With all of the discussion of the “royal rota” and how the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are opting out of it, it’s worth noting that the Cambridges and the Sussexes have their “outside the rota” favorites. The Sussexes have been leaking their side to Omid Scobie of Harper’s Bazaar for a while, and Katie Nicholl at Vanity Fair gets all kinds of Camp Cambridge exclusives. Interestingly, both Scobie and Nicholl published exclusives on Thursday, both articles dealing with what’s happening behind the scenes. Scobie says some stuff which we already knew, like how Harry and Meghan had been consulting with various palaces and royals for months about this move, despite the claims to the contrary. Some of this is new info though, some highlights:
The plans to move away had been in the pipeline for a while: Senior aides reveal that conversations about the couple’s future plans and ambitions had taken place internally “on all levels” for several months in the run-up to their so-called “bombshell” on January 8. It was information that the couple had planned to hold back from the media until logistics had been further fleshed out among households, but after their agenda was leaked to British tabloid The Sun, “they felt they had been cornered,” says a source close to the couple. “It was a case of act now or lose control of something they had spent a long time working on.”
No one was enraged: Surprised, yes, but the royal reaction, says a high-ranking palace aide, was “far from the dramatic emotional response described by some—nobody was ‘incandescent with rage’ and nobody is about to punish anyone. The speed at which this now needs to be dealt with is not ideal, but the plans themselves are not a problem. This is not a ‘crisis,’ it’s a case of helping the couple reach their goal.”
Their hatred of The Rota: “They saw the current model as outdated and in desperate need of change,” says a source, who notes that previous attempts to change the current system had been repeatedly met with dead ends. “It became clear that press, including foreign media and digital outlets, to have access to their work, they would have to self-fund their own engagements.”
The SussexRoyal.com site: Put together away from the palace, the site was written by an individual known to the couple and designed by Made by Article, the same Toronto-based company that successfully produced Meghan’s now-shuttered lifestyle blog The Tig. “Very few people were involved in the process, but those who were managed to keep information of the site confidential,” says the Sussex source. The online hub has already received millions of visits since its launch and the couple have also been inundated with supportive messages from charities and organizations they have worked as well as close friends around the world.
The part about what led to them suddenly announcing the withdrawal is interesting, because that story came petering out on Thursday. Dan Wooten at the Sun had the exclusive. It’s very likely the leak came from Kensington Palace. So did Katie Nicholl’s Vanity Fair piece. Some highlights:
The Queen personally ordered for royal parties to come together to solve the Sussex riddle: In a sign of the Queen’s frustration and growing anger at the situation, the order was said to have come directly from the monarch, who remains in Sandringham on an extended new year break. The decision is expected to “take days not weeks,” said the royal aide. The senior royals have been in contact with one another throughout the day Thursday as their households have worked together to come up with a crisis strategy to prevent any further damage to the reputation of the monarchy. Despite the scale of the story, which has made headlines around the world, royal aides have said the Queen has no immediate plans to return to London and is leaving it to her trusted aides and courtiers to work together with the Sussexes’ household.
The Sussexes might not be HRHs: It is understood that the matter of the Sussexes’ HRH titles is “up in the air” as courtiers deal with the fallout…with royal sources telling Vanity Fair that “nothing has been ruled in or out.”
The Queen is devastated: Sources close to the Queen have said that she is privately devastated by Prince Harry and Meghan’s decision to stand down…Sources close to the Queen say there is a feeling of deep hurt and resentment about how the Sussexes have handled the situation. “The Queen will expect Harry to go and see her and explain himself,” a source told Vanity Fair. “This is not how things are done in the royal family and now it is down to the Queen and her advisors to sort things out.” As yet Vanity Fair understands Prince Harry has yet to see his grandmother.
Building the Sussex brand: Last night a source close to Prince Harry said that a major reason for the couple standing down from the Royal Family is so that they can build their own Sussex brand. The couple will launch their own charitable foundation later this year and “Sussex Royal” could potentially earn them millions. “Building their brand is the most important thing to them right now,” a source told Vanity Fair. “I think it might be more important than their royal titles because they are already so huge, so successful and so popular particularly in the US which is where they see their brand really taking off. Meghan is seriously bright and business savvy and together they have come up with a plan to become the royal version of the Beckhams.”
I find it fascinating that the Queen “expects” Harry to come to her personally and explain this, especially when… he apparently tried to do just that months ago. She was the one cuddling up to her rapist son and Budget-Flight stunt queen William. I had a real come-to-Jesus moment about the Queen last year and how she’s actually a big a–hole. I’ll go one step further: for decades now, her poor management style, her tone-deaf public relations instincts and her inability to surround herself with competent, forward-thinking people has all led to this. In the twilight of her reign, all hell is breaking loose and it just feels like chickens coming home to roost.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Backgrid and Avalon Red.
Is it just me or does the “explain himself” really has a belittling sound to it? Harry and Meghan have nothing to explain. They did. The reasons are there for the world to see.
It’s deliberately phrased to sound like she’s disciplining a naughty child.
Harry’s explanation should be “Gan Gan, I love you, but this family sucks. Catch you later!”
I’d go a step further and say “You threw my wife to the wolves, played favorites with family members, and are protecting your monstrous son” before the “this family sucks, bye!”
The queen wants explanations???!!!! And there is something else to be explained?? Oh dear me! I think Jen said it all: this family sucks. Byeeee….
If he actually walks away with no money, he doesn’t have to answer any questions.
But if he’s still using family money, then I think he has to explain himself the way any regular person using family money would. He doesn’t sound financially independent yet.
The problem is that “his money” (the inheritances from his mother and great-grandmother) is in trusts & accounts administered by the courtiers.These aren’t simple bank accounts, where he can go to HSBC in London, close the account, get a cashier’s check, then go to TD in Toronto with a that check and say “I’d like to open a checking account, what’s the exchange rate?” It’s going to take a team of lawyers and accountants to untangle all of it.
As for his grandmother, she needs to tell the courtiers to leave the room, pick up a phone and call her grandson. It’s her “trusted advisors” who created the mess.
That’s exaclty why he has to answer questions though. It’s public money. You’ve basically answered why I think he has to explain himself. His situation is not ordinary He said he was working towards financial independence, and now EVEN American newspapers are asking questions. He doesn’t just have to answer her — he has to answer the public. If it works out for him, he’s super smart. If this backfires on him, he’s going to be mocked for ages.
