Wow…very insightful. I totally agree…life is long and at some point, karma kicks in and we have to answer for the shit we do to others. What’s that expression, “revenge is a dish best served cold.” William will definitely get his in the end.
I don’t know that it will come in some grand denouement. I think, instead, it will be the steady drip, drip, dripping of a faucet that you hear in the middle of the night. You try to turn it off, and yet it keeps dripping, keeping you awake.
This is a metaphor, of course. A kind of Sartrean nightmare where “The Devil” is played by an ever-pleasant courtier.
And that’s why it amazes me that — according to that Sun article released while Harry was still in the air headed to Canada— they’ve all decided to make up and play nice after a few conference calls with Meghan and a couple of sit downs with Harry right before he left. All this —making up before Harry left— was supposedly instigated by William the Good. I’m just not buying it. Some of the S*** William pulled would be hard to let go of —in my opinion— especially when you are in still the process of jettisoning the life you thought you had. Harry said, “that should tell you how hard it’s been, that I’m giving up everything I have ever known.” I just can’t see William getting such an easy pass from Harry and Meghan if William truly was a strong player in what went down.
I don’t think The Sun is a reliable source.
Harry was also leaving while trying to not burn any bridges. If he came out with any real hints it would be blood in the water for the tabloids and Harry just wanted them to go away.
I was just pointing out that it was a Wooten article in the Sun and many of us think KP leaks to Wooten. It’s not that I believe the article, only that SOMEONE wanted to get the “we kissed and made up” story out PDQ.
Wootton has been directly linked to KP and he’s still putting out stories but now they are critical of Charles. William is playing a dangerous game if he thinks Charles will take these attacks quietly.
@hudson, I think that it’s much more insightful to look at the person writing a given article, regardless of the outlet the article is published in. Most journalists whose beat is the royals tend to have well-established members of the RF that they favour, often because these members grant them access. In return, these journalists commit to providing as much favourable coverage for these royals as they can. But when you know what to look for, then you can generally discern the underlying facts.
In this instance, Dan Wootton has some explicit links to the staff at KP, specifically someone on William’s communications team. He also has a history of writing favourable coverage about the Cambridges, usually by trying to throw the Sussexes under the bus as has been the case in the last couple of years.
I don’t understand the William and Philip comparison. Philip was a d-ckhead in many ways. But he has always been forthright, almost to a fault, when it comes to dealing with his family. And he has experience with being an unwelcome outsider who was not the first choice of husband for QEII by the people in the palace. There’s a lot to say about Philip, but he’s always owned who he is, and he pissed off a lot of people who expected him to stay in his place and keep quiet.
I think the comparison to George V is apt. But George V always put the monarchy first. He was forceful and dictatorial, but it was not in service of his own ego, it was to advance what he thought was the best for the monarchy. I don’t think William actually cares about the monarchy beyond what it does for him. It gives him a realm to control, it validates his bad behaviour, and gives him a sense of power. It’s a place where he can exercise his immense pettiness and cruelty without any consequences for his bad behaviour. He is George V but in reverse. George V used his ego to do what was best for the monarchy, even if he had to be an a–hole in the process. William uses his position in the monarchy to justify serving his own ego and arrogance. It’s about him, always. And that’s what’s landed him in this situation of his own making.
I have a pet peeve about the Diana ring. I don’t know if it hasn’t been sized to Kate’s finger well enough or the stone is so big and weighty but it is always falling to the side instead of sitting in the middle. Seriously. Can they not fix this? If this was my ring it would drive me batty.
It could be that as she’s been loosing weight, her fingers are getting bonier and skinnier. But I agree, get it fixed, it’s distracting.
My hand caught fire a few months ago and I lost a lot of flesh between my ring and middle finger on my left hand. There is an actual indent on both fingers. I joke that it looks like a little thigh gap. I can’t keep a ring straight on my ring finger any more, it just falls sideways where the gap is.
Lady D, I’m glad you’re okay now.
Have you considered having the jeweler put beads on the inside of the ring on that side? Or you can buy your own silicone sizers/wraps to help hold it in place, if metal beads would made your scar painful.
Not to be rude Lady D, but for heaven’s sake tell us how it happened! Maybe it will save one of us. I hope it is not too painful.
