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Open post: The Sussex documentary

It's a quote usually misattributed to Einstein, and it appears on thousands of inspirational posters, tea towels and coffee mugs: "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

Whoever originally said it, the quote is apt when it comes to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's participation in a TV documentary about their recent trip to Southern Africa.

They didn't like us despite all of the flattering magazine articles about us. 

They didn't like us after we paid for glossy newspaper and online articles praising us to the skies. 

They didn't like us when we seeded commenters on message boards to say that anyone who fails to support us is an ugly racist. 

Maybe they'll like us if we release a TV documentary about what wonderful people we are? 


What do you expect?

What do you expect from the documentary?

Journalist Tom Bradby, the man behind the show, says it will "explain a lot."

Comments

Sconesandcream said…
More PR crap. MM doing verbal diarrhoea in the form of multiple speeches. Sickening images of H & M trying to look loved up and "special" behind the scenes of Archie. The nannies and security will of course be edited out. Can you tell that I am not looking forward to this latest attempt to improve their image from their new PR team?
catskillgreen said…
I just see Meghan ruining it by wanting complete control over the whole thing, just like she does with her PR. She has the opposite of a Midas touch. She gets to be the star of her own little movie I guess.
Lottie said…
Journalist Tom Bradby, the man behind the show, says it will "explain a lot."

Does that mean the truth? because it appears we are getting everything but the truth when it comes to the Sussex's and Archie

I expect more of the contrived Me, Me, Me fakeness, exaggerated hand waving, more tossed word salad and the 'make no eye contact with crazy MM & the 'get me out of here' bored look on people faces
Lottie said…
I forgot to add
I expect to see:
more rocking, hugging and clapping from Octomum's doppelgänger
JLC said…
When Meg's hair extensions made an appearance on this trip I thought then she was going for a Kim Kardashian style (after all, it would appear she also has a sex tape lurking somewhere...), so I certainly hope she isn't aiming for a Keeping up with the Kardashians style documentary. Urgh! Isn't less is more the way to go if you are Royal? Urgh again.
Shazzam said…
I see Rachel, lecturing to the peasants as per usual, with a substantial number of I and me thrown in. My face hurts from all the eye rolling I do. She really wants to rule the world.
Tom Bradby Is liked by both William and Harry, he was chosen by William to do their engagement interview, and has conducted many interviews with the royals since.

It’s not the first time a documentary has been made about royal tours, I’ve seen many over the years.

Not sure how to decipher Tom’s words of ‘it will explain a lot’., I’m open minded at the moment, I know he’s not the usual sycophantic type, but we’ll see.

On another note, tomorrow night on Channel 5, we have a documentary about the scandal surrounding Prince Andrew, that might be interesting.
Nutty, I'm not surprised that they are doing a documentary. Infact I'm surprised they didn't do one earlier. A while ago, on your blog, we were all speculating about how she would be commercialising archificial. Well, we didn't have to wait too long to find the answer. This documentary is the perfect way, if not to commercialise then to commoditise at the very least.

It would also explain a lot of the choices Mm has made while in this tour - hiring student photographers before the tour began, the rewears which were basically meh. Much cheaper and high street (aka relatable clothes), the shirt dresses, solid block colours ( because prints and fancy designs don't come off as flattering on screen), all the sound bites and speeches, the over exaggerated laughter and expressions, giving an unprecedented number of interviews to the press present, bringing out Archie, the many private engagements that would make her seem very involved and busy while Harry's working in another country, bringing the range rovers over from UK (makes them seem more important than they are).... I could go on, but you get the gist. It also explains the unnecessary drama of releasing the statement in the second last day instead of waiting to get home and consult their family.
Nutty Flavor said…
I think that what Meg (and her PR team) don't realize is that a celebrity is not about himself or herself - the celebrity is about how he or she makes the audience feel.

Ellen makes people watching during the daytime feel - hey, you're not stuck at home folding the laundry! You're at a party! We're dancing. Here comes Will Smith!

Oprah used to make people watching during the daytime feel - hey, you're not out of the loop. Here are some things to be concerned about. I know you're a person who is concerned about our shared future.

Even Donald Trump makes people feel - hey, you can give the finger to all those people telling you that you're stupid or not good enough.

How is Meg supposed to make people feel? Hey, I'm better than you. Hey, I'm richer than you. Hey, envy me, because I'm famous and you're not.

That's not a sellable feeling. People don't like that.

This documentary is being broadcast in the UK; it's apparently directed at a UK audience. If Meg really wanted to turn that around for herself, she'd spend a year going around the UK learning about British culture and film that. Be humble, admit what you don't know, admire what's great about Britain and the British people.

That's a sellable feeling.
@Louise500 , I agree Tom is on good terms with both Wills and Hark. Which makes it easier for him to get access and permission for this documentary. It basically seems like regualar, everyday royal tour stuff that every member does.

BUT...and this is a big BUT, its the Sussexes! And they never do anything unless it serves their agenda somehow. So I'm pretty certain they had a lot of input into how this documentary would potray them. This is after all, an out and out PR move, so they would kill this opportunity to the last drop.

Also, I was wondering why Mm suddenly cleaned up and upped the fashion antics once Harky left. It's because she was filming a documentary which she was basically the star of.
I should have added that Tom was first chosen by William to conduct their engagement interview in 2010/2011.
Nutty Flavor said…
@Alice, very good points, particularly about the wardrobe.

I think Meg is trying to sell herself as an "international humanitarian" again. Perhaps the documentary will be picked up by Netflix for distribution outside the UK.

I had coffee with an American business acquaintance yesterday, a young guy from the Bay Area. We were talking about cultural differences and the mistakes people make unintentionally when interacting with other cultures, and I mentioned Meg's insistance that all the African ladies sit on the floor - they weren't too pleased about that.

"Oh, but Meghan Markle is such a lady," he said. "I'm sure she sat on the floor in a very ladylike way."

So, some people are still buying her crap.

FWIW, he was a SJW type of guy, likely to be getting his Royal perspectives from The Guardian.
@Alice, ‘BUT...and this is a big BUT, its the Sussexes! And they never do anything unless it serves their agenda somehow. So I'm pretty certain they had a lot of input into how this documentary would potray them. This is after all, an out and out PR move, so they would kill this opportunity to the last drop.’

Oh I don’t doubt that the Sussex’s were very clear about how ‘they’d’ like to be ‘portrayed’, it’s unclear just how much clout they’d have in that. If it’s on ITV and I strongly suspect it is (because Tom only appears on that channel), then I wonder whether the Sussex’s could be heading for a bit of a royal stitch up. It wouldn’t be the first time that royal members haven’t been shown in a less than favourable light.
@Nutty .. Re- making the audience feel something positive and invested. I agree with your point. But difference between Mm and the Ellens, Oprahs, Wendys, Graham Nortans of the world is that they study and refine their craft. They have built up their skills, personalities and audience connectivity over years of research, learnings, failures and grit. Their agenda is to create a certain kind of entertainment value that appeals to the audience. They didn't start off wanting to be trail blazers. Meg's on the other hand wanted to be famous. And that's why she hasn't been able to carve a niche out for herself. It's only now, at nearly 40 years old, that she has suddenly found a passion to be humanitarian and is hell bent in shoving it down our throats.

Everything mention in your comment is the very reason she is so disliked and why this documentary will tank and do nothing to salvage their reputation. Tom Bradby is attempting an Andrew Mortan or better still, Martin Bashir, and has basically played into their hands by yet again allowing them to play the Diana card. They would market this as something similar to Diana's panorama interview which finally told the real story poor suffering, saint Diana. Hence the quote that it would explain a lot.
Correction on my reply to Louise500 above - imeant to say " they would MILK this opportunity to the last drop. However, I have no doubt that would probably KILL this opportunity, just like they have killed every single opportunity to rehabilitate themselves in the public eye. MM with her PR strategies is like a drunk Godzilla let loose in Tokyo!
Liver Bird said…
"It basically seems like regualar, everyday royal tour stuff that every member does."

Is it though? Have other memebers of the royal family participated in 'behind the scenes' documentaries about their royal tours? I don't remember any, but I could be wrong.

Also, note that it's on ITV, not the much more prestigious, taxpayer funded BBC. Prince Andrew was reportedly quite unhappy when BBC turned down coverage of Eugenie's wedding last year, so he had to slum it at ITV. Sounds like more self-promotional American-style nonsense from Preach and Leach. I do not predict it will be a ratings hit.
Liver Bird said…
"It’s not the first time a documentary has been made about royal tours, I’ve seen many over the years."

A documentary *about* a royal tour? Maybe.

But a behind hte scenes 'documentary' with the 'royals' themseles actively participating? I don't recall anny. We are looking at the full Kardashianisation of the royal family. Keeping up with the Saxe Coburgs.
bootsy said…
@ Nutty Your explanation here should be saved and rolled out again and again as it gets to the heart of one of the issues:

"I think that what Meg (and her PR team) don't realize is that a celebrity is not about himself or herself - the celebrity is about how he or she makes the audience feel.

Ellen makes people watching during the daytime feel - hey, you're not stuck at home folding the laundry! You're at a party! We're dancing. Here comes Will Smith!

Oprah used to make people watching during the daytime feel - hey, you're not out of the loop. Here are some things to be concerned about. I know you're a person who is concerned about our shared future.

Even Donald Trump makes people feel - hey, you can give the finger to all those people telling you that you're stupid or not good enough.

How is Meg supposed to make people feel? Hey, I'm better than you. Hey, I'm richer than you. Hey, envy me, because I'm famous and you're not.

That's not a sellable feeling. People don't like that."

And then, combine that with what I have mentioned before, where MM has only been a 'deity' for over 2 years, and before that she was a nothing actress. It sticks in your craw a bit when she tells you what to do and how to act.

And finally, your coffee with the Bay area person reinforces what I have been saying that MM knows she can't win over everyone. All she has to do is issue the cry of racism and sexism to deflect criticism and she will bring a statistically significant section of society with her that will keep her in diamonds and pearls for the rest of her life.
Anyway, ladies this post is going to be very interesting but I'm off to the doctors and it's a long day ahead for me. I won't be posting again today, so I'm gonna leave you all with a few laughs. Here's Charles reciting the poem " Quoting Shakespeare" on BBC radio 2. This is some very dark ominous shade he seems to be throwing. For all those who said the BRF lack the b***s to do or say anything to them, the future king has us all covered.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B3KVSUjAXWe/?igshid=cdktqlxhsjot
@Alice, ‘Tom Bradby is attempting an Andrew Mortan or better still, Martin Bashir, and has basically played into their hands by yet again allowing them to play the Diana card. They would market this as something similar to Diana's panorama interview which finally told the real story poor suffering, saint Diana.’

All these have been one-on-one sit down interviews, royal tour documentaries are not like that and don’t take that form, normally. There’s usually the narrator (in this case Tom), with possibly him following the Sussex’s during the tour and maybe a few brief chats. If it’s far more than a brief chat, then there’s an agenda on the Sussex’s part.