If he uses Canadian tax payer money to fund his security, he’s going to have to answer to the Canadian newspapers too.
Have you seen the American media? They’re not being as nice as I thought they might be in this scenario. The NY Post is being as mean as the British press.
That’s why it’s call “negotiations”. In any break up whether it’s a corporation or a family, you work together to come up with a solution. Diana didn’t walk away with nothing. I doubt her son will as well. Plus, he’s not walking away, they still plan to work for the crown because lazy William is not going to do all of those engagements unless the plan is to do away with them. And it would seem the UK citizens would be more upset about that then what happens to Harry. But I bet that is the next move.
Perplexed, it is my understanding that his inheritance from his mother isn’t public money.
@Tiffany – you are correct, the inheritances are not public money. Diana took her divorce settlement (which belonged to her personally), hired some very good investment managers and that was the money that was left to Harry (her assumption was that the Duchy of Cornwall was more than able to support William, so he was left personal items, but no money).
Untangling the public funds from the private property owned outright by the family is very, very complicated. Many of the assets that people assume are “public” are actually owned by the Queen as the head of a very wealthy family – particularly the artwork and much of the Real Estate. The property of the Duke of Lancaster (aka – the Queen) is no more “public money” than the property of the Duke of Northumberland (Ralph Percy). It’s all just assets that have been accumulated and passed down through generations. They can dispose of it as they wish – if she wants to sell one of her Vermeers, she can.
It’s not public money though, it’s inheritance from his mother and the Queen Mum. That’s family money, their private wealth, nothing to do with the Duchy of Lancaster and Cornwall.
Regarding the NY Post, Rupert Murdoch the Post and its main offices are housed in the same building as Fox News, if that tells you anything. It’s definitely more tabloid-y than the NY Daily News or the NY Times. It’s actually a lot like the Daily Mail.
@Perplexed: perhaps we should wait for more information from the Palace as the process of separation commences.
All our opinions are conjectures. PH’s trust fund is a personal fund and will not be applied to building their new charitable venture (that’s what 3rd party fundraising is for), and I suspect there’ll be organizations throwing money at them at a global level. Why must everything be sorted out now? Also, don’t forget they thought the break would have been finalized behind the scenes before the big announcement except for someone from KP who leaked and forced their hand.
I’m surprised people are being this unreasonable. On the one hand, you wanted them gone and OTOH, you don’t want to give time allowance for the intricacies of said divorce. They’re going, now you’ll simply have to wait for the decree nisi. You can’t have it both ways.
They never said they were financially independent. Their plan states that they are working to become so for their private work, while receiving the same taxpayer support as all the other minor royals *when they are working representing the Queen*.
That’s what this interim stage is about. They cannot work to become financially independent everything is negotiated and put in place. Obvious to everyone who wants to understand, and obvious when people deliberately pretend not to understand.
Lots of concern for the Canadian taxpayers on here which I find charming. Since I am one, I think we can wait until everything is sorted before we storm ottawa.
And yet you’re still here, pushing a false narrative and a pro-William, anti-Harry and Meghan agenda.
Harry tried to explain himself and they chose to ignore him. He and Meghan are adults and can do whatever they want.
Agreed. This Vanity Fair piece is all William. Also, one wonders if the couriers will allow Harry to speak to the Queen or if the Queen WILL allow the couriers to ONCE AGAIN block him.
Just a thought: The money they “get from Charles” is not private expenditure money, it goes mostly in funding their offices and staff which they need for their work for their patronages. That’s work they do for the crown. If they sever ties with the family and their involvement in the crown’s business, this money, office and staff will not be needed anymore. The whole disentanglement question is about their future role, which money funds which activity. The personal money is out of that equation. There may have been a pre-nup too, that may have wording pertaining to their role and the subsequent funding.
Thank you. I don’t know why people are being so obtuse about this. When they work for their employer, the Queen, those duties/activities will be supported just as they are now by Duchy money. When they are doing private work for their foundation and other endeavors, they will work/raise money to fund that. No one works for their employer for free.
Also these sources say that she both expects to see Harry and also expects her courtiers and aides to deal with it. So which is it? Oh yes, it’s whichever makes Harry & Meghan look worse.
She expects him to deal solely with her courtiers and aides and then come to her and grovel for forgiveness.
I really think that’s a bait for headlines. She’s not expecting any of them. I mean, with Harry present to the meeting with her and the courtiers.
And really, even dim-bulb William should know that his brother was born an HRH and like Edward it cannot be stripped from him because they cannot redo his birth. Unless they are prepared to declare him illegitimate on his mother’s side!
I think the Queen relies entirely too much on her courtiers and I think she has very little control over them. These are the people who have been running to the press to smear H and M every time they so much as enter BP. These are the people who put out an ominous and threatening “Harry and Meghan will be punished for this” statement yesterday which is now having to be walked back. They are the ones who said that Charles and William were “incandescent with rage,” and now that is being walked back too. They prevented Harry from meeting with the Queen to talk about this and gave him the run around which halted the talks about a very serious family decision and led to the Sussexes having to publish a proposal of what they hoped for on their website rather than a final plan that had been agreed on by all parties. And now that the Sussexes have published their plan, the Queen is going to look petty, wishy washy, or both of she decides to deviate from it. The courtiers are the ones who insisted Harry submit his ideas in writing even though he was concerned about leaks. They very likely are the ones who leaked that plan to William and KP, and then William and KP leaked it to the Sun, causing the announcement to come out before everyone was actually ready and making The Queen look like she has no idea what’s going on in her own family and Firm. And yet she’s leaving her courtiers to deal with the nitty gritty details!? This is a situation that calls for emotional and familial support and understanding to make sure it goes smoothly and to keep things nice, and yet she’s not taking part? This pretty natural seeming step back had to be detonated bomb-style rather than rolled out in an orderly way BECAUSE OF the courtiers.
From the outside looking in, it seems to me the courtiers have way to much latitude in the palaces; in fact, they appear to be persistent problem creators.
This family don’t know how to do emotional and familial support – and I think that is part of the core problem behind the Sussexes decision to step back.
