Does Meghan Markle believe she's still a royal highness?
However, old habits have a habit of dying hard, and even Meghan can be forgiven for having moments of wondering 'what might have been' had she remained a rather talked-about member of 'the Firm'. During a recent podcast interview it emerged that, should one be fortunate enough to receive a gift from Meghan – perhaps a pot of her notorious As Ever-branded raspberry jam – it is likely to come with a note, on monogrammed paper no less, reading 'with the compliments of HRH The Duchess of Sussex'.
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Daily Mail
28 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Inside Meghan's tendency to 'control', according to a royal insider: How the Duchess sought to master 'every aspect' of her life and even had a 'careful plan' for how she would 'out' her relationship with Harry
By all accounts, Meghan's life story so far could be considered a modern day fairy tale. Meghan had a Cinderella–esque rise, growing up as a young girl in Los Angeles before she arrived at the Palace and became the Duchess of Sussex. However, while a fictional story will have many unforeseen twists and turns, in Meghan's case nothing happened by chance. Tom Bower, writing in his bestseller Revenge, looks back on the early days of Harry and Meghan's romance where he claims the former Suits actress meticulously planned how to 'out' Prince Harry as her boyfriend. 'In Meghan Markle 's life, little happened by chance. Beyond the empathetic smile was woman who disrupted spontaneity and liked to control every aspect of her life. In late September 2016 nothing was more important than her relationship with Harry,' Bower said. According to the royal insider, it was around this time that Meghan decided that her career needed an 'adjustment' – so in October 2016 her Wikipedia was purged of any reference to her work on Deal Or No Deal and her time as a model. 'A section headed "humanitarian work" was inserted' in its place, which referenced her speech at a United Nations women's event in New York among other achievements. It would appear as though, at this time, Meghan was attempting to downplay the media career she worked so hard to build and instead was beefing up her humanitarian work. Harry and Meghan at the 2018 Invictus Games. Meghan had a Cinderella–esque rise growing up as a young girl in Los Angeles before she arrived at the Palace and became the Duchess of Sussex And, unsurprisingly, two weeks later Meghan emailed her agent – Gina Nelthorpe-Cowne – to announce the end of her acting and commercial career. 'I realised it meant losing her as a friend as well as a client,' Gina told Bower. The timing of everything that month had been 'carefully planned' even down to the Halloween birthday party the couple attended in Toronto with Princess Eugenie and her boyfriend. Here, Meghan shared a photo on Instagram of her 'secret Halloween date'. Bower said: 'Most at the party were in no doubt that Meghan was '"outing" Harry. 'For her own good reasons she wanted the relationship to be publicised. In media hype, some would call it the "Greatest Story since the Abdication".' A week later the romance burst into public view when journalist Camilla Tominey broke the story. The Daily Mail soon caught on to it, reporting that the couple had 'matching bracelets' and pointing out that Harry's private instagram account followed Meghan. Bower wrote: '"It has a ring of truth," confirmed the Palace about the global sensation creating a frenzy outside Meghan's house. She emerged, smiling to a crowd of photographers, and drove to the Suits studio.' The ploy worked: Meghan gained 100,000 new followers and 'journalists received numerous tips about the clothes and accessories Meghan was wearing'. However, once Meghan became a working member of the Royal Family she quickly learnt that in the Firm the narrative would not be so easy to control. According to one royal author, Meghan allegedly tried to not only carve out their own independent career as a working royal but also tried to 'outshine' every other member of the family – including the late Queen Elizabeth II. Writing in his royal biography Yes Ma'am – which explores the lives of the men and women who serve the royals – author Tom Quinn claims that Meghan Markle caused a panic during her brief time as a working member of the family when the Duchess of Sussex signaled she wanted to operate separately from the Queen. Quinn said: ' Buckingham Palace became really worried when they became aware that Meghan had plans for her life as a working royal that were not going to be part of a general strategy agreed with the staff – she just wanted to do her own thing. 