The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Family, News and Events 1: September-December 2020

[Denville]

While Meghan indeed attracted 'new' fans, I am not sure that truly extended to 'the rest of the royal family'. And her actions of late more likely pitched the new recruits against the royal family instead of resulting in a larger group of supporters/followers of the BRF.

Well people who took an interest because Meghan had become a a royal are not that likely to remain interested in the RF after her speedy and somewhat dramatic departure. If they liked her, and she walked out on the RF odd are that they would lose interest in the RF, or become hostile to them... and follow Meghan in her new life

 

[AC21091968]

Meghan actually garnered a lot more interest in the royal family from young people, which is something that other brides haven't had so much (apart from very famous brides like Diana) - especially young people from ethnic minority backgrounds. Many people who said they previously had no interest in the BRF or who shared more republican (in the English sense!) views were now taking an interest in Meghan and the rest of the royal family.

While Meghan indeed attracted 'new' fans, I am not sure that truly extended to 'the rest of the royal family'. And her actions of late more likely pitched the new recruits against the royal family instead of resulting in a larger group of supporters/followers of the BRF.

You are both right. Meghan has attracted "new" fans, particularly from the younger generation, people from ethnic minority backgrounds, republicans/anti-monarchist or just people not usually interested in the Royal Family. However, I think Meghan has also driven away traditional/conservative monarchists, who are quite "turn off" by her even going back to the engagement and wedding. Some of these traditional monarchists believed that The Queen and the Royal Family are too soft/lenient on Harry & Meghan and Andrew. Some of them even vow to become a Republican if the Queen does not act tough actions fast enough or when Charles become King. I am not quite sure what they meant by "tough actions", but I can guess along the lines of

• Remove the Duke of Sussex and Duke of York from them, though it can only be done by an Act in Parliament
• Remove the HRH style and Prince title (I assume they meant "editing/modifying" the Letters Patent, which I think it's quite ludicrous)
• Remove Royal Patronages or other representative roles (Some posters here have pointed out that it's quite difficult to do so)
• Completely cut them off financially and possibly "pay back" the money to HM Treasury (Not receiving from the Sovereign Grant, Duchy of Cornwall, Duchy of Lancaster or other Trusts) (Harry & Meghan of course have already pay back the renovation for Frogmore cottage and vow to earn independently for a living)
• Not appear in the public eye or even complete ostracisation, similar to the 7th Earl of Harewood and possibly Marina Mowatt (daughter of Princess Alexandra) at one point (The latter one is in the extreme circumstance!)

Edited: I have included Marina Mowatt, because there was a "scandal" at that time, during her first pregnancy's announcement when Marina and Paul were not married

 

[Sandy345]

I think it is totally different from Harewood, he was involved with another woman while married and at that time it was a scandal. Times have changed and three of the queen's children have divorced. His mistress gave birth to his son while he was still married. Later it was found that Mark Phillips and Snowdon had had children by other women and it was not the "scandal" it was with Harewood. Snowdon was never ostracized and Mark Phillips and Anne divorced.

I think it would be too"draconian" to take Harry and Meghan's titles away and I doubt the Queen will ever remove Andrew's titles in any case. This might open a can of worms with questions about why the York Princesses and the Queen's cousins have titles.

 

[AC21091968]

I think it is totally different from Harewood, he was involved with another woman while married and at that time it was a scandal. Times have changed and three of the queen's children have divorced. His mistress gave birth to his son while he was still married. Later it was found that Mark Phillips and Snowdon had had children by other women and it was not the "scandal" it was with Harewood. Snowdon was never ostracized and Mark Phillips and Anne divorced.

I think it would be too"draconian" to take Harry and Meghan's titles away and I doubt the Queen will ever remove Andrew's titles in any case. This might open a can of worms with questions about why the York Princesses and the Queen's cousins have titles.