I did a stupid thing of course. I (not thinking) laid an oven glove down on the stove, but put it on a burner that had just been shut off. When I lifted the glove a couple of seconds later, it burst into flames and the top half of the glove peeled backwards and flopped down on the back of my hand. It was one of those silicone heat proof gloves. I was watching flames dance 3-4 inches high on the back of my fingers while frantically wiping burning rubber off my hand. I actually had two little fires on my kitchen floor from the flung, still burning rubber.
Believe it or not, it was two days before I could see a doctor. I ended up at a wound care clinic where they used what they called silver, but looked like cloth on the burns. I had to get the bandages changed daily for 3 weeks, then every other day for two weeks, then twice in the last week. There is very little scarring on the back of my hand, it’s mostly between the fingers. There also wasn’t very much pain at all after the initial burn. It looked a lot worse than it felt. That silver cloth they used was amazing. I have to protect my hand from cold and heat, it will also burn easily in the sun now. It also cooked the tiny hairs on the back of my fingers forever. One hand looks a little fuzzy, the other looks shiny, like it was waxed.
Thanks for the suggestions, Nota. I’m going to go talk to my jeweler about it. I didn’t know about the silicone wraps.
I would have been very doubtful about accepting an engagement ring which came from a doomed and finally toxic marriage in the first place.
Yeah, that ring is cursed. Maybe it’s William’s subconscious (or overt) reminder that the wife better stay silent and turn a blind eye to her husband’s cheating, or she’ll be cast aside. At the very least, it’s a public relations stunt to engender good will from people who remember Diana. I don’t for a minute believe it was given to Kate in “honor” of Diana — if William wanted to honor his mother, he wouldn’t treat Kate the way he does.
I don’t believe in curses. I think the intention of giving the ring to Kate was a fairly straightforward way to demonstrate continuity and stability. Diana was immensely popular and people were gonna see the ring and the story and then make an emotional connection to it. People didn’t see it as a symbol of Charles and Diana’s failed marriage–they saw it as a symbol of Diana herself. Giving Kate the ring was supposed to create a sense of renewed hope, that in spite of everything Diana endured and how her life was cut short, her son was going to get a happy ending that she didn’t get for herself. He was gonna marry the woman he (presumably) loved, settle down with her, and continue the family line and become monarch.
It was a clever way for them to create a happy ending for Diana’s story with the RF so that the RF came out of it looking good, as well as use the good will people had for Diana’s memory to put William and Kate in a better light. I always saw it as something of a whole redemption arc for the royal family and a neat way to tie up any allegations that the RF felt negatively towards Diana’s legacy.
I’m not a full cynic, so I don’t think that William gave Kate this ring because he was only motivated by the PR. But he doesn’t strike me as someone who’s terribly imaginative or creative. He probably saw the ring as a family heirloom and thought it would be nice to give to Kate. I don’t think William thinks all that deeply about anything in his life, really. If he didn’t have access to this ring, he would have just picked up something from the jeweller, or had Kate choose her own ring like Diana did. What I wonder in all of this is what type of ring Kate would have chosen for herself or liked the best or if she even had a preference at all. Perhaps she didn’t either and they’re just really meant for each other because they’re both bland vanilla puddings.
We have no idea if Kate tried to be friendly towards Meghan in the beginning and it didn’t work out, through no fault of either of them. We actually have no idea if either she are William are responsible for leaks against Meghan. Imaginations working overtime.
@JODIEG. You’re right, we don’t know in any depth what exchanges transpired out of the public eye between Kate and Meghan. We can discuss gossip about what has been reported about and conjectured because this is a gossip site.
But in regard to the leaks, other commenters on this site as well as the Celebitchy site owners themselves have done a respectable job showing links and relationships between different courtiers and some royal family members themselves to various royal reporters and their leaks. At the very least, if the Royal family don’t like the leaks, then why do they not take action against them as they did for allegations that Kate wears wiglets and William and Kate had some sort of problem with Rose Hanbury.
We saw them wield that power to great effect in those two cases, so if they weren’t either indifferent to or complicit in the press attacks on Harry and Meghan, why did they not launch a similar attempt to address the press behavior. We know Charles and the Queen could have said something as well, given the obvious support for Andrew. Again…silence when it comes to Harry and Meghan who were were the target of such hatred there were threats against Meghan’s physical safety while she was pregnant. Somebody besides Harry himself could and should have done something to de escalate the hateful rhetoric for the sake of the actual health and safety of a pregnant Royal family member who is too new to have established any power or authority for herself, when it became clear Harry also was not able to stop the avalanche of hate.
