The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Family, News and Events 7: Oct. 2022 -

[shady lady]

Originally Posted by Archduchess Zelia

That can be said for virtually all biographies though

That's very true.

Here in the UK since Spare came out it feels like it's everywhere, but I've trained myself to the point where now I can pretty much avoid it.

Something else that occurred to me since my last post is that if there are extra chapters in the paperback version, no doubt many people who bought the hardback will get the paperback too, to read the extra bits. So there's even more money to be made! Again obviously true of many books, but I reckon the main objective here is so blatantly to make money, they'll have something saved up and ready to add, rather than making a serious and meaningful update.

There's a lot to be said for waiting for the paperback version of books to come out rather than buying hardback copy. Assuming you want to buy the book in the first place, of course

[kalnel]

Originally Posted by Toledo

Let's give them a year after the Coronation to see if they will come to terms with their situation of self-exiled entitled royals of Montecito. Who knows, maybe they'll shine because of the charity work and not being in a passive aggressive war on both sides of their families.

Why "give them a year?" Didn't the Queen "give them a year" back in 2020, when they were supposed to figure out if they were in or out and what their income would be? They've had three years since then, and they haven't done much of anything that wasn't self-promoting.

[duchessrachel]

Originally Posted by FigTree

He didn’t pick the date. That would have been a decision made very high up because it works for country as a whole.

They may have gave them another offer: money, a role whatever and that may have offset this. But fundamentally what the Sussexes wanted just wasn’t workable. It’s not like they just said that Meghan was returning to acting and Harry was going to devote himself to Invictus. That for the family would have been fine. A few engagements on the side. Live abroad. Whatever. But they wanted to make money. It couldn’t work. I personally feel if the Sussexes didn’t get what they wanted they would always be like this. Think is I don’t think the know what they want.

Exactly. And when you give someone what they want (or think they want), they always want more. I think Queen the did the right thing in telling them they were all in as working royals, or all out as working royals.

[duchessrachel]

Originally Posted by shady lady

I agree, a point has definitely been missed in terms of quantity v quality and popularity v infamy. How many copies a book sells means absolutely nothing.

Yes, if anything, more copies sold means that many more people now know just how mean and nasty Harry really is.

[Curryong]

Do you really believe that the majority of people worldwide who went out and bought a copy of Spare, or took the trouble to order the audio and Kindle versions, came out of reading it believing that Harry is ‘mean and nasty’?

And how many copies a book sells certainly matters to book publishers and the book reading public. If books don’t sell the publisher goes out of business.

‘Spare’ is still number one in bios on Amazon and received around 65,000 reviews, which in my experience (and I’ve been an Amazon book customer for nearly 30 years) is quite unprecedented.

[Sunnystar]

Originally Posted by Curryong

Do you really believe that the majority of people worldwide who went out and bought a copy of Spare, or took the trouble to order the audio and Kindle versions, came out of reading it believing that Harry is ‘mean and nasty’?

And how many copies a book sells certainly matters to book publishers and the book reading public. If books don’t sell the publisher goes out of business.

‘Spare’ is still number one in bios on Amazon and received around 65,000 reviews, which in my experience (and I’ve been an Amazon book customer for nearly 30 years) is quite unprecedented.

Well, sampling my small group of 5 folks who read Spare, none of them came out with a better opinion of Harry than they had going in. And at least two of those folks think Camilla was a homewrecker, so they certainly were open to at least seeing Harry as the aggrieved party in all ways, and none of the think that after reading his memoir.

You can attempt to spin the success of the book however you want, but the aftermath is pretty clear and straightforward - it did not reflect well on Brand Sussex.

[SirGyamfi1]

Originally Posted by MsJulie

The media and public do not help the situation with the Sussex and the Firm. The Firm believes ignore and it will all go away and they also believe can do now wrong. It is a terrible situation. Even if both sides did not leak anything, media and/or public would continue the battle. Very sad.

I don’t think anyone thinks that the firm is perfect because no one or organisation is perfect, however the Sussexes with every move made only things hard for themselves. The firm has moved on. Harry needs the media for publicity for his book, without it wouldn’t have helped sales. What has the firm done wrong? Harry had options, he just chose a difficult path and has to come to terms with his choices.

[Asteria12]

Originally Posted by Toledo

Popularity vs infamy, you really hit the nail with the hammer on that one.