I have edited my post earlier to include Marina Ogilvy, but I am not quite sure if she was actually ostracised. This was after her first pregnancy announcement (whilst the couple were not married at that time). Apparently, there was a feud between Marina and her parents, who possibly suggested that she either married Paul Mowatt or have an abortion. To some, Marina has been described as a "loose cannon" or scandalous figure, particularly after a photoshoot with her in a "fake crown" surrounded with corgis.

I agree with you that removing the Dukedoms, Prince titles and HRH style will open a can of worms, though I think some people might think that York Princesses should not be punished for their father's action. They would probably believe that the Queen's first cousins (apart from Prince Michael of Kent, who is not a working royal) have been dutiful in serving the country and representing the Queen for almost half a century with little or no fuss despite getting little coverage.

 

[Denville]

I have edited my post earlier to include Marina Ogilvy, but I am not quite sure if she was actually ostracised. This was after her first pregnancy announcement (whilst the couple were not married at that time). Apparently, there was a feud between Marina and her parents, who possibly suggested that she either married Paul Mowatt or have an abortion. To some, Marina has been described as a "loose cannon" or scandalous figure, particularly after a photoshoot with her in a "fake tiara" surrounded with corgis.

I dont think they were too happy with her, but I dont know of her being ostracised per se. She went through a rebellious phase for a couple of years then seemed to disappear but she was never a working royal anyway

 

[Betsypaige]

It is clearly a spoof site.

I didn't think so.......I would have no idea how to tell a spoof site from a real one, especially since I wouldn't put it past any Meghan fan to open such an account.

 

[ACO]

I didn't think so.......I would have no idea how to tell a spoof site from a real one, especially since I wouldn't put it past any Meghan fan to open such an account.

Most these sites have been opened by the Megxit crowd. I suspect this is another. There have been a few and the press even picked this up calling it a spoof as well. Creative though but you won't find me spending money and all that time on someone I clearly dislike. Couldn't be me. LOL

 

[AC21091968]

Gloria Steinem was on The Ellen Show (virtually) and Meghan was mentioned (starting from 3:10 to 4:00). The term "cold called voters" was used.

Ellen DeGeneres@TheEllenShow
.@GloriaSteinem reminds us why hope is so important.
4:33 AM · Oct 8, 2020·Twitter Media Studio​

https://twitter.com/x/status/1313895291087593473

 

[ACO]

Harry and Meghan will be chatting with Malala for "Day of the Girl"

 

[Betsypaige]

Most these sites have been opened by the Megxit crowd. I suspect this is another. There have been a few and the press even picked this up calling it a spoof as well. Creative though but you won't find me spending money and all that time on someone I clearly dislike. Couldn't be me. LOL

Oh, lol...well, that could be, lol. Like you, I would never waste my time on someone I dislike; it’s kind of pathetic.

 

[camelot23ca]

While Meghan indeed attracted 'new' fans, I am not sure that truly extended to 'the rest of the royal family'. And her actions of late more likely pitched the new recruits against the royal family instead of resulting in a larger group of supporters/followers of the BRF.

I think Meghan will wind up being a wash for the BRF. It wasn’t struggling pre-Meghan and it’s not struggling now. I doubt The Queen gets up in the morning thinking that it’s a lucky thing she and her family were rescued from obscurity by Meghan Markle from Suits.

 

[ACO]

I don’t think the Queen does either but I will say that Meghan’s entrance definitely brought new eyes to the family. But that was inevitable. I saw the BRF talked about more globally in recent years. They have become sort of pop culture in a way again. Blogs, podcast, web series, etc. All this stuff happened in the last 2 years or so.

But all that said at the end of the day the monarchy is the monarchy. It always goes though ups and down with the media and world attention. This is one of the heights. It will slow down again and then the younger royals will become teens and the cycle will start up again.

It’s how it goes.