They did NOTHING. But were all claws and teeth over wiglets and gossip and shutting down legitimate concerns over corruption and pedophilia scandals.
So I would respectfully argue that the discussions here are significantly more substantial than imaginations working overtime.
We do if we account for the pattern of known behaviour when it comes to the royal family and how they disseminate information to the larger public. People think this stuff is straight forward when it isn’t. People assume that it’s a conspiracy theory when the audience makes connections, but plenty of former royal reporters and biographers have spoken about how these channels of communications between the royals and the press actually works. It’s all done with the intention of affording the royals plausible deniability, so nothing ever seems like it’s concrete proof, even though it is and the ultimate intention is to construct a favourable narrative. You have to learn how to read these things over time.
Yawn, Will got what he wanted. No one is reeling or regretting.
Dull! DULL?! Shame on you! These two are the most interesting of the bunch anytime William tries to touch Kate in public. 😂
Ha!!
So I’m guessing that the era of normal Bill and Cathy cosplaying their utter and complete middle class-ness is officially over? Because middle class folks don’t get to leak unrelentingly to the media about family troubles that they themselves have caused and continue to amplify with said leaking…….
Oh, you haven’t heard? Middle class people TOTALLY hop into the beds of women who are not their wives during their hunting weekend get togethers at the sprawling 42 bedroom country estate they own, and then use the threat of legal action to shut down any reports about this subject from appearing in the press. I’m fairly middle class and I did this just last week. It’s so normal and ordinary and I find it really relatable! wink.
@Greendress black/mixed- race people can suffer from anti blackness too- see misogynoir. And just because someone is a POC doesn’t mean they are an ally.
You seem to be parroting lines from tabloids to show that Meghan isn’t quite a victim but examples have been provided of other royals doing exact things that Meghan has been criticised for without the vitriol so I think it’s fair to say that there HAS been prejudice in how she’s been treated.
@Baytampabay says that people don’t care what Charles etc are up to and that it’s click bait but where people have more vitriol for Meghan than we’ve seen for Andrew then something is seriously wrong. There are some things she might have done differently& think she’s largely been punished for decisions that might have been because of Harry’s hatred of the press, but she hasn’t actually had a true scandal. So what explains fact she’s royal with a dedicated hate group& tag & press hostility? As I said above she only had 2 month press honeymoon.
I don’t think it’s just racism, I think it’s xenophobia (a big issue which has helped with Brexit), sexism, misogyny, classism& frankly fact they think she is left leaning has also played a part. If they thought she was politically conservative the right wing media may not have been quite as vile to her. I’ve seen conservative politicians who are usually pro monarchy talk about Meghan in a way I know they never would about another royal. Also her own relatives attacking her isn’t a good look.
Plus as a Brit myself- I wouldn’t be surprised if fact she comes across as confident& articulate rather than as a bumbling Bridget Jones type wouldn’t sit well with some. Brits love the self depreciating or Shy Di type. So it’s a shame essentially people say she would have to play dumb/not be her best self to succeed.
Black/mixed race people don’t have to like/support Meghan but questioning if she’s proud of her background? She’s spoken a lot about her pride in her background& has never hidden it. Her time as a working royal probably would have been easier if it hadn’t seem like she had rejected her white relatives (for good reason) and clung to her black mother.
“but where people have more vitriol for Meghan than we’ve seen for Andrew then something is seriously wrong.”
@GuestOne, the only places where there is more vitriol for Meghan that Andrew are The Fail, The Dim and The Slow.
Reading comments of the commentariat at The Times, The Guardian, DataLounge and The Independent, I would say there is X1000 more vitriol for Andrew than Meghan.
Hhmm I feel I’ve seen far more negative pieces on the Sussexes stepping aside inc in more respectable mainstream media than there was for Andrew. The Guardian had this article which had interesting assessment on why. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jan/21/what-explains-prince-andrew-rehabilitation-and-harry-vilification-misogyny
I know Andrew’s alleged crimes& association with Epstein is seedy, not as much of a clicks/ratings grab& likely is being deliberately downplayed because of powerful people involved, but there have been far more debates, calls to strip of titles&security for the Sussexes then Andrew post his awful newsnight interview. If anything it affirms what Harry said about the media’s agenda to vilify Meghan.