It seemed so simple when Joachim and Marie did this, moving to France for a year. There wasn’t a huge amount of scandal attached, it seemed accepted and not a big deal. Doesn’t Joachim have an outside job too?
nota: I don’t know who Joachim and Marie are but I bet they didn’t have to deal with a William, lol.
For a blunt, and NSFW, take on the emotional support one can expect from the BRF, I have an old interview with John Oliver before Harry and Meghan’s wedding. His take was… on point. Skip to 4:43 if you just want to hear that part
https://youtu.be/Huab6p5HW0E
Regarding Prince Joachim and Princess Marie, there was a bit of a to do with the tabloid press but no one pays attention to what they say. The Sussexit was covered yesterday on Danish television and they did compare it to both Prince Joachim doing other, non-royal related stuff (he taking a high-level military education and he has been doing a series of documentaries for Danish television) and to Princess Märtha-Louise who renounced her HRH to have her own business (that the business is an angel school is besides the point, though she is thought to be rather eccentric). Commentators were a bit non-plussed at the press frenzy but it is the British tabloid press after all – so they just shrugged a bit and said that the British tabloid press is seriously awful.
It is true that Prince Joachim doesn’t have to deal with a controlling older brother. Crown Prince Frederik hasn’t that kind of personality. He’s rather laid back. Plus, I do think that both neither the Danish nor the Norwegian RFs are anywhere near as dysfunctional and emotionally constipated as the House of Windsor.
Agreed. Those two royal families seem more on the sane side. The Swedish one looks trouble to me. Sexist king, cheating on his wife, still publicly saying he wishes his son was the heir. Wouldn’t let Victoria and Daniel marry for nine years. At least he’s finally stepped up and publicly cut off the hanger on son and wife, but only after loads of political pressure.
Query to Amy Too: I thought it was reported that Charles insisted Harry put it in writing?
The couriers and the Queen Mother did everything they could to castrate Phillip for years. If you read Royal history and even The Crown has a good take on it in the episodes where Elizabeth becomes Queen, these are some powerful, scary F****s.
The Queen, as Kaiser said in the post, has some really bad people who she relies on to advise her. People who are tone deaf and insulated by virtue of their privilege. All of this would be forgivable, somewhat, if they were at least intellectually curious in some way, or at least somewhat eager in their efforts to orient the royal family differently. But they’re not. And they’re not because the Queen, purposefully, chooses to not hire these types of people who could actually help her. She chooses the ones who will keep things the way they are, because it’s what is comfortable for her, and her own comfort wrt the role of the monarchy is paramount.
We know this from at least two sources. The first is Angela Kelly, who said as much when she talked about what happened when she first joined the Queen’s staff. The expectation was very much that, as a junior staff member, she’d put up and shut up and not offer her opinion, even if she is ultimately right, because of distorted notions of seniority and respectability. She hadn’t “earned” the right to be frank with the Queen, and it’s taken her more than 20 years to get to a point where she can do what she does and not be questioned for it.
The second is the Guardian article where a source talked about Chris Geidt, who resigned two years ago. It said that he was the last staff member who “really had the measure of her” and that the people she’s had working for her since have not been up to par, because they lack the capacity to be honest with her, either because she doesn’t allow them to be, or because they themselves don’t feel the need. Either way, she’s been really poorly advised in these last couple of years, and that’s showing the cracks in the institution.
At the end of the day, what this comes down to is the very function of the monarchy. There’s a massive difference between how the public views them and the public expectations of them, and what the royals themselves think the public wants from them. The Queen and her advisors have a set idea of how they think the monarchy should serve the people. They justify it by insisting that this is also what the people want from them, even when there is plenty of evidence to suggest otherwise.
Yep, Harry tried talking to her before and her courtiers told him no. I wonder how many times in the past that has happened and why we’re at this point now.
It’s so bizarre that a grandson cannot speak to his grandmother without an appointment and approval from some coutiers.
I just watched the episode of The Crown S3 that covers Charles’ investiture as Prince of Wales. I cannot imagine having QE II and Phil for parents. They are very cold and absent. I felt sorry for young Charles.
Do any of us really think the Queen didn’t know he was being told no? Someone — one of them or a senior Royal — advised her to not go forward with the meeting and she agreed. The couriers then told him no. She’s the Queen. She knows. Otherwise, — to do this without her knowledge borders on, if not is, treason. She is one tough cookie.
Guess they realized the “anger” and “rage” pieces didn’t do them much good as most people saw through it and are now trying to walk them back. No more Sussex being “punished,” but working quickly to make the transition happen. Smh. All the unnecessary uproar could’ve been avoided if the leak didn’t happen and family members discussed the issues like actual adults. The more I learn, the happier I am that Harry and Megan have been able to control the narrative as best as they can. I was surprised to see pretty neutral coverage in credible publications like The Atlantic and The NY Times. Didn’t expect any different from the tabloid trash anyway and I include People in this as they’re part of the “saint Kate” pushers.
Or even if their first response after the announcement had been “we support their new vision for their role. There are still some details to be ironed out, but we’re behind them”
Instead of the petty and snide response they actually put out.
Exactly. They didn’t have to make it clear that they were surprised by the announcement. But showing any type of support to the Sussexes goes against their programming, I suppose.
These people have no media instincts, surround themselves by moronic “yes” men and are generally stupid. They way they handled this will not age well.
THIS. This is what I’ve been saying-BP made this all more dramatic than he needed to be. Two GROWN adults making a say in their lives is not a crisis for the monarchy. He’s 6th in line. He’s basically downgrading to Bea/Eugenie level of royal. Why all the drama? Oh yea…we know why.
Just say we wish them well in new endeavors, but we’ll always be family as we sort out the financial details. But instead they once again tried to throw the Sussex family to the wolves, and also got upset they weren’t going to get to make it look like H&M were being punished instead of choosing to downgrade.
I think there are some big egos and petty minds among the Queen’s senior staff – and that they run a big part of the show. They have their own agendas.
Well- who knows. But the anger response was …leaked?…. by sources supposedly connected to the royal family, and the “no ones angry” response was “leaked?” By Megan and Harry’s side- so not a change in story- just the other sides version. I’m curious to see how it all shakes out, regardless.
The Times has been fairly negative, but their commenters have some pretty positive commentary.
Poor Liz, if only you were similarly devastated by your son being a rapist pedophile.
And once again I ask – can someone PLEASE explain who courtiers even are??????