As I said in my original comment.....I’m open minded, inasmuch saying how the Sussex’s could be portrayed; it could be a mixture of both positive and negative.
@Alice, I hope all goes well at the Doctors.
Stacey1985 said…
First time commentator, long time reader. Love, love, LOVE this blog! It's such a relief to find others that aren't buying whatever Sunshine Sachs is selling.

I'd be interested to see how the documentary handles the rather unfortunate 'white saviour' optics of this whole trip. The usual SJW types have been pretty quiet about it, but it's only going to take one Guardian opinion column or one blue check-marked Twitter post to set them off into a feeding frenzy. For someone who accused the British public of 'unconscious bias' towards MM on account of her heritage, Harry has been pretty tone-deaf about the optics of using the people of Africa like human props during this tour. It's decidedly uncomfortable to watch the beauty and culture of the continent reduced to little more than a backdrop for a wealthy western couple to LARP as humanitarians for their Instagram feed. So whatever soft-focus, buzzword riddled fluff piece ITV produce (and we all know that there's going to be little real journalism involved) I'm very interested to see how the right-on types in our intelligencia react to it. I think they've been given a pretty obvious pass on this behaviour during this trip, but personally I think it's a spectacularly bad idea to draw attention to the dynamics involved with a documentary. This is going to bite them in the arse.
Sconesandcream said…
Nutty interesting that it is aimed for the British public. Do they care about Harry's love of Africa? Is Africa the right choice? I would have thought seeing them at work in Britain or even on the Australian Tour would be more appealing (given the number of Brits who love Australia). If it's just a sit down interview in one spot then obviously the location doesn't matter.
Sconesandcream said…
At the moment imo the things that annoy people about Megan is her need to dominate the limelight, her lack of respect for Royal traditions ie always storming ahead to meet people before Harry, her ghosting/shunning of her father who she has previously spoken highly of. Harry is unpopular due to his hypocritical preaching and letting MM walk all over him and not introducing Archie to the British public. Will any of these issues be addressed? or are they just gonna to use the Diana card and play victims?
Nutty Flavor said…
Welcome Stacey!

I agree with what you say about the colonial-style optics.

A smarter way to handle it would have been, we are coming to Africa to learn from you.

Britain is becoming a multi-cultural society; South Africa has been multicultural for hundreds of years, how do you handle it? (Not always well, of course, but they could have still framed it as part of a learning process.)

Meg could have worn South African designers - the continent is bursting with creativity and the clothes are wonderful, as the photos from last weekend's wedding of two male TV presenters show.

A talented Royal could have managed to show off local designers' work without tipping into tourist CosPlay. (Meg's wrap dress on the first day, sourced from Malawi, was an interesting start with no follow-up.)

Harry could have approached his conservation work with much more humility - more, what can we do to help you?

Miggy said…
I think the documentary will be favourable to them both. Can't see it going any other way.

Off topic and as an aside, PH will be in Nottingham on Oct 10th.

From Omid Scobie:

Prince Harry returns to St Ann’s, Nottingham on Oct 10 to mark #WorldMentalHealthDay. He will:

—Join an @epic_partners session with @NottinghamAcad students to discuss emotional wellbeing and share his own experiences.

—Visit @CrsStudioNotts, who teach youth music/video skills.
Marie said…
@Nutty, your perspective about what Ellen, Oprah, and company do is really on the head. I never thought about it. I wonder, though, if why Meghan's fans are so rabid about protecting her is that Meghan represents dreams like "you can be glamorous like me. you can have a platform like me. you can vault from nothing to princess like me ". It's a bit the Disney princess fantasy, especially for WoC, and is likely unintended, i.e. not really pushed by Meghan.

But I do think she's found what she's going to offer people as a celebrity, and I agree fully that her only goal is to become an Instagram-quotable humanitarian on the level of Mandela and Tutu. Before the Africa tour and certainly before her pregnancy, I would have actually wondered what she is offering to people. But I think with Sunshine Sachs, she's beginning to stitch together the pieces she was laying out willy nilly, like alienating the youth from the previous generation a la Greta Thunberg, saying the previous generation messed up, doesn't get you like how we understand you. Or look at her recent IG posts about creating a community. She's basically creating a humanitarian form of a fandom via encouraging her vision of hashtag activism. Look at her recent speech - it's jumping on fear, saying that the world is a scary place. But if you join me in my creation of community and celebrating forces for change, you'll make a better place for the world. She's a bit becoming like an bizarro-world, alternate-reality form of European extreme rightwing parties. They use similar arguments of stoking up fear in how terrible the world has become, sow seeds of discord by saying how the current generation of politicians and liberal elite have failed you, and then offer a solution in the form of accept my vision of the world and all will be well for your children (the next generation).
Marie said…
to the first poster, I agree too. If it's sanctioned by H&M, it'll be gritty, raw but flattering in a charming, sympathetic way. Like showing them stressed out and tired from all the work of a 90-minute engagement and Harry gently petting or stroking Meghan's hand. Or a scene of reporters all yelling and flashing lightbulbs together in Harry and Meghan's face or in some way that the viewer can experience it, to show how "intense" the press experience is. It's getting a bit tiring to hear the master manipulators accusing the press of manipulating.
Rut said…
I was thinking...maybe Meghan treats the documentary as a "hollywoodfilm" and maybe thats why they ended the tour so dramatically with Meghans speach ( I didnt find the speach either powerful or dramatically but Im sure Meghan did ) and Harry suing the daily mail. We dont understand it now but everything will look good as a film. Its a written welplanned "documentary" with her in the ledrole. And maybe there will be some sad backgroundmusic. Maybe! :)
JLC said…
Ha - Rut! The best film ending would be Harry standing at the door (to wherever they are living) and saying, "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn" and then walking off into the sunset and relief of the British public.
Liver Bird said…
Some excellent points above.

I've said it befor: If Meghan wants to endear herself to the British public, then it's really very simple. All she needs to do is go home to Froggie Cottage, cuddle her baby and basically not be seen OR heard for a while, except to do a few low key events in Scunthorpe or Dundee. That's how the British people like their royals. Shaking hands, cutting ribbons and showing a bit of decorum and dignity. Definitely not in their faces, promoting themselves and acting as though they are something special. That only draws attention to the fact that, other than their fancy titles, which are their for birth or marriage, not for any achievements, they're just ordinary folks with no particular talents.

But Meggsy simply cannot adapt to her new role and still thinks she's a Hollywood wannabe. Maybe she is.
lizzie said…
No idea what the reporter meant when he said the documentary "explains a lot." Maybe something as "superficial" as Harry suffers from long-standing back pain that flared at the end of the tour? And we're all supposed to think oh, so that explains his scruffy, wrinkled appearance, his rant comparing his wife to his long-dead mother, his obvious rudeness to the female reporter, and his statement to the student about having trouble getting out of bed in the morning? (Not to mention M's obsession with rubbing his back in public.) Well, in that case, all is forgiven.
Marie. Completely agree that MM is positioning herself to be a woman of influence who will help to shape the next generation by encouraging them to worship at the altar of Markle. Is she going to turn Frogmore into her cult HQ? The thing is that she could have been so influential if she had been open about who she really is. Her stance on fertility issues for older women, surrogacy, and the visit to the safe place for sex workers could really have marked her out as influential and trail-blazing. A missed opportunity. Self-deprecation is a big thing in the UK.
Nutty Flavor said…
@Lizzie

You reference the "obvious rudeness to the female reporter."

Not according to Page Six of the New York Post, which has written the story as if the reporter were the rude one and Harry was nobly standing up for himself.

https://pagesix.com/2019/10/03/prince-harry-snaps-at-reporter-amid-tension-with-press/
The Cat's Meow said…
Off-topic update:
The Sun (online) has the HM lawsuit as the top story, with the angle being that Meg herself released copyright when she gave her friends permission to leak to People.

Sigh. I am a Canadian, now American, reduced to looking up the Sun to get my Royal fix LOL!!!
Jenx said…
Looking at the tour through a wider lense, I can almost pull the bits together and see the narrative they might have been weaving. As was mentioned, the clothing is a good clue.

When MM was pulled into the dancing she was uncomfortable, obviously off script. I read somewhere that the school children at one visit were recruited in uniform even though it was a school holiday. The MM out-of-context laugh walking beside that dignified but perplexed woman. It is all so surreal. A fabricated fairytale.

At this point, all they are doing is testing our gag reflex. Isn't oversaturation a big PR no-no?

But, I too discussed MM with two female "woke" colleagues. Their reaction was disturbing. Fists in the air ... she's bringing down the patriarchy, she's bringing down the Monarchy. OMG. Is this what she's aiming for? Champion of the new world order? (not That NWO, but you never know)
Jen said…
@Nutty, Not according to Page Six of the New York Post, which has written the story as if the reporter were the rude one and Harry was nobly standing up for himself.

Honestly, from the first time I saw the clip, I was a bit hesitant to believe he was being rude. I thought there may be more to the interaction, but we were seeing just a tidbit of it. This crap happens all the time in the US; the media will creatively edit to show what they want you to see. This all occurred after he released his rant filled letter, so he was probably fairly defensive and her questions were not very clear as to what she was asking about. So, my thinking is, there was some misunderstanding and it was blown out of proportion.

I could very well be wrong, but my gut tells me that there's more to the story then what we saw.
lizzie said…
Nutty, Thanks for the link. I'd not seen that report but considering the linked source... :)

Seems someone who does very brief "light shining" visits on tours and in the UK and who has been on the world stage since birth would be prepared to say something other than what Harry did even if the question was "unscheduled." Like "we hope the excellent coverage of this event you provide will shine a light...." or "however short the visit, we didn't want to miss the opportunity to highlight the importance..." Some boilerplate. But to me his response came across as rude as well as dismissive of the event especially with the "ask them" part. (Hey, they wanted me to come, I came, now beat it) But maybe that just me.
Nelo said…
I don't know if people will be interested in watching the documentary after the stunt they just pulled. In the issue of the suit, Dickie Arbiter, the Queen's former secretary said on the Today show that he believes MoS will back down in order not to affect access to the royal family. What do you all think? I learned Arbiter is also related to the Queen, could he be speaking what is happening behind palace walls?
Jen said…
@Nelo, they've had 7 months to back down and they haven't. Why would they do it now?
Unknown said…
Not that I've looked too hard however it intrigues me that DM has ZERO articles on the Harkles...repeating the same behaviour and expecting a different outcome in this instance might just happen. Imagine their (her) shock and fury if the UK media now freezes them out. I believe the British media would blackball them for all their vile behaviour towards them and especially knowing it will blow Rach's mind...ultimate rebuttal. Kate and Wills, Bea etc are now about to get columns of articles....loves it!
Mama Lawma said…
Nutty, I liked your idea of the documentary being about Meghan learning about the U.K. They should be putting that on their IG - Harry introducing her to her new homeland. A little sprinkle of Archie and new mum adventures. Do it for 2 years and keep their traps shut about anything else and they probably would have an audience willing to listen to their clap trap. Know, like, trust. That should be their aim. When people know, like, and trust you they invest in your brand.
JLC said…
@Nelo, I really hope the MoS doesn't back down. Perhaps the article in the Sun the The Cat's Meow mentioned above is showing a sign of solidarity amongst the news outlets? Perhaps Meg is uniting our tabloids in her own little way.
Fairy Crocodile said…
Given their modus operandi I am pretty sure it will not be a documentary about the tour. It will be a promotional praising them and using African people. A couple of misunderstood saints chased by the ungrateful subjects. What they fail to see is they haven't done anything of notice on their own. The royal machine is the real source of their visibility. Remove it and we have a mediocre actress and a playboy nobody will be interested in. The timing for the documentary announcement is designed to take attention away from the Cambridge royal tour. Harry is an idiot if he thinks he can win the war against the monarchy represented by his brother.
Acquitaine said…
@Nutty: you said...."I mentioned Meg's insistance that all the African ladies sit on the floor - they weren't too pleased about that.