Anyway Britain leaves the EU next week so maybe press will have to focus on that
@Greendress you say you’re British and mixed race. What mix? I am curious if we are from the same community 🙂
@GuestOne, I don’t think it’s xenophobia, quite frankly. It’s just bog standard racism. I don’t understand this reticence to call a spade a whole spade when it comes to the British or European racism and antiblackness. People twist themselves into pretzels to try and explain it using every term under the sun except the one that is the truth. The vitriol from certain segments of the British population towards Meghan is because those people are racist and anti-black. That is the whole story. It irks me when people bring up a whole host of other issues in the same breath. Did the press use these other attributes to shape the negative narrative about Meghan? Certainly. But they are not the crux of the issue, and they never ever have been. They’re just seasoning on a larger narrative.
If Harry had married a biracial woman who was born in Britain and had one black parent, do you sincerely think that the fact that she is British would have helped mitigate the nastiness? If Harry had married a white woman who was from Eastern Europe, do you think she would have received even a fraction of the harassment? If Harry had married a white woman from Wisconsin, would she have received the same disgusting treatment? Not in a million years. The only thing that perhaps applies in a meaningful way would be classism, but even that is primarily rooted in racist attitudes wherein white British people characterize all black people as low class thugs and gang members who grew up poor and in the ghetto, even if it’s not the truth.
I’m not saying that none of these people face issues or would have been fully exempt from the harassment on the part of the press. But the motivating factor behind the bulk of the anger and resentment towards Meghan in particular is that she is a biracial black woman. Everything else–the fact that she is American, the fact that she is an outsider, all of that pales in comparison to this one salient fact. I really wish people would stop trying to explain how British racism is somehow more complex. It’s racism. It’s antiblackness. It existed in British society well before Brexit was a twinkle in BoJo’s stupid eye.
I still believe Harry has actual proof that Wills, Carole and Clarence House have been the source of the smear campaign against the Sussexes. He presented the proof to QE at their 2 hour personal meeting. That’s why Wills kissed his ass before he left Great Britain. Charles is going to be king (soon?) and probably feels above anything – “I’m king and can do what I want” which is why his courtiers and aides are still trying the ‘woe is me, I spent all my $$ on Harry and his biracial wife.’
Greendress, maybe logoff for the week and try again next week? Yours is not a good look.
None of the remaining members of the royal family has what it takes to make them relevant in the 21st century. There are probably enough racists/misogynists in Britain to justify a monarchy at the moment, but I can only hope that they (like Trump supporters in the USA) skew older and eventually will die off.
Younger generations and working women does not like Kate beacuase she came from white privilege and she didnt work , partying and holiday with her parents money. Those old woman who support her will die one day and most of her stan are non British and non commonwealth. Only rr is doing fake poll. After trump fasaca I dont trust the poll , plus 100% sure they manipulate the result.
It’s amazing to me how the RF misses the f-cking plot every single generation lol. Yes, people who like the monarchy look to them for stability and whatnot as the times change. But if you consider the people in this family who are overwhelmingly popular with the public, it’s always the ones who are seen as different (even if they aren’t necessarily). People gravitate to those who they see as outsiders, who don’t conform to the norm you’d expect from the RF. But in every generation of the BRF, you’ve got this situation where this person who is immensely popular is punished by their own family for their popularity. Princess Margaret, Princess Diana, Prince Harry–they were all victims of jealousy from their own family. You’d think that the BRF would learn something from this pattern of behaviour, but it’s pretty clear that they haven’t.
I think Normal Bill and Keen Katie are ‘reeling’ because the Sussexes called their bluff. Harry and Meghan said, ‘take your abuse and shove it’ and took off for Canada. So who do you whip when your whipping boy quits?
Normal Bill and Keen Katie look so down in the mouth in some of these pictures (more than usual) because they know that the media and the public that they helped work up into a feeding frenzy aren’t going to be satisfied with THEM. Keen Katie released her SAD LITTLE SURVEY but most of the press coverage is STILL about Harry and Meghan. Normal Bill and Keen Katie are great White hopes ONLY in comparison to Harry and his BLACK AMERICAN wife. If the Sussexes are no long on the playing field, the British media and the public are going to realize that the real ‘quality’ is gone and they’re stuck with the Blandest Blands that ever Blanded.