'Which is fair enough if you're not a member of a tightly controlled institution, but it was never going to be acceptable that Meghan should outshine Princess Anne, Prince Charles [as he then was] and Elizabeth the Queen.' Speaking to Quinn, a former Courtier for Elizabeth said: 'Elizabeth always had to be the centre and focus of everything the Royal Family did, and I don't think Meghan understood why that had to make her do things she didn't want to do. 'She didn't understand that when you join the Royal Family, you don't do as you please, you do as you're told. In a sense, you become a servant of the family.' Meghan's tendency to go off-script and rebel against the constraints of royal life were glaringly obvious during the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's tour of southern Africa in 2019. While stopping to speak to ITV journalist Tom Bradby, Meghan gave a remarkably candid interview about how she was struggling to cope with the media scrutiny on top of being a new mother and a newlywed. During the interview she thanked Bradby for asking if she was OK, claiming that 'not many people have asked if I'm OK'. And then when asked if it had been a struggle, she agreed with the reporter's analysis. While Meghan received praise in some circles for her openness, it was not the sort of answer many working royals would have been expected to give during a royal tour. And the interview, along with the trip, became something of a PR disaster for the Royal Family. Quinn added that Meghan 'undoubtedly felt constrained' by the Royal Family and that she and Harry needed 'do their own thing without consulting the big royal machine'. Only a few months later Harry and Meghan stepped down as working royals which not only gave them the freedom to control their narrative but also came with some lucrative benefits as well. In 2019, during the interview with Tom Bradby, Meghan was remarkably candid about how she was struggling to cope with the media scrutiny on top of being a new mother and a newlywed According to royal author Valentine Low, it was Meghan's yearning to monetise her royal title which led to 'Megxit'. Writing in his tell–all book Courtiers, Low claims that Meghan's desire to 'earn money for herself' led the couple to abandon their duties entirely. Low revealed that during discussions about how to reach a happy middle ground – which could please the whole family – multiple scenarios were explored. These ranged from Harry and Meghan 'having a month a year to do their own thing' to 'spending most of their time privately but doing a select number of royal activities'. The one caveat for the Sussexes continuing royal duties – however small or minor – was that they must stick to the 'normal rules about royal behaviour'. Crucially, that would mean Harry and Meghan could not 'act or take decisions in order to gain financially'. Low writes: 'Some suspected that in the end she wanted to make money. And the only way she was going to do that was by leaving her royal life behind and going back to America.' Indeed, since stepping down as a working royal, Meghan appears to have focused much of her energy on her solo business projects and media projects – with the next season on With Love, Meghan set to debut next week.
Daily Record
12 hours ago
- Daily Record
Prince Andrew 'summons maids to pick up his used tissues' as he's 'horrible' to staff
Prince Andrew is said to be 'horrible' to staff and even drops used tissues on the floor before summoning maids to pick them up, according to a new book and documentary. Prince Andrew has been accused of regularly mistreating staff members, even going as far as dropping used tissues on the floor and expecting maids to pick them up. These allegations have surfaced according to comments made in a new book. The explosive revelations about the disgraced Duke of York's behaviour come from Andrew Lownie's new book, The Rise and Fall Of The House of York, which describes Prince Andrew as being "horrible" to his staff. These claims are further explored in a new Channel 5 documentary, Andrew and Fergie: The Duke and Duchess of Excess, where royal biographer Lownie shares more details, as reported in the Mirror. " Andrew was particularly horrible to staff; he doesn't seem to see them as normal people," Lownie stated. "He treats them as basically subordinates to be bossed around. I think he's very narcissistic and everything is about him." The author continued: "He'll summon his protection officer to pick up his golf balls after he's teed them down the fairway, he will summon maids from four floors down to open the curtains. He will drop tissues he's used on the floor and expect people to pick that up." The 90-minute documentary, which aired on Saturday, delves into the lives of Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, exploring their relationship, controversial ties to Jeffrey Epstein and luxury lifestyles. The documentary noted: "Andrew