"Oh, but Meghan Markle is such a lady," he said. "I'm sure she sat on the floor in a very ladylike way."

As an African, the thing that made me wince was twofold. We only sit on the floor at funerals out of respect of the dead or if we are showing respect to our elders and betters. Sitting on the floor is not something we do unless one has a very specific reason to do so otherwise it's considered dirty because the floor will never be clean enough. And's especially woolly to sit on the floor when there are chairs about. Those ladies would have been in their best clothes to meet her and sitting on the floor would have been anathema to them, but in the end, out of respect for the honoured guest they sat on the floor. And i'm positive they will bitch about it for years to come that they were forced to sit on the floor for no good reason.

Secondly, Meghan sat cross-legged on the floor. This way of sitting is considered extremely vulgar. We kneel or we sit with our legs to the side, never cross-legged. My grandmother is still in shock that a princess sat in such a vulgar way on the floor. I couldn't convince her that it was a yogic style of sitting and quite popular in Asia and the west. And that's another thing those ladies will bitch about Meghan
Louise said…
Tom Bradby was a guest at the wedding of Harry and Smirkle.

This is a fawning article that he wrote about Smirkle in Nov 2017:

https://www.standard.co.uk/comment/comment/tom-bradby-for-country-royals-and-prince-harry-meghan-markle-is-the-perfect-choice-a3703981.html

"As this summer drew to a close and Prince Harry contemplated an upcoming holiday to Africa with his girlfriend, Meghan Markle, his close friends had unanimous advice: get on with it, mate. It had been clear to his inner circle for many months that Meghan was “the one”"


" She’s amusing, approachable, down to earth and thoughtful. If she has a downside, it is hard to work out what it might be. "

"So far, even inside the system, she hasn’t put a foot wrong. Sometimes, what the royal family is alleged to think and feel about a variety of individuals and issues, including one another, is exaggerated for effect and occasionally untrue, but when Kensington Palace briefs that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have taken forcefully to the new arrival on their scene, that is, as I understand it, true."

" If you haven’t seen the programme [Suits}, you should. It’s good and Markle is excellent in it. "

It is clear that this will be no more than a long promotional advert, produced by a friend.
Jen said…
@Louise, " If you haven’t seen the programme [Suits}, you should. It’s good and Markle is excellent in it. "

If he actually said that, then his opinion is tainted. I've seen ONE episode (long before Harry and MM became an item) and she was horrible! She totally made any scene she was in worse. He's an idiot, clearly.
Nutty Flavor said…
@Acquitaine

Thanks, I learned something today! Thinking back, I realized I have never seen an African woman sitting cross-legged. I didn't know it was considered vulgar, but that makes sense.

This is the sort of cultural coaching Meg should have received before visiting Africa as a represenative of the Queen.

Or maybe she did, and simply ignored it.
KnitWit said…
Perhaps the documentary could be seen two ways. From their point of view they are savior's. However, from objective non sugars, a view inside the insanity. I doubt the director wants to alienate the rest of the royal family.

A better documentary would be rebuilding the Bahamas. They need the help, however, the royal Sussexes may have to get their hands dirty. Meg can wear her ripped jeans, but best leave the high heels at home.

Or the documentation could be in position to film the beginning of the end....
Vanessa V said…
I'm not interested to watch it..I imagine that documentary will all talk about themselves and can't even stomach her smiling and grinning the whole documentary..Does she get tired smiling and grinning and acting cute for an hour?
Miss_Christina said…
I doubt it's going to explain a single thing, except just how much MeAgain loves herself. And it's a shame, because it could be so good, showcasing the country and its people, and the issues they face, or even if you just get into the mechanics and behind the scenes of how a royal tour works. But all it's going to be is an extended commercial for Meh, setting up her new narrative, so why bother?
Eowyn said…
@Vanessa V:

I'm not interested to watch it

Me, too.

I agree with previous commenters here that the best antidote is for the media to blacklist the toxic MM-PH couple and for us to boycott this documentary.
abbyh said…

What do I think?

I think that this will be added to her IMDB page (no I have not checked it yet). Will it be reviewed by Rotten Tomatoes?

There is a part of me which wonders if it will be in black and white or color?

Oh man, I just got the obvious we do black and white photos as we are. Subtle. As a side note, black and white photos can be jaw droppingly better than color sometimes. I was watching PBS on the JFK, RFK and maybe Johnson, and the black and white photos were really good. They would not have been as striking in color.

I think that doing a Netflix would allow for greater criticism. When I think of their Making a Murderer, they unleashed all kinds of comments that anything which did not conform to the agenda, was edited out.

Doing a get to know my new country would have been really cool. And, not just people in the states without much interest in this probably would have watched it too. Greater viewing audience. Now, people will watch. Not because they thing she's so wonderful but because they want to see what this makes her look like and is it likely to be accurate. The difference between Respect and Not Respect/just want to watch the train wreck.

Stacey1985 said…
I think they're going to go for The Prince vs The Press angle, and that this will 'explain a lot' regarding Harry's apparent public tantrum. As others have speculated, it'll have a lot of tight shots and clever editing, making it look like Team Sussex are routinely surrounded by multitudes of baying, frenzied press (no wide shots to reveal how thin the 'crowds' really are, of course). The emphasis will be on making the viewer feel how frightening it must be to be at the centre of such a media storm. I'd bet money that they pull the Diana card out, switching between shots of Harry's mother being hounded by paps and Megan pulling her Diana 2.0 look (you know the one...eyes wide, chin down, faux shy smile and over emphasised nervousness) while rushing past the press. Harry will talk about how his mother's death affected his mental health, how he couldn't protect Diana but he will do everything in his power to protect his wife etc. I suspect that the tour will be the backdrop, but the narrative will be very much about what helpless victims Team Sussex are in the face of a vile and bullying press. The lawsuit provides the perfect crescendo to the plot.
abbyh said…
How to do the HTML tags

To open the section you, you do <> and end the section, you do

For italics, you put an i. Bold is b.

example but it has extra spaces between all the parts because otherwise it would do the HTML thing and you couldn't see it.

< i > copied sentence < / i >

Does this help?
JLC said…
@ Stacey1985

That sounds scarily like you may have nailed it. God, how awful if you are right!
pi said…
So they continue to saturate the media feasting on saccharine PR self-love to satisfy their deep and relentless gluttony. Bottomless coffers are good for brainwashing and narcissism.
Curiously said…
One of Harry’s “bffs” was on Ellen extolling the virtues of the Harkles - “The most depressing (thing) is that the media and even some people are not seeing that these two (Meghan and Harry) are heroes, we should be treating them as heroes,” he said passionately.

https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/royals/very-hard-harrys-longtime-friend-slams-critics-over-royal-backlash/news-story/7fb0e8afc13c3ecc55b2ad38b40c445b
Girl with a Hat said…
I can barely stand to see her face so I won't be watching a documentary about her. When there's a DM story, I just scroll past all of the photos as quickly as i can to get to the comments. She thinks she is attractive but her pursed lip smile and crazy eyes repulse me. Why doesn't someone tell her this? This is not how a normal person shows happiness.

Artemisia19 said…
USA Today has an article on Harry’s exchange with reporter in SA. Comments are mixed with those saying it’s racism and those saying it’s MM’s narc behavior. I’m starting to think Harry’s frustration is about the scathing comments about MM’s behavior that have gotten progressively worse in the past year. I’ve been watching the news coming out of both Britain and the US since the marriage, so I knew early on MM was trying to build her brand in the US. The comments on the US Yahoo articles are getting on the same level as on the DM site, with people pointing to specific actions to back up their thoughts. My sense is it’s not all trolls.
Nutty Flavor said…
hero, noun, plural he·roes

- a person noted for courageous acts or nobility of character:
He became a local hero when he saved the drowning child.

- a person who, in the opinion of others, has special achievements, abilities, or personal qualities and is regarded as a role model or ideal:
My older sister is my hero. Entrepreneurs are our modern heroes.
Girl with a Hat said…
At their first appearance in SA, there was a woman who is known in CapeTown for practicing voodo who was among the crowd. She started these different incantations and was burning clove to ward off evil, which they incarnated, apparently. Will they be showing that in the documentary?
Nutty Flavor said…
@Stacey1985, interesting idea.

But would a member of the press make a documentary in which the press are the villiains?

Also, the public is a lot more media-savvy than they were in the 1980s, when Diana was pursued by the press.

Anyone who has ever made a video with their phone and cut it together for a family birthday, class reunion, etc. knows how to manipulate an edit.
Unknown said…
I wonder if the people in that documentary were made aware of being filmed. Also if that is sold, would these people benefit financially. If these people were unaware, then Nigel Casey has a lot of explanations to carry out.

Does anyone know what grant was given to the Johannesburg university? Whose money was it ? A radio announcer mentioned on air, that Markle provided the funds. Hard to believe that.
What other celebrities does Sunshine Sachs represent? They seem to be a bit CoS - thirsty with power.
NeutralObserver said…
@Alice Surrey James, Thanks for the Tumblr link to Charles quoting Bernard Levin on Shakespeare. I'm afraid that shade that subtle flies right over Megs' head. I don't know how to say this without sounding elitist, but the kind of people who take Oprah & Ellen for gospel won't get it either. The people who ran tv decades ago in both the US & the UK were likely well versed in & careful not to offend the sensibilities of the educated middle classes. That's no longer the case. I've watched in amazement as things like wrestling, reality tv, the Jerry Springer Show, & yes Oprah & Ellen have marched their way to the top of the entertainment heap, but they did. Megs & the Donald appeal to opposite sides of the same socio-economic demographic. Things are changing rapidly. It will be fascinating to see how this plays out over time. It's like watching a sport. Who will win? Tradition or the mob?
Liver Bird said…
The idiots over on Celebitchy are all saying no wonder poor persecuted Harry 'snapped' at the 'bully' Rhiannon Mills. They are certifiable. If this was William, you know 100% that all those wokerati would be going on about how awful and sexist it was for a rich white man to be so rude to a woman just doing her job. But because it's Harry the Hero, the situation is reverse.

It really is fascinating, in a bizarre sort of way, to observe such people. One can only hope there are't too many of them out there.
Liver Bird said…
@Nutty "But would a member of the press make a documentary in which the press are the villiains?"

If he can make out that it's just the OTHER members of the media - not himself and not his channel of course - who are rotten, then yes he could.