I thought the courtiers were mostly aristos who also have a stake in ensuring that change doesn’t happen. I could be wrong tho’. And yes, Grandmama is picking the wrong thing to be angry/hurt/sad about!
Right. They were the highest rank of aristocrats whose families have been closest to the Crown for generations. A very serious bunch of pals to deal with. Diana knew.
+1
I believe most of the so-called courtiers are ordinary people who just work for the palace. Like Chris Geidt. Not aristos at all, just repressed, conservative “little grey men“ as Diana described them.
They are high level staff who manages things and advise the Queen – like the Queen’s private secretary, which is a very high level position in her household. In short, bureaucrats with influence and access, which gives them power.
In the olden days, i.e. a couple of centuries back, courtiers were primarily high level aristocrats, which is why I think people are confused about who the courtiers are.
@lucia this is my question too, who ARE these courtiers and why do they have so much power?
Thanks for the explanation folks!
They are the monarchs staff. Many of them are Aristos and they or someone in their family have been there for years and promotion is almost mandatory when a retirement occurs. They answer only to the Crown. The Crown episode where Elizabeth became Queen really gives a good perspective on their power and their entrenchment: The new Queen wants to have her equerry who has served her for years moved into the top staffing position and retire her father’s (and someone she has now inherited in the position) equerry. She is told no that it is against all protocol, but she can’t even put him in the position when the current guy retires as his second in command must be given the position. Supposedly this was a real blow to her and a constant trial as she got along very well with the equerry she had had as Princess. Equerries/couriers/men in grey are seen as having the long arm of historical knowledge and advise that a monarch must rely on. Also, a lot of the continuation of out dated protocols is their doing. They are really entrenched and — of course — know where all the bodies are buried so that only fuels their power. Watching that episode was a real education for me. Their continuity of power has been one of the systems that has kept the British monarchy going. Got me interested and I looked at their role in biographies on Queen Victoria, her Uncle (they had a big hand in his abdication), and the Queen’s own father — who relied on them heavily as he was never prepared or expected to rule. The Queen patterns her reign on her father’s so it continues. I think Charles will get rid of a lot of this system as they cock-blocked him for years.
The monarch’s staff – and the staff of most senior royals – is composed of mostly middle class types: former corporate managers, corporate publicists, and former army officers. The days of Tommy Lascelles, so richly portrayed in The Crown as a dark, stealthy power-behind-the-throne (literally), are long gone. Also of course recall that The Crown is fictional and any real people portrayed, exaggerated.
Courtiers at BP and other royal courts long since stopped being composed of mostly aristos. There are no literal “gray men” roaming around the corridors, smoking pipes in Gieves & Hawkes suits and plotting the course of the monarchy.
Elizabeth is learning the hard way that you reap what you sow. So H&M’s HRH titles are in jeopardy but the rapist son’s is not??? WOW!
Such a big deal should be made of this!
Exactly. She’s only queen because of a divorced American. Her reign began with one, will it end with one?
Elle, I love your comment re: ‘divorced American’ so much I want to take it home and make it supper.
“She’s only queen because of a divorced American. Her reign began with one, will it end with one?” – Elle wins the comments!
Sweet irony.
No. Wallis was used as an excuse by Stanley Baldwin and Churchill but that is not the real reason at all. They wanted rid of Edward because they knew WW2 was coming one day and Edward was too matey with Hitler and co. He was a threat to national security.
Oh wow, so true Elle!
Wallis was a very convenient excuse. Edward was the main problem. Not only his Nazi sympathy but he wanted to sweep all that old way of doing things away. He wanted to, and did do what he wanted and did not take advise. The equerries/couriers/men in grey helped facilitate his abdication. (I’m not an Edward fan and glad he went, but history is showing that it was more about his issues than his relationship with Wallis — as awful as she was). It is said that Churchill wrote Edward’s abdication radio address to make it all about love. Edward bought it because he was such a narcissist he didn’t see how they all wanted him out.
*Bows*
That’s all folks! @Elle, the clairvoyant, has spoken.
yes very true. if they take away Meghan and harry title then andy and his daughter will be in lot of trouble because then andy also have lose his title. already ppl don’t have high regard towards after they handle andy pedo vs Meghan press. This will be very bad for them. also if Meghan and harry banished from royal life, then who is going to work for those charities? William and Kate? this is why Charles’s slimming monarchy is a bad idea. this is not danish or Swedish, they represent one country. brf represents more than 16 commonwealth and they are going to be in serious trouble. they way they handle the racism is very fresh and with social media, ppl are watching them. it’s not good for them. In the long run, it’s going to be very bad.
HE TRIED. If you weren’t such a hands off leader you would’ve known that!!! Actually you probably did but you didn’t want to deal with it like you don’t want to deal with anything else until it’s too late. You didn’t want to deal with your first sons disastrous marriage until it was too late, you didn’t want to deal with your pedo son until it was too late and now this.
What I find so crazy is that it seems like the Queen just will not learn. After Diana’s death, public sentiment went against the BRF because the family came off cold and uncaring in the wake of everything. So, when faced with another family issue that affects the business…she decides to run the same head-in-the-sand playbook? I mean, isn’t the monarch’s purpose in the UK government to essentially function as institutional memory? If that’s the purpose, then shouldn’t she freaking learn from last time?
Boy does the Queen just plain suck.
I think a part of the problem is that she’s too old now to deal effectively with all the issues coming at the family so thick and fast. And the fact that she’s unable to deal with all these problems mean that they keep individually spiraling out of control, before there’s some sort of crisis resolution.
Which she apparently can’t even participate in. But being as power hungry as she is, she’ll refuse to relinquish power, to her more effective son, until her very last breath, long, long after she’s of any use to the institution.
QEII has never been good at crisis management, not ever. So many Windsor family dramas could have been avoided if she had any instinct for handling people, but she doesn’t.
She’s always sucked at dealing with things but it’s probably gotten much worse she’s she’s aged and Prince Philip has retired. Why was her main secretary pushed out by Charles though? That guy seemed to keep things together a bit more and keep the Queen in the loop. Now that he’s gone, everyone else is jockeying for power, specifically William, off doing their own thing without any consequences or direction from BP. And it’s lead to all these various recent scandals: the Queen being used by BoJo to prorogue parliament, Andrew’s interview and the way all that was handled, the press becoming so awful that Harry and Meghan had to sue, and now Harry and Meghan stepping down from being senior royals. Why did Charles force this guy out if he was keeping things running smoothly?