Normal Bill and Keen Katie can meet every Black/Brown man, woman and child in Great Britain. It won’t change the fact that they’re a part of a racist institution that drove the only person of colour out of the country. No matter what the royal family might think, people of colour AREN’T stupid. I’m sure most of the unfortunate souls who got stuck with The Blands for the last few days, must have wished that Harry and Meghan had quit a few weeks later. I can’t imagine being a prominent Kenyan and having to make nice with a man who told an entire continent that things would be better if they only stopped having children.
Normal Bill and Keen Katie are facing a future of hobnobbing with people of colour, budget flights, high street clothing and WORK, WORK, WORK. That’s what hell looks like for those two and it couldn’t happen to a more deserving pair.
It won’t change the fact that they’re a part of a racist institution that drove the only person of colour out of the country.
————————————————————————————————
I think the royals bias against Meghan has more to do with the class system, the fact that she’s divorced and an American. On the other hand, if she was 100% black – like her mum or Venus Williams, and not mixed race, passing as white, there’s no way they would have accepted her into the family. They pay lip service to being “inclusive” and not prejudiced but that’s all a smokescreen.
‘On the other hand, if she was 100% black – like her mum or Venus Williams, and not mixed race, passing as white, there’s no way they would have accepted her into the family. ‘
Wow. I think you’re a bit confused. I get the feeling that when you say 100% Black, what you really mean is ‘dark-skinned’. I have relatives that are much lighter than Meghan and they ALL have TWO Black parents. There are lots of variations in what ‘100% Black’ looks like. To be honest, anyone who knows anything can take one look at Venus Williams and see that there’s something mixed in with the African there. The slave masters were busy.
As for ‘passing for White’, I can’t believe you REALLY said that. ‘Imitation of Life’ was on TCM last night, so I can only assumed you watched it and are a bit confused. Meghan has NEVER ‘passed for White’. I don’t think Meghan COULD ‘pass for White’. Every Black person I know, knew she was bi-racial the second they saw her.
As far as ‘class’ goes, compare the treatment of Keen Katie and Meghan. Kate Middleton is the grandaughter of a coal miner, and while she did receive a lot of class-based abuse (I remember the joke that went around when William married her; ‘It’s okay that William married a commoner but does she have to be SOOOOOOOO common?’) but it was nowhere near the abuse that Meghan received and continues to receive.
Racism is the biggest factor in why Meghan has been treated so badly – but we shouldn’t forget that her nationality also played a part. It is not just that Meghan is American, it is also that she is not British. I lived for a while in Britain and while I generally enjoyed my time there, it was also very clear to me that Britain is very insular. It is just glaring from an outside perspective. I always knew that if Harry married a foreigner, then she would not be treated nicely by the press. The fact that Meghan isn’t white made everything a 100 times worse.
The BRF itself is also incredibly insular, even in relation to their royal colleagues (and relatives) on the Continent – and they kinda give off a snobby vibe by always sending minor royals to important events among the other RFs. It is also worth noting that no senior royal (apart from The Duke of Windsor) has married a non-Brit for generations, which is, frankly, very unusual when compared to their Continental cousins.
To ArtHistorian. I hope your comment further up thread — that you are done with this site — was just venting your frustration over some of the tinfoil hat comments on today’s thread. I hope that, because I — for one — would miss your wonderful historical insights and your articulate point of view. I been a long long time reader on this site who stayed silent for years. Throughout my silent years, I have enjoyed your (and several long time other commenters) take on things as much as I enjoy Kaiser’s great posts.
@ArtHistorian, it goes well beyond just your regular bit of snobbery though. That’s what people fail to understand when it comes to the BRF, and the class system as a whole in Britain. It’s not just the fact that the BRF is insular, or that the posh toffs don’t take well to outsiders. Their world view as a whole is skewed because of their own perceptions of royalty.
The royals, including Queen Elizabeth, believe in a very strict sense of hierarchy. The royals come first, above everyone else. Then it’s the aristocrats. Commoners are automatically considered as inferior by default. It sounds like something that’s straight out of a novel about the Habsburg empire, but it’s the truth. Of course, the Queen and everyone else around her in her circle will be perfectly nice to you. They’ll never falter on the politeness. But their attitude is to see everyone else as inferior peasants. They’ll tolerate you as long as you’re acceptably deferential towards their superiority, but the minute you deign to act like you’re just as good as they are (not stay in your place as it were), they’ll treat you like absolute sh-t.