It's kind of like how you papers like The Guardian rush to say how poor Meghan has been so terribly mistreated by the media (though they are often vague about specifics). By media they of course do not mean classy, intelligent, right-on outlets like The Guardian, but the tacky tabloids.
Girl with a Hat said…
I was watching Ashlee on Danja Zone and she reports that Sunchine Sachs are quite upset because H&M are not taking their advice at all. They seem to be there as a sort of scapegoat to blame but not to listen to.
SwampWoman said…
@ Unknown, Stacey1985

That sounds scarily like you may have nailed it. God, how awful if you are right!


I concur. Bravo!

Now, for Harry playing the Diana card on a regular basis, I believe that it is quickly becoming meaningless, much like the racism card is in the states. In about 11 months, he will be the same age as she was at her death. Is he still going to be hiding behind her death when he turns 40? When he turns 60? Diana was a very flawed person (I was not under her spell) yet she made two little boys feel loved and at the center of her world. She did cause real change to the good for the causes that she championed.

Prince Charles was absolutely excoriated by the press. His causes were derided. Camilla was ridiculed for her appearance, her character, the way she dressed. Every word dripped vitriol on them. They persevered regardless.

Prince Harry and MM, with the mild and, IMO, completely justified criticism that they have endured, seem whiny brats in comparison.
Liver Bird said…
"One of Harry’s “bffs” was on Ellen extolling the virtues of the Harkles - “The most depressing (thing) is that the media and even some people are not seeing that these two (Meghan and Harry) are heroes, we should be treating them as heroes,” he said passionately"

I'm guessing you are referring to Argentine polo hunk Nacho Figueras, who is probably a 'friend' of Harry's in the same way Serena is a 'friend' of Meghan's - they live on different continents and probably see each other at most a few times a year.

He also grovelled about Harry during privatejetgate this summer. Turned out he has business interests in the private jet company the Harkles supposedly used to fly to Ibiza. That's the thing with all these 'friendships' - scratch the surface and there's pretty much always some kind of PR or financial connection. Harry's real friends - the ones he hasn't ditched since Meghan came along - would never speak to the media.
abbyh said…

user error

to close HTML is < / letter of what is to be done >

the example (with all the extra spaces) is correct

apologies

luxem said…
@Nelo. I think the RF is quietly supportive of the MoS. They (RF) know the Discovery process of the lawsuit will reveal unsavory information about Meghan and her manipulative ways. Perhaps they hope once the facts are revealed, the world and Harry will finally see Meghan for who she really is. This gives the RF more options on how to deal with her. It may have taken 7 months to get to this point because Meghan was sure if she kept upping the ante, MoS would fold and they didn't. To get out of this sticky wicket, will Harkles withdraw the lawsuit and say it has "served its purpose" - "to shine a light" on the abuse, "empowered" Meghan to stand up for what is right, and a call for more "kindness"?
Liver Bird said…
"In the issue of the suit, Dickie Arbiter, the Queen's former secretary said on the Today show that he believes MoS will back down in order not to affect access to the royal family. What do you all think?"

I think that would very much depend on how much support - if any - the Harkles are beleived to have from the rest of the royals. If the Harkles are on their own in this - as the evidence suggests - then there would be no reason to back down as they don't give 'access' to British reporters, other than their mouthpieces, in any case. If however they do have support from senior royals, despite appearances to the contrary, then Arbiter might be right.
punkinseed said…
It seems the only people who haven't figured out yet that Harry's use of the Diana Card expired a long time ago are Harry and his paid mourners and fans. It's one thing for him remind us of his mother's accomplishments, but to use her death to scaffold his poor behavior, temperament and disrespect for the press and anyone who disagrees with him is ridiculous. I expect that somehow the documentary will reference him walking behind Diana's coffin.

He uses the Diana death card when he's in a hole, like use of private jets for his family's safety, or why he gets drunk and uses drugs, or how the press is to blame for Diana's death. Blaming the messenger is always a cowards way out, but hey, what can we expect from a vacuous prince and his pompous wife who won't listen to their advisers?


I cringe whenever I hear that Harry did or said this or that because, ya know, his mom died. That does not give him a free pass to behave the way he does. Note that JFK Jr. never played that card game with his dad's death. And JFK Jr. was no bright bulb either, but he kept on trying and passed his exams. He didn't say, "I flunked the bar exam because ya know, my dad was killed..."

Richard Nixon was credited once as he was watching one of Robert Kennedy's campaign speeches. In the speech, RFK made references to his late brother and the crowd cheered. Nixon said at that moment something like, "Bobby would ride on top of Jack's coffin straight into the White House to get elected." I'm not sure if Nixon really said that; it was in the movie about Nixon, but the meaning stuck with me. Nixon lost his brother when he was very young to tuberculosis, so he was no stranger to such a loss.
Harry is not the 12 year old boy walking behind his mother's coffin any longer any more than John Kennedy Jr., may he rest in peace, was the 2 year old who saluted at JFK's memorial. In fact, John Jr. hated it when people reminded him of that salute because he didn't remember doing it and said he was sick of people using that to define him. Harry needs to quit letting himself ride Diana's coffin to define himself and deflect and defend his immature, selfish excuses for bad behavior. If you compare and contrast Harry with JFK Jr. it can really "shine a light." (I hate that term)

KitKatKisses said…
Swamp Woman said: "Prince Charles was absolutely excoriated by the press. His causes were derided. Camilla was ridiculed for her appearance, her character, the way she dressed. Every word dripped vitriol on them. They persevered regardless.

Prince Harry and MM, with the mild and, IMO, completely justified criticism that they have endured, seem whiny brats in comparison."


I am not a particular fan of Prince Charles, but what you point out irks me to no end.

I would add that Charles was ahead of his time about most of his pet issues, eapecially organic farming/gardening and architecture. What's more, Charles actually puts into practice what he preaches. He completely transformed the Highgrobe gardens through organic methods, and has been instrumental in saving and redeveloping homes, buildings, and small villages throughout the U.K. He is an accomplished watercolorist and is dedicated to British culture.

Harry OTOH has nothing that he is passionate about that stemmed from his own interests. Does he have interests other than partying and hunting and polo? Even Invictus was handed to him and is a copy of the Warrior Games in the US. With the arrival of Rachel from L.A, everything they pontificate about is just the latest celebrity cause...gender, race, climate, plastic straws, blah blah blah. You can tell they don't really care one way or another because they do not live it. What has happened to Sentebale?

Even Beatrice and Eugenie support causes close to their hearts--dyslexia and scoliosis--because they have lived through them. Same with William and Kate, and how they champion mental health issues, because they have affected their own families.

Harry and Rachel don't seem to genuinely care about anything other than Harry and Rachel. It's palpable.

So any documentaries or other PR nonsense just furthers the public's impression that this is a real life version of "The Emperor's New Clothes." They are fake, and phony, and more people realize this every day.
Jen said…
@Unknown, To get out of this sticky wicket, will Harkles withdraw the lawsuit and say it has "served its purpose" - "to shine a light" on the abuse, "empowered" Meghan to stand up for what is right, and a call for more "kindness"?

I can absolutely see them withdrawing the suit because as you said, it has served its purpose (even though I doubt it actually has). If that does happen, it will likely happen Oct 14.
Nelo said…
@unknown, I don't know if there is any evidence to prove that the RF is supportive of the MoS. Most times things are not usually as we see it. Till date, no one can say with certainty that the queen didn't know and approve of Harry's statement before it was released. We don't know if she approved or if she didn't. We can only speculate. Only Charles and William were reported not to have been informed till the day it was released according to the Sun. But I've read and read many reports but none states explicitly that the queen wasn't aware. If her former secretary can go on air to say the MoS may eventually stand down so that they don't lose access, don't you think he's echoing what is said behind palace walls? Arbiter and his daughter Victoria are 'royal experts' and they have connections within the royal family as I hear they are even related to the queen. I highly doubt that Arbiter will go on air to push a narrative that is opposite of what the RF wants to be put out. I have a feeling that what he said is what the RF wants to be put out; which is for the MoS to stand down or lose access.
The truth is that EVERY SINGLE ONE of the royals will benefit of Meghan wins because they ALL hate public scrutiny and criticism. They all have a LOVE-HATE relationship with the press. Left to them, only sweet PR fawning pieces should be written about them.
Jen said…
@Nelo The truth is that EVERY SINGLE ONE of the royals will benefit of Meghan wins because they ALL hate public scrutiny and criticism. They all have a LOVE-HATE relationship with the press. Left to them, only sweet PR fawning pieces should be written about them.

RF may win, but the public that PAYS for their lifestyle, loses. They are public figures who are being taken care of by the taxpayers, so they can complain all they want, but at the end of the day, the British taxpayer has the right to know who/what/where and when. Deep down, BP is very well aware of this and probably more so in this current environment.
JL said…
@Nutty great insights as always
Re Page Six. That is Sunshine Sachs at work. Of course the firm being a NY firm first makes many deals with Page Six.

The truth is the woman journalist (Rhiannon Mills) Harry picked on has always been favorable to him. He was being a typical sexist patriarchal male who thinks he can tell a woman what to do. Behave! Gets my hackles up.

There is no doubt the Tour Documentary is a Markle production. It will be 80% about Meghan and will just be more of the demand to accept their narrative about themselves. It seems her belief in filmed illusion is so complete that she is still adamant that she can carve and manipulate public opinion with it. Despite how many of us tell her otherwise. How deeply unconscious are these two?

She fashions herself after Angelina Jolie in her desire to be a global humanitarian and earth mother figure and she wants her and Harry to be the new Jolie/Pitt duo (sad she hasn’t noticed how that turned out) only with a WOC slant.

Harry’s part will be Diana, Diana, Diana. Africa, Africa, Africa. He seems to forget that he is NOT African and is a visitor only and that marrying a biracial American woman does not make it so.

Of course there will be a sickening dollop on their grand love affair thrown in.

@Stacy1985 “Harry has been pretty tone-deaf about the optics of using the people of Africa like human props during this tour. “
THIS. My feelings exactly.
The doc will be more of the same.

@Nelo, I posted this on the previous post. BlindGossip has a high success rate with its blinds....so accordingly to this blind, none of the royals are supportive of Meghan over the lawsuit .

https://blindgossip.com/her-own-game/#comments

On another note, I keep checking, but there is not one story about Meghan or Harry in the DM today. Is the press about to dump them?! We can only live in hope!
Marie said…
@Nelo, I'm also beginning to question whether the Queen actually cares or is at least ignoring everything, hoping it goes away. I looked at the @royalfamily Twitter feed, and they are giving full coverage to every single event in H&M's tour. I'm beginning to think the Queen is more concerned about maintaining her Commonwealth legacy above all else. Why else would she immediately elevate Harry and Meghan to Pres and VP so quickly, or Meghan to patron of the Assoc of Commonwealth Universities, without waiting to see if they were actually up to task? They might be unpopular in Britain, but they certainly are more popular in the Commonwealth and with young people.