@Amytoo I was also wondering what the backstory was about the Queen secretary leaving. Imagine one person being responsible for keeping everything running smoothly. Jeeves!
Geidt was advocating for Charles to keep Edward and Sophie on as part of the royal family moving forward. Charles didn’t want that, he wanted to oust E/S along with Andrew. The slimline was to be Charles’s line only, but that was always to include Harry and spouse.
Once you create a power vacuum you’re going to get a sh*t show. Look at the White House. It’s filled with power-hungry, incompetent greedy staff. Those elements aren’t new but someone is usually policing the gates. The process and procedural transition from QEII to the POW to the DoC isn’t going well at all.
Re: Kate & William: I’m no Kate fan but I’m wondering if right now she’s watching this play out and thinking, “the world will finally be able to see just what kind of petty MF he is.”😂😂. She’s complicit but still.
Kate has chosen to be with him for nearly 20 years.
Totally agree re the Queen. Her treatment of Andrew vs her treatment of Meghan speaks volumes.
In her defence she is 93 years old and has always put the monarchy before family. Andrew’s removal from being an active royal is proof of that. He was allowed to get away with things up until the point where he was being publicly seen to damage the monarchy.
The Queen was raised by Edwardian royals and the way she behaves is no longer in tune with the 21st century. Yes, she practices stiff upper lip and never complain and never explain. However, in response to accusations that she gave support to Andrew, today she was seen driving herself to a shooting lunch party, she was wearing a silk scarf with pictures of dogs, I am sure they are definitely not corgis but looked like beagles and I just think that the scarf might have been a gift from Meghan. The Queen often wears things to give out signals. I am also sure that Harry is breaking away at a time when the Queen is still able to have some influence on matters. We know that the courtiers were trying to stop him contacting the Queen directly.
That is some high-level signaling… beagles and a scarf means “Meghan, I’m with you, girl!” LOL. I really hope this is true.
I feel really badly for Harry. His life is in a downward spiral and this is not going to be a fun journey for him. He has lost all the goodwill and fondness people used to have for him.
If the price of that goodwill and fondness is sitting back while he and his family are used as punching bags for the press with his own family’s lack of support, then good riddance. The people’s goodwill and fondness didn’t keep his mom safe and he rightly knows it’ll do zilch for his own family.
alternatively…he’s at the most exciting time of his life. He’s partially broken away from an institution he never wanted to be a part of. He has a wife who adores him and a healthy beautiful baby boy. He can now work unfettered on projects close to his heart to make the difference in the world that he longs to. Surely a rough couple of months ahead, but he is rolling into the best time of his life. The goodwill he’s “lost” is from people who never had his best interests at heart.
God bless your words.
Thank you, Guest. There’ll be a few months of turbulent waters, but I think the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will come out stronger. That crap of a family of theirs, not so much. By the way, they are “minor royals” totally insignificant as they’ve been reminded over and over, so what is the fuss if they are stepping back?
You’re right. That has to explain the big smiles on both their faces at Canada House the other day. They made their decision after months/years of worrying & thinking, and now they’re moving forward. That always feels good. And right. Congrats to the new little family and their way forward.
It’s all about money. The royal family knows that they can be independent and get the attention just like Diana. It will happen again, that’s why she’s devastated.
Funny how we didn’t read anything like this about that sick pedo…..that was devastating , disturbing etc etc, not PH and MM wanting to live their lives away from this mess.
Yes, Guest. Yes.
Well said!!
lost *what* goodwill?
it seems that within the UK M& H had a pretty raw deal from the beginning.
from where i stand, most of the rest of the planet seems to be rooting for them.
@Nibbi – exactly. The press has worked hard from the very beginning of this relationship to erode the public goodwill towards Harry and to ensure that Meghan had none at all.
Yes, yes YES to this entire comment!
I agree with Guest. I think this will be such a good thing for Harry. He is living his life on his terms now. I think he and Meg are going to do important things and hopefully be very happy.
What people? The people that want him to stay a drunken frat boy, the playboy? Then good riddance to them. He has grown and matured. That’s what normal people do. Should he sit back and say nothing while his home country tears apart his wife, and will eventually move on to his son? Fck that. If that’s the goodwill of the people then fck them. Hes better off. William got what he wanted the spotlight. So good luck to him.
You sound like a white person.
LOL lucia you’ve been on fire this week, I’m enjoying it.
what a thing to say…
This type of comment causes more problems than it solves.
LOL!!!!
(And spare us the pearl-clutching, Horse and Jane.)
The accuracy of this comment…love it!
@grumpyterrier ~ concern troll is what I get from your post
Lol what? No. Are you paying attention at all? He’s got plenty of support. Especially on this site. Read the room
Ah, tumblr has chimed in.
Harry’s life is heading up and up, with the love of a strong woman who helps him face his abusive family.
Now William? He’s spiraling down fast.
I have MORE goodwill for Harry, not less. His family are ar$&@$les.
Reason #2751 of why I’m glad my childhood fantasies of being a princess never came true.
Word! It ain’t all it’s cracked up to be!
I wonder if the Epstein stuff played into this. Not in a literal way or anything. But because of the Queen’s treatment of Andrew throughout the last couple of months, and if Harry had been trying to broach this subject for some time and getting told ‘no’ by courtiers/aids then I could absolutely see why the timeline and roll out went less than ideally. And if I were in his position – I’d have done the same.
Honestly? I’m impressed. I really didn’t see him pulling this kind of move, and I’m pretty proud. i think this might be the most I’ve ever rooted for Harry. Meghan won me over a lot more quickly than he ever has because she just seems like a sweet person, but if he’s standing up for his family the way he seems to be, I’m here for it.
British media are blaming MM….well, if I knew that I was so close to a pedo, I would run out too. She’s right!!!!
The silver lining for the Queen is that no one is talking about Andrew now.
I do think that the whole Andrew issue has been making things more difficult for Harry to get through with his plans because, let’s be honest, the Andrew mess is big. I think the current crisis could have been avoided if it weren’t for the leak to The Sun (someone might have wanted to sabotage Harry’s plans?) and if the Palace hadn’t made such a bitter sounding first response after Meg and Harry were forced to announce their plans early.
