3 days ago
‘Meghan doesn't play the community game': Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Montecito neighbours speak out
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Montecito neighbours have taken aim at the Sussexes for doing little for the 'community' despite using the town for their money-making ventures.
Markle, 43, and Harry, 40, live in a sprawling Montecito property that boasts both ocean and mountain views, which has formed a backdrop for many of their projects since leaving the royal family.
Most recently, Markle rented a second Montecito home to film Netflix cooking series With Love, Meghan.
Despite living in the exclusive coastal enclave for almost five years, Montecito local Richard Mineards claimed Markle 'doesn't play the community game'.
'She cultivates a very controlled image. She pays attention to every appearance, every word, every gesture,' he told Ici Paris.
'And here in Montecito, we appreciate simple people, even famous ones.
'Oprah Winfrey, for example, shows up at charity events. Meghan doesn't play the community game.'
The Sussexes originally snapped up their 16-bedroom estate in the idyllic community for about AUD $21 million in June 2020 but appear to have made few connections in the area.
Although Montecito is also home to a few A-list stars, namely Oprah Winfrey, the community is located more than a two-hour drive from the bright lights of Hollywood.
While Mr Mineards claimed Meghan showed little interest in the community, the Duke of Sussex is noticeably more willing to engage with locals.
'(Harry) is always charming, approachable, with that very recognisable Windsor accent,' he said.
'He smiles, shakes hands, willingly exchanges a few words.
'We've seen him at the beach, in an organic coffee shop, or cycling in the hills.'
The update comes almost two years after an elderly veteran living in Harry and Meghan's street claimed he was flatly turned away at the gate to the Sussexes' compound.
United States Navy veteran Frank McGinity claimed his attempts to introduce himself to the couple and gift them a film about the local area failed after he was "turned away".
'Harry and Meghan live on old McCormick property and I went up to their gate with the films on a CD, but they weren't interested,' he told the local newspaper Montecito Journal in July 2023.
"The gate guy turned me away and wouldn't take the film, just saying 'they're not interested'. I was trying to be neighbourly."