I never understood Harry's popularity in Britain ever because he seemed like an oaf and spoiled rich kid having his dad's people get him jobs, have his dad's people clean up his racist messes (Nazi, towelheads, Pakis) and pay his unpaid hotel bills, having his brother's people find him charity initiatives in the UK, but it seemed that likability is all that matters i.e. people can imagine having a beer and a good time with, instead of character and responsibility. This is part of why Meghan and Harry are probably always going to be popular with people who don't pay taxes towards their upkeep.
JL said…
As for “explains a lot” am certain the doc will be slanted toward how “intrusive” the press was on the tour, now using THEM as a prop for their narrative on the nasty press. These people got on a plane to cover them for a grueling ten days per her gluttonous appetite for attention and desire to refashion her image, only to be treated shabbily—as though they are subhuman— by Harry and used by Meghan.
The doc will only show hordes of cameras while conveniently not showing the tiny number of actual people paid to show up for their photo ops. However the hilarious James Weir pieces in News.com.au puts the lie to all of it. “Marnie!”

I also note that it feels like Fleet Street may have made a collective decision to cover Meghan as little as possible. Oh! The perfect punishment! Withhold attention, even if it hurts clicks. I hope it is true.
BigFanUSA said…
It will explain; harry's back pain, his snapping at the reporter, Meghan's working motherhood, the dangerous intensity of the reporters with cameras in their faces, and not much more. How many people watched their Gayle king thing? Literally nobody I know, and I am from Meghan's native California. I will pass on this. UNLESS it shows William and Catherine.
Girl with a Hat said…
the press may also have sensed that the public opinion has very obviously turned on these two, and no matter what they were printing about them, the vast majority of comments were negative if not downright nasty. What is the point of printing positive stories the public knows are completely false? It makes people think the rest of the stories are similar and people avoid the newspaper completely. Sure, the DM was getting paid to moderate comments and paid for publishing stories from Sunshine Sachs but their reputation with the public was in question.
Liver Bird said…
" Till date, no one can say with certainty that the queen didn't know and approve of Harry's statement before it was released."

We've been through this before, haven't we?

The statement was not made on an official royal site. The lawyers were not those used by the royals. The lawsuit was announced while a royal tour was still ongoing. This obviously is not absolute proof, however it is pretty convincing evidence that this action was not approved by the senior royals. I understand you want to believe otherwise, but the facts appear to be against you.

"The truth is that EVERY SINGLE ONE of the royals will benefit of Meghan wins because they ALL hate public scrutiny and criticism"

I think you are overestimating the significance of this suit. The royals have sued the press before, and won. This suit is mostly about copyright issues, not libel. Even if Meghan wins, it's highly unlikely to be a gamechanger as the costs will be easily absorbed by Associated Newspapers. If anything, it might make them less deferential twoards the royals, or certain royals at any rate.
Girl with a Hat said…
haha. Hubris is a bitch! This person says that private jets are a major source of greenhouse gases and by banning them, there would be a big gain with little pain! Harry and Markle in for it again!

Drastic Climate Action Needed Now... Let's Ban Private Jets!

We could reduce CO2 output by over 22 billion kilos per year by banning private jets immediately and with no exceptions. Further, it would affect the least number of people, who could most afford to make alternate arrangements...

#BanPrivateJets
PaulaMP said…
The only type of documentary about these two I would find interesting is if they did it at "home". See how the Royals live during a week at Frogmore (snort, I don't believe they live there or even together). People are basically nosy and I think would tune in to see the "behind the scenes" of their daily lives. I have zero interest in watching them prance around SA, seen enough of that already and doubt if they are going to reveal any big mystery. You wouldn't even know that they were British Royals if you didn't already know it, just some celebs trying to show off various causes. They seem to have zero interest in Britain.
Liver Bird said…
@Marie

"I never understood Harry's popularity in Britain ever because he seemed like an oaf and spoiled rich kid having his dad's people get him jobs, have his dad's people clean up his racist messes (Nazi, towelheads, Pakis)"

Harry was really only popular for a few years. For quite a while he was indeed perceived as an oafish, intellectually challenged spoiled brat. It was palace PR which came up with the idea of Harry the charming, 'people's prince' and which found the Invictus charity as a way to bolster his image and help people forget the stories of him partying naked in Las Vegas. It was working very well.... until Meghan came into the picture. At the time of his wedding, I'd say he was one of the most popular royals and while many were sceptical of her suitability, most were prepared to give Meghan a chance and hoped they'd be happy. The pair have done a great job in destroying that goodwill in little over a year.
Scandi Sanskrit said…
*Scribbles "stop trying to make fetch happen" on a banana* 🍌

*gifts it to Sir Splainsalot*
Hi everybody! I'm new here as a poster, but I've followed Nutty's blog since the beginning. What a great site!
This is my guess as to what MM has been planning-her long game. She is known for taking other's ideas and making them her own. She is also known for dropping people as they become "useless" to her, after she's used them for whatever purpose, and then dropping them when she's finished with them. Her father is an excellent example.
I'm thinking that MM and PH plan to open a chain of elite private clubs across the world, based on the Soho House. She's now seen the inner workings of the club, and this would be right up her alley. The use of the Soho House decorator let them see that side of the operation. Could Frog Cottage be the blueprint? I believe MM and PH plan to use the success of the Soho House as the guide to starting a chain of private clubs in direct competition to them. This is how MM has always gotten her ideas- from others (from writing on bananas to the Vogue cover), and then makes them appear to be her original ideas. Watch out, Soho house insiders! She'll use you, and then throw you away when she doesn't need you anymore.
She, and now Harry, believe that it will make them rich beyond belief, powerful in Hollywood and global politics. They will start in Harry's "beloved" South Africa for the first club, then expand from there on a global scale. She can tie in merching her self-exaggerated expertise in clothing (Vogue), travel, jewelry, home decor (Frogmore), baby clothes and other items (Archie), food and wine (Grenville cookbook), even looking to start a lifestyle, blog/magazine (like The Tig, but on the Oprah scale). She's getting close to the big money/power people of Hollywood and Washington,DC. As we've seen, both Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton have endorsed her, as have Clooney, Oprah, Elton John and Ellen. Now we have Desmond Tutu and the widow of Nelson Mandela to add to the list.
Their lives will consist of travelling from club to club (partying), around the world, making money off of the clubs, merching, etc., and they believe they can make it happen. Unfortunately, MM is using PH as a stepping stone to great wealth, and he's drunk her Kool Aid. What he doesn't realize is that he, too, is a stepping stone, and she will probably land a billionaire if this is successful. Then, bye bye Harry.
Look again at their movements in business ventures during the last year- the foundations, the copyrights, the renewal of The Tig, etc. It seems to add up to me, and all of this will happen as they travel under the guise of humanitarian work and travel. Another guess is that she and Harry split up during their trip to SA so MM could do some groundwork on this plan behind the scenes.

I'd love to hear what others here think of this idea.
GatorGirl said…
Just feeling thankful that this “documentary” will not be airing in the US! However, I’m sure People magazine will make noise about it. Sigh.

That all being said, wondering what happens when the U.K. ratings for the doc tank? In the US, third party services (I.e. Nielsen) measure and report tv ratings. If the doc tanked in the US it would be known. Does the same hold true in the U.K.?
Scandi Sanskrit said…
@PaulaMP:

Watching them "prance around SA" would make me feel quite uncomfortable actually.

It's not exactly a place one prances around in.

I think that's where all the public discomfort stems from.

She even acts like an Ugly American complaining about avocado in ENGLAND. What is there to complain about in England FFS. 🥑

Whose brilliant idea was it to put the two sort jesters in such a politically-charged country?
Scandi Sanskrit said…
*court jesters

Autocorrect being being an eff-ing clown 🤡👽
bootsy said…
@ Unknown "I wonder if the people in that documentary were made aware of being filmed. Also if that is sold, would these people benefit financially. If these people were unaware, then Nigel Casey has a lot of explanations to carry out."

I have an idea. Maybe they can sue MM for copyright/image rights violations:)
Scandi Sanskrit said…
@JocelynsBellinis said...

"I'm thinking that MM and PH plan to open a chain of elite private clubs across the world, based on the Soho House."

LOL. You know how I know what "SoHo house" is?

I learned what it was from Anna Delvey.

LMAO.

WHAT I watch a lot of true crime.

Including "Killer Women with Piers Morgan" lollolololo
Liver Bird said…
"She's getting close to the big money/power people of Hollywood and Washington,DC. As we've seen, both Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton have endorsed her, as have Clooney, Oprah, Elton John and Ellen. Now we have Desmond Tutu and the widow of Nelson Mandela to add to the list."

But like I said yesterday, none of these people care about Rachel Meghan Markle. They care about HRH the Duchess of Sussex, and being associated with the prestige and mystique of royalty.

Not one of these people would have given one minute of their time to Meghan 3 years ago. If and when she no longer has the allure of royalty behind her, how many of her new 'friends' will continue to support her?
Miggy said…
From the Daily Express.

Watch video and hear audience applaud panellist.

https://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/1186419/Meghan-Markle-fury-BBC-Question-Time-Duke-Duchess-of-Sussex-latest-royal-family-news
@Gator Girl, < i > That all being said, wondering what happens when the U.K. ratings for the doc tank? In the US, third party services (I.e. Nielsen) measure and report tv ratings. If the doc tanked in the US it would be known. Does the same hold true in the U.K.? < / i >

It’s ma one off, our ratings are given whether a programme is e.g okay, mediocre or great, e.g say 1 star out of a possible 5. Instead we have viewer numbers. So if 2 million watched it wouldn’t necessarily be seen as bad or good. Because, it doesn’t actually show or prove how popular they are, people might just watch to see how they come across, to be nosey, and not because they like them.
I've always assumed that there was an underlying purpose to Soho House, and I'm sure it's the same as what you're thinking. I didn't have to be told. It's fairly obvious. Now, please. Let's discuss things pleasantly here. Thanks.
The hypertext didn’t work for me with spaces! The first few times I did it, it worked. Then I got the error about not having closed tags, so I tried with the spaces! Lol
Scandi Sanskrit said…
Okay so I know where not supposed to get all political on this blog (so please forgive me nutty)

But isn't Piers Morgan supposed to be like this right-wing Fox News type of guy in England?

(I'm assuming this is the same Piers Morgan from the American show "Killer Women with Piers Morgan" because that guy had a British accent too.)

Well Piers Morgan claims that allegedly (ALLEGEDLY) woke Meghan slid into his DM saying she's a BIG FAN.

ALLEGEDLY.

IDK what should be more allegedly: The notion that Meghan is "woke" or that Meghan slid into Piers Morgan's DM.

I wish you all could see how I cackle on this blog. 😂🤣😂😂😂

I wish we were in some coffee shop lol-ing over literal tea ☕
Fairy Crocodile said…
@ LiverBird Yes, I also noticed that even the Times, so superduper politically correct and ever careful was saying that perhaps Harry should stay at home and read newspapers instead of trying to be in them all the time. The Times nevertheless blamed the public for treating MM badly and suggested MoS went too far by publishing the letter. I can't imagine Associated Press was not aware about the law when they did it, neither were they ignorant about Harry's previous threats to sue for allegedly mistreating his wife. So I firmly believe MoS has something up their sleeves.
Liver Bird said…
"But isn't Piers Morgan supposed to be like this right-wing Fox News type of guy in England?"

He used to edit the 'Mirror', a tabloid newspaper which is considered left-wing(ish), so no.