In short, this wouldn’t have been a crisis if someone hadn’t leaked their plans and if the Queen’s staff was competent and left their own egos at home.
Maybe the Queen’s courtiers –not Kensington– leaked it to distract from the whole Andrew debacle. The Machiavellian bonus being, that everyone will assume it was William who leaked it. Game of Thrones, people!
The plans were sent to Charles and William. Somehow I don’t think Charles would want this but William? Yep. I wonder if he will suffer any repercussions. Probably not.
The queen cant even leave Sandringham for this. It cant be that big a crisis, lol. And apparently Harry HAS been trying to see her, sooooo…….
At any rate – the way the Queen handled the Andrew “situation” and the way this is being handled just highlights the…..isolation? ineptitude? asshole-ness?…of the royal family and the Queen in particular. They could have stopped the abuse towards Meghan a year ago, two years ago. Heck this summer they could have stopped it. Even this week they could have done something! A picture of Charles and Harry leaving Clarence House this week with Charles’ hand on Harry’s shoulder would have gone a LONG way. The same way Kate wearing something from the Smart Set would have gone a LONG way.
This stuff is so easy, relatively, and either they’re surrounded by morons who don’t realize that, or they realize that and don’t want to do it (don’t want to show that support.) For a long time I thought it was the former, now I’m thinking its the latter.
“Asshole-ness” covers it nicely.
Didn’t Liz refuse to leave Balmoral when Diana died? She’s never been able to read the room, or her subjects. Get rid of the whole lot.
I don’t fault her for not leaving right away in that instance. She was keeping William and Harry at Balmoral, out of sight of the press. As long as she stayed there, it was a good excuse for the boys to be kept there while Charles was flying to France. Bad PR move, good internal family move.
If she wanted him to explain, she should have met with her OWN GRANDSON instead of foisting him off at a vipers nest of courtiers blocking the meeting.
Izzy yep! He tried to meet. The time to meet is done now. Now it’s time for bye Girl
I’m speachless about sentences like this one: “The senior royals have been in contact with one another throughout the day Thursday as their households have worked together to come up with a crisis strategy to prevent any further damage to the reputation of the monarchy.”
Where was the crisis management by all the senior royal households after Andrew’s interview? F*ck, where was the crisis management ten years ago? Really? The Sussexxes bring down the monarchy?
I’m not a keen royal watcher from across the Channel but *every time* I read something like this I’m reminded of Andy. Is this the really best media strategy they can come up with?
If the RF want to prevent further damage they need to stop leaking every damn thing to the press. They are their own worst enemy.
YOU WEREN’T DEVASTATED BY ANDREW, WERE YOU BITCH?
Apologies but what a family of absolutely hideous people.
I think this country has gone mad. All that is going on in the world and all of the front pages of the papers are covered in this.
God help you, Meghan. And well done for flying away from this shit show.
It looks to me that the Meghan and Harry do not need the Royal Family as much as the Royal Family needs them. I have no doubt they will be able to spin their massive popularity into hundreds of millions of dollars and that they will be free from the stiff and rigid protocols they were required to adhere to. William will be furious watching his brother cavort freely with little restrictions and still be treated like royalty
So, this was in the works for months, Harry did as he was told, W & K leaked it to the press and forced Harry’s hand and the Queen is disappointed with him??!!?? The Queen needs to deal with the courtiers and the source of the leaks (W&K) because this is the root of her problem.
The queen will never, ever deal with the courtiers. They are her main support. And the source of the leaking is: BP/KP/Clarence House. Please, don’t tell me she doesn’t know.
I’m a bit confused. What has actually happened? Did they renounce their titles?
I feel like Harry will always be HRH Prince Harry because he was born to it, but they might not get to stay the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Though even if they officially take the title away, they just ARE the Sussexes now, the branding has been done.
No, they are just saying they are no longer “senior royals.” People are confused and taking this to mean they are walking away from the royal family. They’ll be “minor royals” now – the classification sounds weird, lol, but basically it means they’ll be more like the Gloucesters, Kents, etc. They’ll do some work for the crown when asked, they’ll have their patronages, but they wont work exclusively for the monarchy. Their foundation will be in its own independent thing and they’ll have more freedom.
One take from both Omid and Bradby (more even-handed reporters) is that this is about the Sussexes wanting to work MORE.
Thank you. This has been so misreported they never said they are quitting as royals. Harry is still slated to do a rugby engagement next Thursday. The Sussex instagram just posted about Hubb kitchen with pictures of their visit and how nice it was to reconnect in person this week. They are persisting.
Right exactly! They want to work more.. or at all. The minimizing of them by Will was forcing them to not work. They want to do good works. Unlike The Future Keen Cambridges the want to work and do things. They had to break free of the old white and grey men to be able to do this. I hope the rest of the royals trip over their tiaras. Team Sussex all the way.
Such a good point. Remember Mark Bolland? ‘The Windsors are very good at working three days a week, five months of the year, and making it look like they work hard’.
All Harry and Meghan are saying is: In those other seven months? We want to live where we choose and do the outside charity work of our choice.
This honestly sounds like:
– The queen refused to do her job and manage her family directly, when Harry was trying to negotiate a new approach that would work for his family
– Charles sat back for whatever reason
– William, overconfident swole-head that he is, thought he could play Future King and manipulate Harry and Meghan via back-door wrangling and leaks to the press. The Queen and Charles did not step in while William has been attempting to I-AM-YOUR-KING-ing his own brother.
William decided to call Harry and Meghan’s bluff with the Monday leak about H&M plans, only, he played himself. It wasn’t a bluff, and now William looks dumb in front of his father, grandmother, and all the courtiers – which is why these latest “William so hurt, only trying to be a big brother” stories are now coming out. He’s trying to save face among Palace insiders.
I wonder what part does Charles play in this, all this.
Me too. Is he CYA-ing himself, does he not know what to say/do, is he hoping to step in at the last minute like the mature statesman soon to be king that he is? His guidance will solve problems and make the masses realize he will be a good king. Is he making late night phone calls to reporters? Why has he never spoken up once in defense of Meghan or his newest grandson? I wonder if he ever wants to have a close relationship with either of his sons again? Does he care about his family?