 

[muriel]

I don’t think the Queen does either but I will say that Meghan’s entrance definitely brought new eyes to the family. But that was inevitable. I saw the BRF talked about more globally in recent years. They have become sort of pop culture in a way again. Blogs, podcast, web series, etc. All this stuff happened in the last 2 years or so.

But all that said at the end of the day the monarchy is the monarchy. It always goes though ups and down with the media and world attention. This is one of the heights. It will slow down again and then the younger royals will become teens and the cycle will start up again.

It’s how it goes.

I saw the BRF talked about more globally in recent years. They have become sort of pop culture in a way again. Blogs, podcast, web series, etc. All this stuff happened in the last 2 years or so.

I have often read similar messages, and I largely agree. The entry of Meghan certainly did bring the BRF to the attention of a number of overseas people. This is not dissimilar to what happened with the weddings of Anne, Charles, Andrew, Edward and William respectively.

The question in my mind, though, is whether that overseas interest is of any use to the BRF at all? For example, the interest from an American audience is of use to the Queen. She does not reign over them, nor does she hope to. Unlike Meghan, the Queen has no interest in making money from speaking engagements or Netflix shows to be sold to the Americans. So, IMO, that interest and adulation actually amounts to very little for the Firm.

 

[Curryong]

Well, it certainly helps with donations to charities. Americans donate big to US based BRF charities, and sometimes don't get too much bang for their buck.

https://nypost.com/2019/12/14/ameri...-family-charities-which-skimp-on-their-cause/

Plus, members of the Royal Family, especially Charles and Diana/Camilla, have visited various parts of the US over the years and became friendly with prominent Americans, such as the Reagans. Charles has wealthy US friends even now, connected to his charities, like the Clooneys.

 

[ACO]

Yeah I will agree. It might not appeal to the Queen but it certainly seems having a more global (and I don’t just mean US) appeal has been the goal of the younger generation of royals. Not that it is a bad thing. It’s actually smart.

 

[muriel]

Well, it certainly helps with donations to charities. Americans donate big to US based BRF charities, and sometimes don't get too much bang for their buck.

https://nypost.com/2019/12/14/ameri...-family-charities-which-skimp-on-their-cause/

Plus, members of the Royal Family, especially Charles and Diana/Camilla, have visited various parts of the US over the years and became friendly with prominent Americans, such as the Reagans. Charles has wealthy US friends even now, connected to his charities, like the Clooneys.

Those wealthy American benefactors did not need MEghan to connect them with Charles, C&C have been covering them for years!

 

[Denville]

Those wealthy American benefactors did not need MEghan to connect them with Charles, C&C have been covering them for years!

People who got into the RF because of Meghan will almsot certaily have gone off the RF when Meg and H walked out....

 

[Darius1]

She was welcomed in the same spirit that any royal bride would be.. IMO. Ie some royal watchers who are very enthusiastic about the RF were really pleased and ready to welcome her.. Most people just thought of it as a royal wedding coming up and weren't that excited.. People IMO aren't THAT into the RF unless there is an event, like a wedding, or a scandal/big fuss like the war of the Waleses. I don't think that people were one way or the other with MEghan except for ardent Harry fans or ardent royal fans...but it would be the same whoever he married...Once she was married it was then up to her to do the job and see how she worked out, but while she did well at first and I think got some admiration and good press for enthusiasm, she also got criticism..But again that's to be expected.. Kate has gotten criticism and so did her family but a lot of it was in her courtship days and now she's settled into life and is admired for her low key but increasing work rate... and to be honest, with Meghan bowing out of royal life after little more than a year, Kate has the field to herself....
But Meg and Harry began to react badly to any criticism within the first year or so, and began increasingly it seems to do things that gave the press an excuse to have a go at them...

I think the attitude of many can be summed up by that of my 72 year-old mother. She was uncertain at the suitability of the match, given Meghan's worldliness, sophistication and evident ambition contrasting with Harry's very evident besotted behaviour, his relative immaturity and damaged past. She however, like many others hoped that it would work for them and that they would be happy.