The same applies for all the rest of the royal families in Europe and elsewhere. The ones who are still nominal heads of state are less open about their sense of entitlement. But the others who have a lot of personal wealth and none of the responsibilities of being public figures make it absolutely clear just how much disdain they have for the “common riffraff.” And don’t even get them started on people who aren’t white. People like Princess Michael aren’t the exception in these crowds. They’re the norm.
@JA Lowcountry Lady
Thanks for your kind words. I’m glad that I provided some enjoyment for another person. However, I’m really frustrated with the tinfoiling right now and I think it is best for me to take a step back for the time being – because I shouldn’t really be this frustrated about something that is supposed to be fun for me. Not long ago I did the same with my fandom life because it just became a very negative experience – but I eventually returned. So I’ll probably return to this site at some point, it is not the first time that I’ve taken a break.
Thank you ArtHistorian, what you say explains a lot. The British, well a lot of them, are whiners and complainers. They complain about the money they have to give the Royals. So if a foreigner and moreover a black foreigner comes along they will not accept to finance this person.
Frogmore cottage – as Kaiser has said repeatedly is quite shabby compared with the palaces of the other royals. Of course they thought that Meghan would refuse to live in a place like that, especially considering the noise from the flight path, but Harry and Meghan moved in. Now the next problem arose for the white royals, what would the public say? The most popular couple living in a tiny house while the other royals are living in palaces financed by the public. So the renovation costs were leaked to distract from this obvious fact.
This is also why they are all so upset with the clothes of Meghan. A black woman wearing haute couture paid for by the taxpayer??? They thought that she would blend in the with the background and at best not be seen too often.
ArtHistorian, I also hope you’ll come back. Your wealth of knowledge about royals, and ability to logically contrast the BRF with the Danish Royals, will be missed.
They are not dull. Just because you don’t like them does not mean they are not good and worthy.
William and Kate are dull, always have been. It doesn’t matter that they are dull, what matters is they are lazy.
@nota, TWO THUMBS UP!!!!
So f’n far from worthy it isn’t even funny. They protect pedophiles, or have you forgotten?
@potatoe, Dan Quayle’s back! Yeah, they are dull. Look up ‘dull’ in the dictionary and you’ll see their picture. And you’ll start yawning.
And ‘good and worthy’ people don’t sell out their family the way Normal Bill and Keen Katie sold out Harry and Meghan.
I’d like to know what exactly makes them “good” and “worthy”? Worthy of what? Their position? Their titles? Their money? Their privilege? All of that was accorded to William by accident of birth and birth order. He damn sure hasn’t earned any of it, and neither has the rest of his family. Nor has he earned his popularity, the adulation he thinks he is due, or anything else. You can quibble on whether or not he’s dull, frankly that’s a question of personal taste. But “good” and “worthy” is a whole other issue. That’s dependent on your behaviour, and if you behave poorly, then you’re not either of htose things.
@potatoe: I snorted when I read “good and worthy”. They have done nothing good and worthy, they were just born into royalty and money. Kate is a vapid doormat, William is a pompous, adulterous layabout. They’ve done nothing but give access to ‘certain’ reporters who create these ridiculous fantasy stories about what amazing work they’ve done and how they will lead GB into a new amazing monarchy and won’t everything be amazing. Total bullsh*t
So Kate’s 5 “big” question survey was a bust, so time to throw Meghan under the bus again!
/s
I wonder much longer the RR will be willing to put up with the blandness that is the rest of the Royal fam before turning on them now that they have less access to H&M. There’s only so many articles they can write about the Royal fam still needing to adjust to their punching bags leaving them before it gets real old, even for their target audience.
Good! They say ‘careful what you wish for’ and this couldn’t be more true for the cambridges.
They’ll come to regret backstabbing harry and meghan and casting them aside.
With the absence of their scapegoats, they’ll need to sell their kids for good PR. Bill will also regret not having ANY control over the Sussexs especially once the foundation is launched and harry’s oprah documentary premieres, the Sussexs will surpass the courtiers/palace’s expectations and I could see Meghan becoming an ICONIC figure like Diana.