Yes, the recent info that Harry and Meghan, already asking for changes, had actually been told by the senior royals during their break that the focus would be only on the heirs going forward (hence those “4 generations” photos over Christmas) — that sounds like a Charles message. My speculation is that Charles thought he was going to specify the terms and the time window, b/c he was leading the show, but it wasn’t a priority for him to resolve. Then William thought to “save the day” or stir the pot – who knows – but it was probably self-serving no matter what his intent.
What friend of Harry’s would speak to Katie Nicholl? Not a friend at all. Their friends speak out loud. They are never sources.
That’s not accurate. See the People magazine article last February where several Meghan friends spoke in detail but anonymously. That was absolutely condoned by Meghan.
While they weren’t named in the article, there was enough description about each of them to show that they were real people as opposed to fake sources. They were not simply described as “a friend of the Duchess.”
I like how they took the air out of the media hysteria by naming and then shooting down direct quotes such as ‘incandescent with rage’ , basically calling out the specific outlets that printed them. It makes the media look like overstimulated children who don’t have enough self-control to use their indoor voice and wet their pants in the process.
Does their moving mean they have to drop the lawsuit against the daily mail etc.?
I really don’t think it’s a good omen when BRF is “incandescent with rage”. Well, let’s see.
Golly Gee: as to your last point, I doubt it. They have the means to show up in court when necessary.
I hope so. I really want to see that lawsuit go-ahead to lift up some rocks and see what crawls out.
Nope, the Queen need to explain herself for many, many things relating to her allowance of the treatment of Meghan, her protection of Andrew, and more.
I totally agree with your take on the queen! Thank you for saying it! I feel like everyone just loves and worships her. She’s awful! Mean, controlling, and terrible. We knew it with Diana’s story yet somehow people forgot. She’s awful. Period. That family is awful. But I still feel like Meghan and Harry lost.
I got raked over the coals on this site a few months ago for suggesting that people should not be giving the Queen the benefit of the doubt in how the firm was treating the family. I indicated that I thought the queen was conducting herself in a horrible fashion and that she was quite frankly a b****. I even pointed out that we should not be surprised by this because all of the women in the Queen’s immediate family, from her grandmother on down to her daughter, are or were reputed to be or have been b******. Some people then were up in arms by my comments but I am glad that, finally, the Queen’s true nature is being revealed and people can see her for who she really is
By “family,” I meant the Sussexes.
Tale as old as time…when you shut out the person your loved-one has chosen as a partner, you end up loosing.
Oh Lee, bingo. Tale as old as time. As old as time.
I have never liked Queen Elizabeth, even as a kid. I was only 9 when Diana died but even then I could see how she mishandled the aftermath so badly. I understand wanting to mourn in private but the lack of reaction or statement from her angered people as I think she failed to realize Diana was a beloved member by the public, even if she was maybe not popular in the royal family. It happened again with Prince Andrew’s fiasco and it’s happening again with her turning a blind eye to the way Meghan has been mistreated by the media. I don’t think she said anything when Prince Philip crashed into a car a few years ago with a baby inside. I can respect she’s lived a very fascinating life and had to deal with her own obstacles and what not but I don’t think she is a good person herself. And I used to piss people off as a young kid when I told them I did not like QE. But I was right and I only had her mishandling of Diana’s death to base that off of. I get a lot of self-satisfaction as an adult to see people finally understanding what I did all those years ago!
I haven’t watched The Crown that much but it seems she has a habit of mishandling things. Nobody is perfect of course but she really doesn’t understand how things are perceived by the public and is not self-aware. So I don’t feel sorry for her, she wasn’t blindsided by this announcement and no amount of pretending to be devastated will make me feel any sympathy to her.
She’s so devastated that she wont be even get off her decrepit ass and leave Sandringham to deal with the “crisis” herself.
‘’“…damaging the reputation of the monarchy…”. FFS. What, like Creepy Andrew’s shenanigans didn’t cause even a small ripple? Did Lizzie demand he explain himself? The Sussexes are not in line for the throne, so why can’t his family just accept their decision and wish them well? There’s no reason why they can’t pursue their own goals, independent of The Firm, and still fulfil their royal duties during the times they are in Britain. As for the titles, he is still royal, still a prince and still the son of the future king and brother to the next king. If the monarchy lasts that long. Jaysus, and I thought my family was pharqued.
I’ve been over Queenie since she handled Diana’s death disastrously. She was made to reign in the 40s and 50s. She’s not equipped to handle this day and age. Should have handed it Charles ages ago.
I agree. She’s a relic from a bygone age, totally out of step with the modern world.
The thing about the royalty, is that their protocols, any special privilege they have, etc. is completely made up, they aren’t special in any way, and no one should live their life deferring to some old bitty because she calls herself a queen. It’s the 21st century.
The crap going down concerning H&M versus what went down regarding their family pedo is infuriating. INFURIATING. That f*cking family needs to burn. I actually feel so sorry for H&M, and yet I’m so happy they’re actually doing something instead of choking down spit and being quietly dignified while stoned. Wtf?!?
Just putting this random thought here – I have seen some comments on twitter and FB about how they should have waited for the queen to die to do this. What? No. That would have been even more of a clusterf*ck. This general period of time was the best time to make this change – so their roles are well established before the queen dies and Charles becomes king. They couldn’t do it after the queen dies, they prob wouldn’t want to do it during Charles’ reign, so what, they are stuck in this limbo until William becomes king in 30 years? I can see why they are doing this now, generally speaking.
This is the best time. They were always meant to be part of the royal family moving forward, but William couldn’t handle the new Harry. They had to get things ironed out now, becoming minor royals like the Gloucesters while given the freedom to pursue big projects without William getting in the way.
And, when William becomes Prince of Wales once Charles is king, good luck to Harry in getting any financial support from the Duchy of Cornwall. William would cut him off out of spite. Now is the time to lock down financial arrangements. Also, can’t see the Duchy being as successful once William takes it over, he probably can’t even trim rose bushes properly.
he probably can’t even trim rose bushes properly😂🤣😂
Exactly if they waited until after Queen died they would be accused of pissing on her grave and sabotaging Charles. So no time like the present.