Their apparent dereliction of their duty to the country and The Queen has I think turned many people off this couple. Their preachy video messages are a world away from the opinions, priorities and preoccupations of the majority of Harry's Grandmother's subjects and the perceived hankering after LA celebrity status makes a mockery of Harry's desire to be able to lead a private life. This combination has caused a cooling of the compassion and good will towards them and I think it would be very hard for them to return to the Royal fold and carry on where they left off.

 

[muriel]

People who got into the RF because of Meghan will almsot certaily have gone off the RF when Meg and H walked out....

Well said!

 

[Denville]

Well said!

and by and large, I dont think that these are people who'll be capable of giving huge donations to charities..Meghan DID attract some Hollywoold people who became friends with her when she married, and now she and H have developed relationships wiht some journalists.. but overall I dont think that the people who took to following the RF for a time when H and Meg got married are the rich and glitzy.. They are ordinary people who were pleased to see an "ordinary working woman" marrying into the BRF.. but now odds are that they are upset that Meg felt unhappy in the RF and wanted out and are not likely to contiunue following the RF....

 

[Osipi]

I think the attitude of many can be summed up by that of my 72 year-old mother. She was uncertain at the suitability of the match, given Meghan's worldliness, sophistication and evident ambition contrasting with Harry's very evident besotted behaviour, his relative immaturity and damaged past. She however, like many others hoped that it would work for them and that they would be happy.

Their apparent dereliction of their duty to the country and The Queen has I think turned many people off this couple. Their preachy video messages are a world away from the opinions, priorities and preoccupations of the majority of Harry's Grandmother's subjects and the perceived hankering after LA celebrity status makes a mockery of Harry's desire to be able to lead a private life. This combination has caused a cooling of the compassion and good will towards them and I think it would be very hard for them to return to the Royal fold and carry on where they left off.

I can only go by my outlook as an older American but, other than what is posted here at TRF, I don't "follow" H&M anywhere else. I rarely (if ever) play the video links or read the articles posted. When they left the "Firm", the reasons I was interested in them went with them. I don't buy into the "woke" culture as I believe the work the BRF has been doing for decades has it right and its serving the people rather than being self serving.

I wish the couple happiness and good fortune but the way they seem to be going now just doesn't really appeal to me at all. They made their decision on how they want to live their lives and I believe they have the right to do so but to be honest, to me, its a downgrade when it comes to being philanthropic and making a difference in the world.

 

[Denville]

I can only go by my outlook as an older American but, other than what is posted here at TRF, I don't "follow" H&M anywhere else. I rarely (if ever) play the video links or read the articles posted. When they left the "Firm", the reasons I was interested in them went with them. I don't buy into the "woke" culture as I believe the work the BRF has been doing for decades has it right and its serving the people rather than being self serving.

I wish the couple happiness and good fortune but the way they seem to be going now just doesn't really appeal to me at all. They made their decision on how they want to live their lives and I believe they have the right to do so but to be honest, to me, its a downgrade when it comes to being philanthropic and making a difference in the world.

but the point is.. that Meg and H walked out at least partly becasue they didn't feel that Meg was welcomed by the RF or the British press and public. I think that she got a reasonable welcome.. but I agree the press were never too keen on her...so that wasn't the best start. The public were Ok with her but I dont think tehre was any great emotion about them as a couple except by people who were already harry Fans or those who were plesased to see Meg - as an ordinary girl from an ordinary family - marrying into the RF.

 

[Osipi]

Maybe it's because I'm an American that I see the British Royal Family as an ordinary family in an extraordinary situation. People who make up a royal family still put their pants on one leg at a time like the rest of the world does. There is really very little difference between the prince and the pauper when it comes down to human nature. A royal human is just as susceptible to faults and foibles and mistakes as is the rest of us. ?