They seriously lost A HUGE opportunity to use the Sussexs popularity for this monarchy.
I’d like to think that they’ll regret it when George is doing the same to Charlotte and Louis but I don’t believe that any of the Windsor’s are evolved enough to see their own behavior and how it effects others.
I don’t think William will actually ever regret anything. He is arrogant enough that he’ll just continue to blame everyone except himself for the consequences of his own behaviour. “It’s Charles/The Queen/Edward Young/the press/[insert acceptable scapegoat here]’s fault!” I don’t think he knows what personal responsibility means.
I’ll miss hearing about the Sussexes and what they’re up to, but I do hope they go “ghost” until Spring and they’re free of the Royal Family. They should just take downtime as a family to recuperate and regroup and get their plans in place for moving forward. I’m hoping things work out for them and looking for great things in their future.
Hope we see both of them for Invictus Games in May. Looking forward to Willem-Alexander and Maxima cheering like crazy for their team. They are so much fun to watch at sporting events.
Holy skinny. I guess Kate SWFing Diana includes her eating disorder too. Maybe Pippa should mention something if she can, I think Kate has body dysmorphia.
@Yinyang
What a terribly unkind comment. It says so much about the kind of person you are.
I don’t think they really care about the consequences. I think William sees everything he did as a means to an end. He wanted to be top dog, and he’s achieved it. The fact that he allied himself with a press that will likely not be any kinder to him in the long run, the fact that he had to evict his younger brother from the royal family to do this–he’s not interested in the long term consequences of these actions. It’s about what William wants in this moment. That’s all that matters. I doubt that even if he were dealing with a hostile press in the future, he’d make the necessary connection and realize that they were not actually on his side because he helped them throw his brother and his SIL under the bus, and that his legal threats against a free press will only take him so far. When he’s struggling with the burden of his royal duties and in need of emotional support from someone who really understands, he won’t realize that he’s in this position because he chased away his brother, a person who could have been there for him, who was uniquely situated to help him when he needed it.
People like William and Kate don’t strike me as the sort of people who have the insight required to really process something like this. If they really were devastated, we’d know. But they’re clearly not. They probably expect that things are gonna go back to how they used to be, except William will get all of the positive attention from the press, who will never turn against him and stand up to his behaviour or print anything negative about him. Harry and Meghan will be forgotten and abandoned, and it’ll all be well with the world.
Didn’t William use E.U. Privacy laws to shutdown the Rose stories? Now, with Brexit, Britain is no longer a part of the E.U. So, what laws prevent the British media from reporting about the Rose story? Is that why there are pictures of the Cambridge kids all over the tabloids…as payment to stay quiet?
The mental abuse Queen LIz did to her sister. Prince Charles to his siblings. Prince William to Harry. If you don’t think George will use abuse on his siblings I got a bridge in New York to sell you. The monarchy is looking like an abusive, ancient, and senile institution.
This. It’s not intentional on anyone’s part. It’s how the institution has been set up. The only person who matters is the heir, because they’ll be the future monarch. Everyone else is viewed as something of an insurance policy. This was never set up with the intention of creating a healthy family dynamic. When the crown is above all, and everyone else’s interests are subsumed by the crown, why are people surprised when family and interpersonal relationships suffer?
PS-A lot pf posters pinpointed when all the savage hate really began against Meghan-If people go back a read about their successful Australian tour and the announcement of Meghan’s pregnancy everything go vicious very fast. Very good journalists would find this to be the case. There were nasty things said before and after the marriage- but nothing like the ugly stories after the tour, pregnancy announcement, and during Meghan’s pregnancy. We talking about from October 2018-til now.
Oh I think William and Kate are upset that their rivals Harry and Meghan are out of range and not forgotten. The international press still write about the Sussexes. In the US CNN, MSNBC and Fox are doing specials about Meghan and Harry in the next couple of months and the feud and backstabbing may come out and they won’t look good. The UK press they suck up too are not international powerhouses and thanks to social media they get immediate pushback. The Cambridges know they are branded the villains in some quarters and they fear journalists that won’t defer to them will get the dirt.
Kate ‘s Cuties Calendar has 2 photos of Archie. Why???? He is not her child. Exploitation.
The two pictures of Meghan and Archie were taken by photographers on the SA tour, therefore permission to use didn’t need to come from the Sussexes.