Now he's considered a bit of a sad sap more than anything else.
Scandi Sanskrit said…
Aw poor Piers. 😂

Please don't call him a sad sap that makes me kind of sad for him. 😢😢😢🤣 I like him on that show. I wouldn't slide into his DM tho.
Liver Bird said…
" The Times nevertheless blamed the public for treating MM badly"

Meghan is a public servant, an extremely privileged one. But a public servant nonetheless. It's her job to serve the public, not whine about being 'badly treated'.

"I can't imagine Associated Press was not aware about the law when they did it, neither were they ignorant about Harry's previous threats to sue for allegedly mistreating his wife. So I firmly believe MoS has something up their sleeves"

I don't know enough about the law to speculate on how good a case they may have, and neither does anyone else here. However, I would think that they know that even if they lose, the financial damage will be relatively small and easily offset by the publicity for their paper. Indeed, even if Meghan wins, it could be that so many embarrassing details will come to light during the trial that it will be a hollow victory for her.
bootsy said…
@ Scandi
As Liverbird has just stated, he used to edit the Mirror which is a left leaning tabloid.

As for his current incarnation, he is essentially now a shock jock who is purposefully rude and pugnacious about a variety of subjects, and is rude and combative towards guests simply in order to gain attention and ratings. Sadly this is all too common a ruse in media nowadays.

Scandi Sanskrit said…
Lol "his current incarnation"
@Fairy Crocodile. I think you're confusing the Associated Press (AP), a global news wire service, with Associated Newspapers, the old name for DMG, the owners of the Daily Mail and the Mail On Sunday. AP and Associated Newspapers are two different organizations. I've seen this mistake printed many times since the news of the lawsuit broke, and thought I'd just correct the error, as I worked for its competitor, United Press International (UPI) as a reporter. Just wanted to clear this up.
&Bootsy, ‘As for his current incarnation, he is essentially now a shock jock who is purposefully rude and pugnacious about a variety of subjects, and is rude and combative towards guests simply in order to gain attention and ratings. Sadly this is all too common a ruse in media nowadays.’

Well that might be because you don’t agree with what he has to say. I don’t always agree either, but it’s his job to challenge people. To bring up and touch on sensitive subjects, and he often brings up some very valid points, like it or not, agree or not.
QueenWhitby said…
It’s just been revealed Harry is also suing The Sun and The Mirror ( Murdoch Group) for allegedly tapping his phone and using the info.

I guess that explains a lot.
Fairy Crocodile said…
WORLD EXCLUSIVE: Prince Harry Sues The Sun and Mirror in Escalating War on Tabloids
October 4, 2019 Byline Investigations
For allegedly hacking his phone.
Liver Bird said…
Where did you read about Harry sueing The Sun and The Mirror? I can't find that in any news source.

BTW Murdoch does not own The Mirror.
Liver Bird. That is exactly what I want to see. All the salacious stories to come out to expose her true persona.
On the Bayou said…
@unknown I agree with you that the RF is quietly supportive of the MOS. We have all been wondering when the RF would spring into action and stop the madness that is H&M. Some believe that the RF is playing the long game and allowing Meg to sink her own ship. If all the salacious information that is believed to be out there about her comes out during the discovery process of the lawsuit, no one would be able to blame the RF for her undoing. She would have done that to herself. Genius.
Fairy Crocodile said…
JocelynBellinis. Thank you very much, I saw both versions used and didn't know which is correct. Much appreciated!
Fairy Crocodile said…
Liver Bird
https://www.bylineinvestigates.com/murdoch/2019/10/4/world-exclusive-now-prince-harry-sues-the-sun-and-mirror-in-war-on-tabloids?format=amp&__twitter_impression=true

Initially found on NotMyDuchess blog
Artemisia19 said…
Harry also is suing the tabloids regarding past phone hacking?
Liver Bird said…
Hmmmm.... just one obscure site reporting this. Could be true, but I'll wait to see when it's made official.
On the Bayou. A masterstroke. Do we sense the hand of Christopher Geidt here?
Sandie said…
Re: Prince Harry suing two media organisations for phone hacking ...

The phone hacking was when he was in his twenties. Would he really be starting an all-out war about that now? (BTW Prince William and Kate Middleton also had their phones hacked.)

This might be fake news? If not, no wonder he was stumbling about during that first engagement on the last day of the tour! (BTW I have had a badly pulled muscle in my back. It is agonising and immobilising, BUT a couple of over-the-counter medications enabled me to move around without pain when I needed to while it healed. The medications did NOT make me woozy at all.)

Here's the link: https://www.bylineinvestigates.com/murdoch/2019/10/4/world-exclusive-now-prince-harry-sues-the-sun-and-mirror-in-war-on-tabloids?
Avery said…
I haven't read the other comments yet, I'll settle in and prepare for that when I have more time to enjoy. What I want to say though is, nothing should HAVE to be 'explained'. It will explain a lot? How about they just conduct themselves in a manner that doesn't require an explanation? Cheese and rice. I'm so completely over them. I (never having heard of her) was excited that Harry had found 'the one'. I watched the wedding with wet eyes, then, with wide eyes as I noticed the awkward body language and cutting looks from RF in attendance. I still hadn't found you Nutty, so, I didn't think much of it after that. Then the 'pregnancy'. My eyes rolled so far back into my head I spent some time watching my hair grow. THAT is when I found all of you. Good grief. Since then it's been one train wreck after another and I can NOT look away! I slowly began to loathe her - felt badly for Harry, until he showed signs of complicity. William and Kate have never looked more regal since MM's entrance. If those two are good for anything, it's making the rest of the RF shine in comparison. I was born and raised in England and now live in the U.S. I am proud to say I am a Royalist. I love my Queen and the history that is the English Royalty. MM is soiling years of tradition and etiquette and making a mockery of something special. She, much like Trump, is taking the piss out of a once looked up to position. It's sad. So very sad. And no documentary is going to be able to undo what she has done. 'It will explain a lot'. Pfffft.
The only reference to this is from MM's old friend Lainey, who says she is trying to find out if this is true.
It was originally printed by bylineinvestigates.com. Here's the original story, with the filing papers:
https://www.bylineinvestigates.com/murdoch/2019/10/4/world-exclusive-now-prince-harry-sues-the-sun-and-mirror-in-war-on-tabloids
Anonymous said…
I think the documentary is the final trumpet blast signaling that Harry and Meghan are done with the U.K. They are moving on. Every single one of the PR events that they scheduled, promoted, smiled/smirked through, etc., could have been orchestrated for promotion in the U.K. Please do not tell me that there are not environmental issues in the U.K., that there aren't gender inequalities, etc., on which Harry or Meghan could have given the same canned speeches. I think that they would counter that they can't get that political in the U.K. because, hmmm, they are royal. But it's okay to be political in another country, where Britain has a history of colonial domination? They are wiping their hands of the U.K. because it's become too difficult for them to spin their desired image. A similar documentary, shot privately, in the U.K., highlighting the same issues, would have, even if it was a load of rubbish, done something to restore their image. As it is, this is nothing more than a docu-drama, but with the actual actors and not actors that look like them.

And one thing that seems to be evident from all this mess is that the uneasy relationship between the press and the royal family is a house of straw. Just as the press has the power to make an "image," it has the power to destroy that image. Hence, the repeated plays of Harry being rude to the reporter. Now, perhaps his back hurt. I've thrown out my back, and it hurts like a mofo. But did he turn around and say, "You know, Rhiannon, my back is killing me. Do you mind if I beg off?" No, he did not. I don't care what excuses he has. They set up a press event, and then he turns on the press because he'd done his shtick and that's all he wanted to do. It doesn't work like that.

I understand that there was a strict playbook for their tour, what the press was allowed to ask and what they weren't. Except that all those "secret" meetings Ms. Markle attended weren't, in fact, secret. They were nothing more than footage for the ITV documentary. Imagine how furious the rest of the press core is this morning, finding out that they'd been completely duped into playing by the rules, and there were all these other secret events going on that they had no invitation to. This is the birth announcement all over again. Single access given to one media outlet, while the other media outlets are left in the dust and out of the loop.

And this is exactly why they do not command any respect nor do they deserve any.
Liver Bird said…
IF - and I remain to be convinced - the latest lawsuit story is true, according to the docs in the linked article, it was filed about a week ago, with zero publicity or grandiose statements. That's in stark contrast to Meghan's brouhaha with her lawsuit. No mainstream news outlets have picked up the story. What's going on?
Stacey1985 said…
The plot thickens. My working theory is that the legal action is not actually about the letter to Meghan's father. It's a message. A warning shot. I was imagining that someone has another, less flattering letter out there, and the threat of it being published had Team Sussex spooked. Now I'm wondering if it was something else on Harry's phone (emails? Videos? Who knows) that's been discovered and they're afraid might be exposed to the public. Either way, I think that the lawsuit is a clumsy show of power aiming to scare the press into suppressing something big. It's not about the letter to Thomas Markle, and never has been.
@Liver Bird, ‘Hmmmm.... just one obscure site reporting this. Could be true, but I'll wait to see when it's made official.’

Totally agree. There’s a lot of fake news and stories out there, there’s nothing on any of the official sites, as yet anyhow.
bootsy said…
@ Louise500
Try again!
I agree with Piers Morgan on many things (MM for one). My issue is that he is purposefully rude and obnoxious, which results in his show being one big argument which isn't really constructive and means that interesting topics aren't covered with detail and clarity. Instead, he sits and shouts at people, interrupts them and antagonises them just to cause conflict. Great.
Fairy Crocodile said…
WizardWench, I would be very happy to see Harry move somewhere away from the limelight and be contented, living on whatever money his royal relatives can spare and on his inheritance from mommy and granny. But I doubt this is the plan his wife would approve. She is aiming at the global icon status a la Diana, that is why Diana card is played non-stop. She wants to be associated with Diana, including her perceived stalking by the media. Her mistake is people still remember what Diana was like and frankly MM is not in her weight category. I am not Diana's fan but I give her due because she was charismatic and genuinely compassionate to suffering.
Miggy said…
@ Liver Bird

It's all over Twitter.

Hugh Grant has already had a *pop* at Piers Morgan who retaliated.

https://twitter.com/piersmorgan?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
Liver Bird said…
Also note that again IF the story is true, Harry is using a different law firm to the one used for Meghan's case, which in turn is different to the one used by the royals.

Now, IF his private information has been hacked and used for news stories, he has every right to file a case as that is appalling behaviour, no matter how much of an annoying fool you are. But what really negative stories using this alleged data breach have run about Harry in recent years? I genuinely can't think of any.

Also, from what I know most cases like this are solved out of court, with substantial pay-outs. The cynic in me - and cynicism is rewarded when it comes to the Harkles - wonders if this could be yet another money grabbing mission?
@Bootsy, it helps that I don’t watch him on the telly (I don’t have time nor do I want to), I just read some of his columns in the DM. I tend to try and separate the person he is, as opposed to what he has to say and report on. I always agree on what he has to say about Meghan though.
Artemisia19 said…
I’m reading that the phone hacking by The Sun was years ago?
Artemisia19 said…
Always drama with these two, and always designed to jack up the algorithms.
Liver Bird said…
Yes, probably pre-Levenson. Didn't William and Harry already take action about phone hacking some years ago? So why now? And again, why the complete silence over these - arguably much more substantial - cases, while the big roll-out and whiny statement over Meghan's copyright suit?
Miggy said…
The Guardian have it now

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/oct/04/prince-harry-begins-legal-proceedings-against-sun-and-mirror-meghan
Marie said…
Oh the drama! Could be a money ploy, but as many point out, it's a long game of as long as multiple years before possible judgment and payout. But if the payout is big enough, then why not?