Re books and the so called NY best sellers scandals, over here in the USA the son in law of our former got into the # 1 spot when using campaign funds to buy thousands of books ahead of time. It's a common practice for bookstores and other organizations to mass buy books and cause the charts to give you a higher spot on the best sellers list.

Too right! There's numerous articles on the net exposing the truth behind these so-called "best seller" lists and book reviews, if one has the open mind to read them.

[Denville]

Originally Posted by Sunnystar

Well, sampling my small group of 5 folks who read Spare, none of them came out with a better opinion of Harry than they had going in. And at least two of those folks think Camilla was a homewrecker, so they certainly were open to at least seeing Harry as the aggrieved party in all ways, and none of the think that after reading his memoir.

You can attempt to spin the success of the book however you want, but the aftermath is pretty clear and straightforward - it did not reflect well on Brand Sussex.

It certainly seems that those who have read the book on this forum have mainly been quite honestly shocked by a lot of the revelations about Harry... and a couple of years ago when he first left the RF for America, a lot of people were sympathetic and willing to beleive the best of him.. but the book seems to have changed their minds.

[Asteria12]

I agree Denville, the book has not brought them a great deal of admiration and respect. In my country there were plenty of people who backed their leaving and said that if that is what would make them happy then they should go for it. Now most people don't want to hear from them nor about them anymore. They are treated with derision mostly reserved for our politicians, which is saying something. Its a sad state of affairs, brought on by their own short-sighted view of how much the public will actually tolerate from two very wealthy individuals in a time when many are struggling.

[shady lady]

Originally Posted by Curryong

Do you really believe that the majority of people worldwide who went out and bought a copy of Spare, or took the trouble to order the audio and Kindle versions, came out of reading it believing that Harry is ‘mean and nasty’?

In a word, yes.

[Denville]

Originally Posted by shady lady

In a word, yes.

Im sure that a lot of people read the book as Harry fans, ie they bought it because they liked Harry and wanted to see what he had to say for himself. However I certainly get the impression that a lot of people who were fans of his, who believed that his motives in leaving the RF etc were to do good and lead a quieter life, were shocked and surprised to hear of the tales of drug taking, angry outbursts, fighting with his protection officers, his sex life, his conviction for years that Diana was in hiding, and many other things like that. And I think they came to dislike him or be shocked by him.
And I guess there were a lot of people who bought the book just because they were interested, or who did not like him and just wanted to see what he would come out with, and I think eve some of them were surprised at the things he came out with.

[shady lady]

Originally Posted by Denville

Im sure that a lot of people read the book as Harry fans, ie they bought it because they liked Harry and wanted to see what he had to say for himself. However I certainly get the impression that a lot of people who were fans of his, who believed that his motives in leaving the RF etc were to do good and lead a quieter life, were shocked and surprised to hear of the tales of drug taking, angry outbursts, fighting with his protection officers, his sex life, his convicition for years that Diana was in hiding, and many other things like that. And I think they came to dislike him or be shocked by him

Yep. Especially us here in the UK where many feel hurt and betrayed by H & M and their actions, and are very sad and disappointed in them. He was once much loved by the public and she was welcomed with open arms. Fast forward five years and they're getting booed at the Jubilee. How things have changed, and the reason for that change is down to them alone.

As far as believing Diana was in hiding I can sympathise a little with that. The trauma of losing a close loved one is horrendous, especially so in a child; but it doesn't excuse or justify the rest of his behaviour, particularly as an adult. Many people who have experienced trauma as a child (and I speak from experience) have learned in time to take responsibility for themselves and their actions; learning to accept what has happened, grow as a person and approach life without a sense of entitlement and permanent grievance, and so find some peace and happiness.

If a person fails to take responsibility and behave like a grown up and instead blames everything and everyone else for their behaviour; whose actions are driven by anger, spite and a desire for revenge, true peace and happiness is at best patchy and elusive, and at worst impossible to find. I know people who are like this, who alienate themselves from other people with their behaviour, and I believe, sadly, that Harry falls into this second category.

[Mirabel]

I found Spare to be both mean-spirited and self-serving; I can't conceive how that could do Harry's reputation any good.