 

[Alison H]

I don't know - I think everyone got quite caught up in the wedding. It was such a lovely day - OK, the weather's just one of those things, but it was a perfect day, clear blue sky and sunshine, and everyone looked great, and people were posting all over Facebook about whose outfits they did and didn't like. It wasn't just that Meghan was an American or that she was mixed race, it was also that she'd been married before, and that they were able to marry in church anyway. It did seem to send out a message that it was OK for everyone to love whomever they wanted to, and I think people did really like that. And there was a lot of sympathy for Harry, after he lost his mother so young, and people were glad to see him happy.


But a wedding's just one day.

 

[Heavs]

They had a lot of well wishers at their pre marriage engagements and as far as I could see their post marriage ones as well. It would be fair to say that she didn't have much of a honeymoon period with the press and in the comments section which they read (and they even did the first 100 days review they do with US Presidents)and even then they had their die hard supporters, but I think they had a lot of warmth from the public in person. Although obviously that's only the small section that is the type to go in person for one reason or another. Things like the cookbook were also applauded.

I really don't think it's fair to trash the entire country and being unwelcoming and racist. It also didn't help that her entire paternal family were more than willing to help the tabloids try and bury her.

And they were dealing with a whirlwind romance turned marriage, moving to a new country and culture, billions of eyes on them, new "job for life" AND a baby all at once as well as wanting to modernise the monarchy in a few months. I mean they're still dealing with a lot of that now and it's a lot for anyone, something was bound to give, even for a normal couple.

 

[Mirabel]

People who got into the RF because of Meghan will almsot certaily have gone off the RF when Meg and H walked out....

Many of the more devoted Meghan fans seem to have left this forum, so I think you're correct about that.

 

[Betsypaige]

Their apparent dereliction of their duty to the country and The Queen has I think turned many people off this couple. Their preachy video messages are a world away from the opinions, priorities and preoccupations of the majority of Harry's Grandmother's subjects and the perceived hankering after LA celebrity status makes a mockery of Harry's desire to be able to lead a private life. This combination has caused a cooling of the compassion and good will towards them and I think it would be very hard for them to return to the Royal fold and carry on where they left off.

Preachy is a good way to describe them. There's an article on Prince William today, and this quote from that article sums up how I feel:

Ms Tominey pointed out that the Duke's style of campaigning is 'markedly different' to Harry and Meghan Markle's videos addressing racism and politics.

'Those closest to him insist that the last thing he wants to be is a "preaching Prince",' she said. adding that the insider insists William has 'no interest in telling people how to live their lives' and is 'realistic'.

I'm not saying that William is deliberately being anti-Harry, but what I am saying is that I much prefer the way he goes about trying to make a difference. IMO, Harry and Meghan pick up on the hot button issues of the day and blather on; nothing about the way they go about things makes me want to tune in and pay attention - it's the opposite.

 

[rominet09]

Many of the more devoted Meghan fans seem to have left this forum, so I think you're correct about that.

I used to be one of their biggest fan, I no longer am but I'm still participating in this forum, there are plenty of other Royals I am very fond of ! They were not my only interest.

 

[polyesco]

Date night for Harry and Meghan
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...-Katharine-McPhees-pregnancy-news-dinner.html

 

[Hallo girl]

IMO the British public in general were welcoming, there are always republicans that are not interested but that doesn't make them hostile.
The Markle family started it with the comments, then the press kicked in, I also think they shot themselves in the foot with how the decided to deal with the press. There might have been a better way. I don't think the public turned against them as such but different incidents caused a cooling off, the public were seeing a different side that they didnt like. A bit hypocrisy was creeping in.
Also something I had never really seen before was the support that Meghan has that in some cases would turn against other royals, that was all new and the general public didn't like that either.
They wanted to leave but didn't like the terms so they stamped their feet.
There is an element of disinterest now, people are bored with the messaging, it is all about self.
It is sad, but the public will get over It.
They have chosen celebrity.