Also wonder if it's a PR thing - they launch the frivolous Meghan lawsuit. The press, as to be expected, furiously publish articles say they're whinging and to suck it up and that they're exaggerating and that journalists are acting responsibly and it's not the whole industry. Then Harry drops this lawsuit, to make his point to his fans and win over some skeptics, even though this alleged incidents happened years before Meghan. It also gets back at Piers Morgan and does reputation damage, because he's gone after Meghan publicly. Maybe it's their way of getting back indirectly. Doesn't always have to be about money; could be about pride too.
Liver Bird said…
Being reported in The Guardian now:

"The new cases mean that the royal couple are now pursuing active legal action against half the UK’s national print newspaper proprietors, with only the Telegraph, Guardian and Financial Times unaffected."

So basically it's all out war with the British media.
@Liver Bird, the claim hadn’t been filed ‘yet’ though. A threat?

All out war, and I don’t think it’s going to well.
Mom Mobile said…
@Avery- "My eyes rolled so far back into my head I spent some time watching my hair grow." OMG! Congratulations. You've just won the internet. I am legit LOL-ing. Thank you for articulating what happens when I have a hard eye roll - which is quite often with MM.
Liver Bird said…
@Louise Yes - like I said they may be hoping for a substantial financial settlement.

At this stage, these two just need to leave Britain. It's obvious neither of them like it very much, though it has given them everything. Feeling's mutual. I'll even drive them to the airport - or whereever it is that private jets use - if they're short of the few quid for the taxi fare.
Typo! That should be ‘hasn’t’! I already corrected auto predict once! Lol
Mom Mobile said…
@JocelynsBellinis, you mean Lainey and MM aren't BFFs anymore?! Looks like Lainey got Markled. ;)
@Liver Bird, ‘At this stage, these two just need to leave Britain. It's obvious neither of them like it very much, though it has given them everything. Feeling's mutual. I'll even drive them to the airport - or whereever it is that private jets use - if they're short of the few quid for the taxi fare.’

Totally agree, they need to leave. The downside, they will still want all the current privileges they enjoy and abuse. One might hope that Prince Charles would cut them off from all that, it’s sadly, unlikely to happen.
Artemisia19 said…
These lawsuits are a typical celebrity-style move.
Miggy said…
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7538927/Prince-Harry-launches-legal-action-against-owners-Sun-Daily-Mirror.html

Prince Harry filed claims at the High Court, Buckingham Palace has confirmed.
Lurking said…
I have a feeling the documentary will have an interview that is essentially, "whoa is me, you people are so mean."

So much of their behavior is tied up in politics, but this isn't the place for that discussion. My only comment is, the royal family did not appreciate what they were in for with Smeg and now the ever deafening roar for a republic. I really think that when the Queen steps aside (which is already planned and in the works with Charles taking over more duties) the end of the monarchy will not be too far behind.
bootsy said…
@ Stacey1985

I was thinking that too. British law is based on precedent, and if they won this case (if it gets that far) or the MoS backs down then it would potentially stop the publication in the UK of any personal correspondence that MM has sent. Let's face it, she has been married already and has had boyfriends before meeting PH so I would guess there are a lot of embarrassing emails/letters out there. Of course, if they were published in a US media outlet then that's a different set of laws. Not sure too many people care about her over there to bother reading anything:)
Jenx said…
I am now convinced they have something to hide. Something big. No other explanation for the pyrotechnics. Or, again, bigger agendas at play, perhaps. This is all so very strange.
Miggy said…
@Artemisa19

I agree! I doubt that Harry would have done this had he been on his own. This has Meghan's paw prints all over it.
abbyh said…
Pyrotechnics indeed.

Well, if politics is something they or she wants in the USA, trying to keep unpleasant parts of your past unprinted is file called Unlikely.

I thought that the phone tapping had been handled years ago.
Fairy Crocodile said…
I doubt the media will forgive the statement blaming them for the death of Diana and intended harm to his wife. They could have done quiet settlement if he had been discreet but not after such a public onslaught. They will drag them both through mud one way or the other.
With the latest lawsuit, it makes me wonder whether this tour documentary will be shown at all, or shelved?
bootsy said…
https://metro.co.uk/2019/10/04/prince-harry-will-sue-sun-daily-mirror-phone-hacking-10864512/

Interesting stuff. Piers Morgan, who is constantly sniping at MM and calls her a social climber, was a previous editor of the Daily Mirror and was part of the phone hacking scandal. Wonder if the lawsuit covers the period when he was editor.

For the record he was never found guilty of anything in a court of law. And as a comparison, neither was Michael Jackson. Not quite the same as being innocent!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfbAlsJhIaY
"Paxman: Piers Morgan told me how to phone hack | Channel 4 News"
Liver Bird said…
@bootsy

Piers Morgan and the Mirror were not involved in the phone hacking scandal. Morgan left years before it happened.
SwampWoman said…
Looks like PH is desperate for cash to me, as if he's planning on a big move.
Miggy said…
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2019/10/04/prince-harry-sue-sun-mirror-phone-hacking/
Girl with a Hat said…
isn't there a statute of limitations for suing about certain claims? when did the hacking occur? There's got to be a statute otherwise it will be hard to find evidence going that far back.
Miggy said…
Snippet from the Telegraph article-

Both Prince William and Prince Harry have been mentioned in previous phone hacking court cases, along with the Duchess of Cambridge and members of palace staff.

Previous allegations over accessing voicemail messages have related to the Princes when they were in their 20s.
@bootsy, ‘Interesting stuff. Piers Morgan, who is constantly sniping at MM and calls her a social climber, was a previous editor of the Daily Mirror and was part of the phone hacking scandal. Wonder if the lawsuit covers the period when he was editor.’

Why would Harry bring (retrospective) legal action all these years later? I thought he and William did so at the time of the phone hacking incident ? This would have to be allegedly new stuff he’s suing against surely?
PaulaMP said…
BBC Breaking News has reported it as well
Liver Bird said…
It's all very odd. Would the tabs really be brazen enough to hack the phones of a member of the royal family in the post-Levenson era? At a time when relations with the royals were running in a way that was mostly beneficial to all concerned?

I guess they might. We can disliked the Harkles, but let's not pretend the tabs are anything other than appalling. But I'd say it's unlikely.

So either this case is connected to a more than decade old hacking incident, or to a more recent story which has yet to break. While the latter would be more scandalous, my money is on the former, as a way to win a financial settlement and/or frighten the media into silence. Dimwit Harry is taking a massive gamble.
abbyh said…
Statute of limitations might be about 4 years unless it has been changed

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/11854703/Computer-hacking-probe-dropped-after-four-years.html
@MomMobile, unless Lainey is floating a trial balloon for MM. Throw a rumor out to the public and see what the public thinks of it or to gain attention. Politicians and PR firms use trial balloons all of the time. In this instance, Lainey was used to get the other newspapers to report on these lawsuits. I don't think Lainey's been Markled yet, but give MM time. ;)

Bylineinvestigates----->Lainey------> major British newspapers. Would anybody have known about this if not for Lainey? Hmmm. Lots of press for H&M, and even bad press is good press to actress types. If it was filed on the 27th, the press didn't pick up on it, so she needed another way to get this story out. Lainey.
Liver Bird said…
@Abby I don't think that case can be compared with Harry's one.
Liver Bird said…
Trust me, pretty much nobody in Britain knows or cares who Lainey is. Certainly no major British newspaper would even think of basing a story on her blog.
Eowyn said…
Spectator will probably be the next to be sued by Toxic Couple.

https://spectator.us/please-america-take-meghan-markle-back/amp/?__twitter_impression=true
@Liver Bird, ‘win a financial settlement and/or frighten the media into silence.’

I think it’s the above. He sees it as a win-win, whereas others would probably see it as foolish. Fans of the Sussex’s are besides themselves with rapturous joy, whereas most sane people are just fed up to the back teeth with them.
Liver Bird said…
@Louise

I guess it's only foolish if Harry sees his long-term future with the royal family and knows that like it or not, they have to keep the press onside.

However, if he's already got one foot out the door and wants a down payment in the knowledge that royal funds will soon be cut off, and also wants to bolster the back-story of the horrid British media bullying himself and his mixed-race wife, then it may be a smart move. Or not. We shall see.
Nelo said…
I've been saying repeatedly on this blog that there is no way the queen isn't backing Harry and there is no way Harry and Meghan will disobey the queen if she gives an instruction. Some commenters said because Harry didn't announce it through royal channels it meant the queen wasn't in support. In life, things are not usually as they seem on the surface. Just recently, Dickie Arbiter said the MoS will back down from the suit because they won't want to lose access and I immidiately believed that it is what the palace wanted to be put out. Few hours after he said it, BBC reports that Harry is suing Sun and Mirror and guess what, Buckingham palace was the one that announced it. So we can now put the speculations that the BRF isn't in support of the Sussexes to rest. I kept saying it but no one believed me. Queen Elizabeth Windsor will never side the press against her grandson. Never.
bootsy said…
@ Liverbird
Incorrect https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/phone-hacking-the-piers-morgan-connection-mirror-admits-some-stories-during-morgans-tenure-may-have-9817258.html


Considering that Rebekah Brooks was actually cleared of phone hacking then it's no surprise he wasn't charged (or tried).

We'll have to wait to see what PH is talking about r.e. this phone hacking and how long ago it occurred. Might be another form of hacking rather than the voicemail hacks in 'the golden years.' Lots of celebs have their phones hacked and pictures stolen so.....

As someone mentioned already, it would be the dumbest thing ever for the Press to have hacked his phone after the original scandal. If they have done it then good luck to him and I hope he wins his lawsuit.

Marie said…
Frightening the media might be it. Doing a lawsuit for financial settlements sounds practical, but in reality that's a pretty large gamble where only the lawyers for both sides are guaranteed to come out richer.

@bootsy and@Louise500, ‘Interesting stuff. Piers Morgan, who is constantly sniping at MM and calls her a social climber, was a previous editor of the Daily Mirror and was part of the phone hacking scandal. Wonder if the lawsuit covers the period when he was editor.’ Wondering the same - so far the initial article BylineInvestigates certainly has said so, but don't know this publication at all or its editorial quality.
@Nelo, I disagree entirely. The Sussex’s have shown through their behaviour how much they don’t care or respect the royal family/Queen. Various official newspapers and programmes, all state she (and Prince Charles) was only ‘informed’, that is not being supportive of The Sussex’s move, merely they were told ‘after’ the lawsuit was filed.
Miggy said…
@ Nelo,

Buckingham Palace have only confirmed that documents have been filed on behalf of Prince Harry by his legal firm.

Nothing more.