As for the fact that both are considered “Kate’s Cuties” has an ownership vibe which is part of the racism we’ve seen repeatedly from the Daily Heil.
At this point, I think the paper is trying to bait H&M even more since they’ve shown no sign of dropping their lawsuit.
I read somewhere that the editor is quoted as saying that all he wants is to get Meghan under oath and have their lawyers “rip her apart” as punishment for suing them.
My very “articulate” reaction to this is: reel away b!tches!
For the man who only goes to church for PR photo ops, who doesn’t understand the idea of marital fidelity? What do you get such a man? A new honor appointment from Granny.
William has been made Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
I’m sure every Scot is thrilled with this appointment.
Of all the phony, self-congratulatory bullshit….the BRF is as transparent as a pan of water.
Dear Queen Elizabeth: No matter what silly title you give your indolent and undeserving grandson, the Cambridges will NEVER be as popular as the Sussexes. There, fixed it for you.
And the embiggening continues. They really are untouchable and do what they bloody well want.
The royal family just hands out awards and honors to themselves whenever they feel like it. Are we supposed to be impressed when they wear the insignia of their “honors”? I find it incredibly ridiculous and worthy of ridicule, but I guess there are some Brits who are impressed by it.
This new position for William could have been given to a non royal but the Palace probably put William there because of the fears of Scottish independence and the need for the royals to put more effort in showing ties with Scotland. A strategic move and nothing to do with the Sussexes.
The queen only panders to this man child because he’s ‘heir’. They all know he’s an asshole but they keep blocking him from being hit by the karma bus. How is he ever gonna learn from his mistakes if they keep letting him get away with shit. He’s only gonna get worse, especially once the queen is gone.
I thought the calendar about the Cambridge kids was a joke and I saw the Fail. Seriously?! First the church stroll for George and Charlotte and now this. How much are the Cambridges getting for this? Is the proceeds going to charity? They’re pimping out their kids to get ink and it only serves to show how unappealing they are.
Oooh good news to report bitchies. Sussex IG is now 11.1 million and Kensington is 11. That’s got to get them reeling. I am here for the petty.
@RoyalBlue I’m here for the petty too. I do keep track once in awhile and I looked today and thought “Ha!”
@lilly you know William is livid right about now. The spare is exiled from the kingdom, not in the news, not selling out his kid to the tabloids and STILL he gets more followers, and more engaged followers too. That’s got to burn.
Now that the Sussexes are gone the tabloids are going for House Windsor. The Slow did a poll asking should Charles step aside and let William ascend to the throne? Majority said yes (61%). Looks like despite his work with the Prince’s Trust a chunk of the public will never forgive him for Camilla.
I said that a few comments up, Charles is their next target. Now the Cambs/midds know if you push someone hard enough in the press, they will walk. But Charles will never ‘walk’, ever, but that won’t stop them throwing him under the bus, to embiggen themselves as ‘the saviours if the monarchy’.
The Cambridges won the one-sided battle. They can now continue with the cosplay as the Sussexes.
Amateur time at the Apollo.
Meanwhile two competent people offered to work for free under one condition- the work environment must be toxic-free.
Shockingly they were refused by the two heirs. The information came to the public’s attention and many empathised with the Sussexes.
The younger heir has attained a big popularity- but not as he had envisioned , he is popular with a sector of the divided UK population. The empire lite has populations ranging up to 60% of people under the age of 30. Meaning by the time a certain heir comes to the throne , they will be the ruling class of their varying countries and may remember this incident.
Only time will tell if the Cambridges have succeeded in normalizing punative measures against excellence , integrity, honesty and a good work ethic.
Why would they reel? They got what they wanted.
@PRINCESSK
“This new position for William could have been given to a non royal but the Palace probably put William there because of the fears of Scottish independence and the need for the royals to put more effort in showing ties with Scotland. A strategic move and nothing to do with the Sussexes.”
You are 100% spot on but the fools are either wilfully ignorant or just stupid to think that boringBILL is capable of persuading Scots to stay in the union!🤦♀️ because of cambridges/KP’s tendency to mainly focus on England and mainly do london based engagements, they’re not really popular in Scotland.
The fail also reported they’re planning to visit to Ireland probably relating to brexit and again they’re the wrong pick🙄 I’d rather see sophie visiting and actually taking part in something than us getting a cambridges photoshoot!!