[Denville]

I think that to go on thinking Diana was in hiding for years, as Harry says he did, is not normal. It was understandable when the horrible news hit him first, and maybe for a while afterwards that he should cling to the illusion that she wasn't dead, but to go on believing it, even intermittenlly for 10 years or so, seems to show an odd frame of mind. In that time, he must have talked to his aunts, who saw DI's body, and he must have remembered in that time that other people died in the accident, and if that were the case, did he believe that Di had engineered a fake death, which caused the death of 2 other people? Also, he said 2 months ago, that he thought that it would have been safe enough to go into that tunnel too fast and even with a driver who had had some drinks..
which I think was a horribly irresponsible thing to say

[TLLK]

Originally Posted by Curryong

Do you really believe that the majority of people worldwide who went out and bought a copy of Spare, or took the trouble to order the audio and Kindle versions, came out of reading it believing that Harry is ‘mean and nasty’?

And how many copies a book sells certainly matters to book publishers and the book reading public. If books don’t sell the publisher goes out of business.

‘Spare’ is still number one in bios on Amazon and received around 65,000 reviews, which in my experience (and I’ve been an Amazon book customer for nearly 30 years) is quite unprecedented.

Unfortunately those friends and family members of mine (who don't share my interest in any royals) did come away with a very negative opinion of him.

[Curryong]

Well, I have quite a large circle of friends and family members both in the UK and Australia who bought Spare, and don’t think negatively of him.

[Toledo]

Originally Posted by kalnel

Why "give them a year?" Didn't the Queen "give them a year" back in 2020, when they were supposed to figure out if they were in or out and what their income would be? They've had three years since then, and they haven't done much of anything that wasn't self-promoting.

I totally forgot about the year the late Queen gave them to get their act together. But I remember all the news last year, when she was alive, on Harry nervous about the documentary and book being released and his attempts to postpone them. It's just horrible to think how their antics would have affected QEII.

What is done is done. From now onwards they have only two paths, mediate a truce on royal inside gossip during their days in London in May, or double-down complains on the rest of the year after the coronation.

The USA is so tired of them they are going off the paparazzi radar. Even TMZ, the capital of USA's paparazzi planet, is running short on their attention span for the couple. At this point soon Meghan will really have to look hard for paparazzies on the rear view of the car

[Denville]

Do you think He cared if his book upset the queen? If he had, he wouldnt have written it.

[Granada]

I think that Spare and The Netflik Docu-series really did capture the essence of Harry and Meghan.

Two arrogant, entitled and self absorbed individuals who unbelievably feel that they are destined to be Global Superstars, under the guise of "charity-philanthropy" and being leading voices on Women's Empowerment and Mental Health Issues. What did they do to earn or deserve the attention or accolades they feel owed ?

Nothing. Harry was born into The most famous Royal Family in the World, and as beloved Diana's son was guaranteed press. Blessed with a *seemingly* charming "one of the lads" personality that resonated so well ! Now I wonder how much was "Palace Spin".

Meghan, a C list Actress, who was aging out of ingenue roles, met Harry and captured his heart. Harry was her BIG ticket to Global A list status.

In Meghan, Harry saw a VERY MEDIA SAVY Partner to elevate him to the prominent role he felt he deserved too. NOT a junior figure, a secondary player, a "supporting act" to his brother William. The future King. His jealousy and bitterness as being "The Spare" jumps out so often in Interviews and in the Book too. The Sussex's were going to be Royal Game Changers, on par with William and Kate. Until that plan got scuppered, to their bitter dismay and anger.
That apparently they can't let go of.

So here we are, two "rogue Royals". One an Actress, the other a Prince, who feel entitled and empowered to lecture People on complicated and controversial topics on matters from mental self healing to hot button social issues like Racism. All the while trading on, invoking their Royal connections AND usually blaming the Royal Family for personal complaints and perceived slights too. Constantly.

How long a shelf life can that possibly have ? They are quickly becoming boring, tedious and repetitive in their allegations.

Harry SHOULD have stuck with Invictus. He is all over the map now and losing credibility. Does he EVER take courses -seminars to expand his knowledge of complex Mental Health Issues? Or spend time in various types of Treatment Centers with Professionals and Patients ......listening and learning?

Nope. That's why I find it laughable to listen to him lecture People from his uber privileged position. No background or doing the " dirty work" to justify it either.

I wonder what Act ll will be for them. Act l is winding down, "the material", trashing the Royal Family has become stale and predictable. But do they have enough self awareness too see that ?