Liver Bird said…
"I kept saying it but no one believed me"

That's because it likely isn't true, no matter how clearly desperate are you to believe it. Did BP 'announce' it? Or did they just confirm enquiries from the press? Because it is not the same thing. I don't see it on their twitter site.

If you genuinely believe that the queen supports her thick grandson taking on basically the entire British press, after years, indeed decades of building up a relationship with them, then I don't know what to say.
Miggy said…
From BBC

The BBC has not yet established when the duke's allegations date from.

However, Jonny Dymond, the BBC's royal correspondent, says: "The presumption is this goes back to the phone hacking scandal of the early 2000s."
Liver Bird said…
Right. So he's just decided to reopen a case from 10 or 15 years ago.

Why? And why now?

Has he actually taken leave of his senses?
@Liver bird, I'm not saying they based their stories on Lainey's blog post. I'm saying that MM used Lainey to get the press to find out if it's true, to push them in the right direction to find the info. And those British tabloid reporters who write about MM and Harry will know about Lainey as well as they know about Jessica M., whether they're British or not. It's their job to look at all coverage, including blogs, to see what they can dig up on H&M. Lainey and MM go way back, and the British tabloid press who cover MM know who Lainey is in relation to MM. They aren't going to quote her, but the will read her blog. That's their job.
Reporters start their day reading all of the news wires, every paper on their beat (I read 12 newspapers a day when I was reporting) and today, blog posts, insta, facebook, snap,etc. Lainey is one of the leading bloggers about MM. It doesn't matter where she lives.
Stacey1985 said…
Something has got Team Sussex spooked, and I don't buy that it's all over an eight month old letter to Smirkle's father (a letter that she herself clearly wanted to be released) and a decade old phone hacking scandle. The best defense is a strong offense and this legal action reads like a warning shot. It's a clumsy show of power trying to frighten the press into either silence or submission. Something else is going on here.
Liver Bird said…
Sorry no, that is nonsense. Lainey is a total and complete nobody here. I can assure you of that.

The story was first floated on a fairly obscure British website, then made its way to Twitter, hence the MSM. Some small-time gossip colomnist from Toronto had nothing to do with it.
Liver Bird said…
These captchas are doing my head in.
SwampWoman said…
Blogger Mischi said...
isn't there a statute of limitations for suing about certain claims? when did the hacking occur? There's got to be a statute otherwise it will be hard to find evidence going that far back.


That was my first thought, and I went looking through their (UK's) limitations. My best guess
is that he's trying to keep something from being published. If they/he made their/his own sex tape, I can only pray that he succeeds.
bootsy said…
@JocelynsBellinis
Thanks for the interesting and informative posts. It's always good to gain a professional insight into how things work in any profession. I'm starting to think, no that's not true, am now thinking that the media in general is one big sham as the internet (via twitter and numerous other 'news' sites) bombard us with 'info' that is carefully managed in ways a layman like me will never quite understand.
Lurking said…
@Liver Bird

"Has he actually taken leave of his senses?"

Very likely.

As a money grab, this doesn't make sense. He has a $30mil+ slush fund. What does he really need to pay for? He has a home provided by the British taxpayers, travel expenses picked up by "friends" when not traveling for official duties, and a clothing allowance for official duties. What does he ever actually pay for? The nanny? Heating and electricity? Personal expenses? I know avocados are expensive, but come on! BBC license? He's known to be tight and there have been many instances in the past where others have covered his expenses... Wynn excusing or personally covering his partying in Las Vegas to the tune of $30K.

This isn't about the money. It doesn't matter that in their circle others have more money. They have something more valuable than money. They have access to world leaders and movers & shakers in every industry. They don't need money, they need to bolster their image, be seen as authorities on whatever has the political class chatting at the moment (climate change), charitable, and likable. As long as they are liked by the masses, they have something to offer those seeking access to their circle.

This is about controlling their image, preventing ordinary people from commenting negatively, and protecting their brand. They just want people to shut up about them already, giving them a pass on their behavior and hypocrisy. These lawsuits are aimed at us, not the media.

What they don't understand is that the plebs are pushing back against the elites. We no longer live in a time where the royals, politicians, celebrities can dictate the message and the plebs will gleefully and silently follow along. They also don't understand that the internet is forever. I can't help but get the image of the little boy who stick his finger in the leak in the dyke out of my mind. With every hole that is plugged, a new one pops up.
Girl with a Hat said…
hahaha. I hope it's a sex tape and it comes out. I look forward to seeing Harry with a ball gag in his mouth and Meghan in black latex and a whip.
Of course she is a nobody to the British masses. But to people who report on MM, she is well-known. Trust me. I used to do this for a living. Are you a reporter? Do you have any background in reporting? Or are you just guessing?
Yes, I did what Lainey should and could have done. I looked up the info for the original website that published the news. It's a pay to be published site, and it lists only one reporter, the owner of the site. Anybody can write for it, reporter or not, and their are paid by crowdsourcing for money- asking for donations. Then, to make more money, they have to "climb up the ladder". Almost like a multi-level marketing scheme, and not the way a legit news organization works.
Here are the FAQs for its website.
https://www.byline.com/faq
Now, why couldn't Lainey take the five minutes it took me to find this info before publishing it on her blog?
Liver Bird said…
"As a money grab, this doesn't make sense. He has a $30mil+ slush fund. What does he really need to pay for? He has a home provided by the British taxpayers, travel expenses picked up by "friends" when not traveling for official duties, and a clothing allowance for official duties. What does he ever actually pay for? The nanny? Heating and electricity? Personal expenses? I know avocados are expensive, but come on! BBC license? He's known to be tight and there have been many instances in the past where others have covered his expenses... Wynn excusing or personally covering his partying in Las Vegas to the tune of $30K."

That's all true so long as Harry is a member of the firm. But what if his plan is to leave? He'd still be a wealthy man but he'd actually have to use his own money rather than depend on the taxpayer or dad to fund his lifestyle. And the very expensive lifestyle of his wife. Speculation obviously, but more and more I do think these two are burning their bridges and setting themselves up for a life in LA. It will be the biggest mistake of Harry's life, worse even than the decision to marry her.

But agree that this is definitely about trying to control the press. He's taken on basically the entire British media, and who knows where he'll finish? Over allegations that are over a decade old?

He needs psychiatric help, not a law suit.
OKay said…
I'm just so tired of all this. I say we should give them EXACTLY what they (claim to) want. No more pictures of or stories about either of them. Happy now, Meg?
@bootsy, I agree, it's a dirty business, and that's why I got out of it.
Fairy Crocodile said…
Just looked the the comments on DM and people are not supporting him. The way he is handling it is going to harm them even more.
So is Harry resurrecting the hacking case from the early 2000’s?! What law firm in their right mind would go a long with this farce? Harry has well and truly lost the plot if this is the case. It’s a snatch and grab for money. and to shut down all criticism about him and Meghan in order to protect their ‘brand’. They clearly see themselves as ‘celebrities’. What a disgraceful pair of oiks they are. I hope the press ignore them for good, let’s see how they like that.
Lurking said…
@Liver Bird:

"That's all true so long as Harry is a member of the firm. But what if his plan is to leave? He'd still be a wealthy man but he'd actually have to use his own money rather than depend on the taxpayer or dad to fund his lifestyle. And the very expensive lifestyle of his wife. Speculation obviously, but more and more I do think these two are burning their bridges and setting themselves up for a life in LA. It will be the biggest mistake of Harry's life, worse even than the decision to marry her."

He would lose having his expenses covered for official duties, however, he would still have the free housing from grans. There are other non-working royals that live in grace & privilege housing. He would likely still get the allowance (if he receives one) from Charles until Charles becomes king. We know about his $30mil trust, but we don't know of other trusts or assets he may own or at least benefit from.

This is about protecting the brand so they have access to royals and politicians. Merching is insignificant compared to what he can earn through peddling access.

He needs mental health intervention and new advisers. No one he has surrounded himself with is doing him any favors.
Fifi LaRue said…
Suing all kinds of tabloids, and now suing for something that's 15 years old is very strange.
Megs must have egged PH on with her assertions that they're being abused by the media. It was reported somewhere that PH is using his trust funds to pay legal fees. Meg got skinflint PH to spend money on a form of PR, because that's what this is all about. If PH continues to be under the spell and direction of Meg, he will soon find his trust has dwindled to almost nothing. Between the lawyers for all their multiple lawsuits, and formally paying Sunshine Sachs for PR, Harry will soon find himself broke. Then Meg will find a way to leave, after Harry is broke.
JL said…
If he wanted out, he’s doing qn excellent job. Beverly Hillbillies here they come.
Catty said…
Looks like Harry is going after Piers Morgan.
Nelo - Harry & Meghan haven't respected the Queen in ages so why are you insisting she is backing this? If she were backing it the statement would have appeared on the royal sites & not a new site they created for that purpose. They are truly on their own now - I hope whatever big scandal they are trying to suppress is released - if you are going to get sued for it might as well print it & let the public decide. It is the public Harry & Meghan are truly trying to suppress right now.
Liver Bird said…
"He would lose having his expenses covered for official duties, however, he would still have the free housing from grans."

That would be the ase only if he were to stay in GB, but the plan would obviously be for them to relocate to America.

" He would likely still get the allowance (if he receives one) from Charles until Charles becomes king."

He doesn't receive one. The Duchy of Cornwall covers the expenses of the Prince of Wales' children, but only on official duties.

"This is about protecting the brand so they have access to royals and politicians. Merching is insignificant compared to what he can earn through peddling access."

He's not clever enough to work that out though. And he's married to the would-be queen of merching. However, nobody will be interested in either of them once they've split from the royals and are into middle age. They're just both too arrogant to see tht.

"He needs mental health intervention and new advisers. No one he has surrounded himself with is doing him any favors."

Yes I agree. He is clearly deeply troubled. This is only going to make it worse.

An above poster's hero Dickie Arbiter was just on Sky News saying that 'someone' (!) had advised him to do this but it certainly wasn't the BP communications people. I fear Haz has alienated those around him so much that it's hard to see a way out, at least not so long as he's married to Meghan.




@rabbit, ‘Harry will soon find himself broke. Then Meg will find a way to leave, after Harry is broke.’

Maybe this is Meghan’s ‘end game’. She’s broken all her previous relationships in one way or another. She breaks Harry in every way she can, in order to get what she wants. Then leaves him for a different and wealthier life.
Liver Bird said…
I believe Harry has an engagement somwhere in the UK next week. On the 10th?

It will be VERY interesting to see what - if any - coverage he gets from the British media. Given that pretty much all of them are currently being threatened with legal action from the Harkles, it would be in their interests to band together and just act as though they don't exist. You don't want us around? Fine. Have it your way. Let's see if your beloved CNN will come out to cover your trip to an old folks home in Bognor Regis in the depths of winter.
JL said…
People like her only care about being a global topic of conversation. She is nothing to me. It’s his flaming assholery that enrages me.
Mom Mobile said…
Do we know for certain this recent suit is about the phone hacking from the 2000's? I read an article where is was assumed but not confirmed.

Also, if they're going after Piers Morgan, that makes me think that some of the commenters' speculations may be true. Piers has dirt on MM.
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