has not commented on the new claims about his behaviour towards staff." Andrew withdrew from public engagements in 2019 following the outcry surrounding his association with Epstein after his Newsnight appearance. He no longer serves as a working royal but has still been seen at family occasions. Earlier this year, he accompanied the King and other senior royals for their annual Easter Sunday worship at St George's Chapel in Windsor. It has previously been claimed that Andrew requested a staff member be relocated because he "disliked a mole on the man's face". Royal writer Tom Quinn made the claim in the Times, stating: "It's true that some royals can display acts of ill temper. "One former servant recalled how Prince Andrew insisted on a member of staff being transferred because he disliked a mole on the man's face." The author continued: "Speaking of Andrew, that another former servant asked for a man to be 'moved to other duties for wearing a nylon tie.'". Andrew has previously been labelled as "very difficult" to work alongside, with some staff members even reportedly attempting to "avoid" the ex-working royal. Former royal butler Paul Burrell revealed in the documentary The Palace: What the Royal Servants Saw: "People tried to avoid Prince Andrew because he was very difficult. Prince Andrew was always bombastic, shouty, and always swore, and that's something that you don't expect from a royal." In response to Lownie's explosive new book, pals of Andrew have dismissed the allegations as "inaccurate". A friend confided in the Daily Beast: "It would be totally inaccurate to say they are devastated or heartbroken by the book, or any of this c***. "There are absolutely no new revelations-it's just a rehash of things already said brought together in one place. The family used to wonder when this would ever end; now they know it never will. It's just, the tide comes in and the tide goes out."
Edinburgh Live
15 hours ago
- Edinburgh Live
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle skewered by TV host in brutal three-word putdown
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Prince Harry and Meghan Markle faced criticism from Sky News Australia presenter Paul Murray as he took aim at their fresh agreement with Netflix. This follows the streaming giant's decision to extend its partnership with the duo through a multi-year, first-look arrangement, covering all television and film projects from Archewell Productions. Nevertheless, reports suggest that Harry and Meghan will only earn from this agreement if Netflix chooses to greenlight their proposals, marking a significant departure from their £80million arrangement in 2020. First-look agreements typically permit a company to assess a project before determining whether to proceed with it. Should they decline, the creator is then free to pitch it elsewhere, reports the Express. A representative for Meghan and Harry told the Daily Mail that the couple did receive compensation for the deal, though they declined to reveal further specifics, stating: "I can say no more owing to commercially confidential contractual agreements." Responding to the agreement, Sky News Australia presenter consulted US television commentator Megyn Kelly, asking: "Speaking of negotiations, what do you think the balance was between Harry and Meghan and Netflix? Because they have re-done a deal but it's a really 'p**s weak version' of the first deal, they don't get the automatic money and then you have to make something, you basically have to make something and then will decide whether they going to show it or not to get the money, how do you make of that negotiation went?" Megyn delivered a withering response as she stated: "To me it sounds like they Netflix while to cancel and someone representing Meghan and Harry begged them to at least say that it's a first look, in a way to say we don't think you're losers, you're not cut off, we think you're winners, such winners that we want to get the first look to see what you're doing later down the line because they might want to buy it. (Image: Sky News) "But really, it's just a save face mechanism, Netflix has these two under contract, if it wanted to have an exclusive deal with them, it would have, it has more money than God, it's not hurting for cash." Meghan's statement read: "We're proud to extend our partnership with Netflix and expand our work together to include the As Ever brand. My husband and I feel inspired by our partners who work closely with us and our Archewell Productions team to create thoughtful content across genres that resonates globally and celebrates our shared vision." One programme that is certain to be broadcast is the second series of With Love, Meghan, which features Meghan preparing dishes in the kitchen alongside celebrities and lifestyle experts.