This woman is trash. Sorry if that’s offensive, sincerely because I don’t follow the royals too closely so maybe that’s out of line, but honestly from my limited perspective I see a woman of great wealth and influence treating her grandson horribly while going out of her way to protect her pedophile son, so trash seems like an OK adjective. Harry and Meghan weren’t the ones who hosted a pedophile sex trafficker at freaking Buckingham palace and neither of them have been accused of raping teenagers so obviously they’ve got some explaining to do… big fat eyeroll from me. I hope the monarchy ends with William. It’s a stupid, appalling institution that humanity has moved past so it’ll be long overdue.
Thank you!!! The Queen is indeed, a massive a-hole. Just look at who her favourite son is. I am not a fan of the royal family in general however I have to take my hat of too to the Sussex camp, they have played this beautifully.
The queen is a reptile in every sense of the word. She is slimy and using Sussex as a show-shield to deflect from Prince Andrew’s PEDOPHILIA. WHY is she going so hard for him? Is she trying to protect a bigger secret here?
The queen HATES the attention Sussex gets. She is so jealous because they are bringing more awareness to causes, and are more genuine.
Meghan Markle is self-obsessed like Diana, but so what? Just because she likes her picture taken doesn’t negate all the good she is doing. The queen wants women like Kate and Camilla: quiet and docile.
They’ve normalized Trump from the beginning enjoy your chicken dinner Queenie
” I had a real come-to-Jesus moment about the Queen last year and how she’s actually a big a–hole.” – me too. I am so happy for those two to break away from the nightmare that Harry was born into. Nobody deserves to live like that.
I honestly think people on both sides—H/M & the BRF—should be devastated by this. His wanting to leave and slimming down the monarchy where he and his wife still play a substantial but reduced role shouldn’t be scorched earth and fraught with so much emotion and bitterness.
The BRF as well as Harry knows who they are from both personal interactions and at the institutional level. Look at the people who have been cut adrift and what their lives amounted to: Edward/Wallis, Princess Margaret, Fergie and Diana. It’s too early to talk about outcomes for Andrew. Harry knows what he’s facing and they all know who they are and what they can be. Sure, this is sort of the best of times for Harry and the worst of times but the question is not will they support him but probably more along the lines of how deeply they are going to cut him. That will reveal everything.
And Margaret was her SISTER. The Queen has always been vile, just happy people are finally seeing it.
Harry and Meghan haven’t proposed scorched earth, that’s the William PR spin on it.
There was never a plan to eliminate Harry and his wife as senior royals. That is a new spin from the pro-William camp. It was supposed to be six senior royals for Charles’s reign. Charles, Camilla, William and spouse, Harry and spouse.
They have proposed being like the Gloucesters and Kents. Willing to work to support the Queen in whatever tasks she gives them (Queen’s Commonwealth Trust, etc.). Like all the other minor royals, their housing and staff will be paid by the taxpayers in exchange for those royal duties.
What they’re asking for outside of that is – we don’t want to live in this cesspool full-time. We want to do our own charity work unfettered by petulant William and his demands. This is what Harry has done since he was 19 years old, co-founding Sentebale with Seeiso with William being no part of it. WWTW, Sentebale, Invictus Games, Hubb Kitchen, SmartWorks, Travalyst. That’s the work they want to do on ‘their time’, without W&K stealing the money or the credit.
Go back and read the early reports about the Foundation split. Protecting the Hubb money from William. Harry and Meghan being the only ones bringing in funding, while W&K kept trying to take that money for their projects. The second director in four months quitting the existing W&K foundation. Multiple staff leaving W&K to go with Harry and Meghan. Kate losing three more key staff in the last year, including the one person who directed her and made her work (Quinn). Wooten being buddy-buddy with the KP communications person.
What I meant by scorched earth, emotions and bitterness is that this should just be a simple shift like moving to another department—moving from marketing to finance or direct sales—or a like moving from f/t to p/t. Really something simple instead of the high drama it’s become. However, stuff like this can easily force people into taking inflexible positions or even positions they didn’t want to take, e.g., the leak forcing H/M’s hand. Those things can easily become scorched earth one way or the other.
I don’t think it does any of the parties any good to take a blow torch to this—if they don’t have to do so. I can see a mutual need not just now but heading into the future. Right now and for the foreseeable future, IMHO, the BRF need H/M as cooperating senior royals more than H/M need the BRF. And, although necessary at times, no one really wants to be cut-off from family. Finally, not to undermine QEII, but I think Charles needs to step up strongly to the plate on this one to not only carve out some protected space for M/H but to create an easy way back into the fold for them, if wanted or needed by either party, and from both a personal and professional standpoint. Plus, Archie will likely inherit titles. He just may want to leave out of that pocket—so to speak. Finally, finally, I say Charles has to create the space (and I can see why QEII may have deferred to him) because if will affect his reign and honestly it’s his sons. In addition, although she’s the sovereign, he handles the Duchy, it’s monies and will know how best to handle any political fallout and back dealing that’s needed.
You’re still blaming Harry and Meghan for something William chose to do to them – leaking this to get ahead of the story. Leaking it to make it look like William chose to throw them out, instead of Harry and Meghan taking the initiative months ago to direct their own future.
I don’t feel like I’m blaming them. I said:
However, stuff like this can easily force people into taking inflexible positions or even positions they didn’t want to take, e.g., the leak forcing H/M’s hand.
That, I feel, acknowledges that M/H weren’t initially trying to go the big reveal route. However, actions taken by others forced their hand. Perhaps I should have used the words “forced to publicly reveal their plans.” I still don’t want either party to go scorched earth. Boss moves, yes. But not scorched earth.
Harry and Meghan aren’t going to go scorched earth. They are too prepared for this, outside law firm included.
It’s odd to me that QEII has been on the throne so long. Charles always seemed like a turd to me throughout the 80s and 90s, what with all the cheating and that mortifying “tampon” comversation with Camilla (EWWW still not over that) but in his late years he seems to be a decent person, at least as much as one can expect, I suppose. He’s been active with environmental causes since before it was cool and appeared to be very kind to Meghan, even escorting her down the aisle and stuff. He’s right on the money about needing to slim down the monarchy and there’s been talk about the rift between him and Andrew for ages- I’m sure he’s long smelled the rat in that situation. Perhaps he, as monarch, would have been at least slightly more adept at handling these matters than his mother. I mean, she’s in her 90s. I’m not trying to be age-ist, I guess I may be a little – but why not move aside and let the next generation try its hand, before it’s too late? The British RF has been a sh*tshow for decades, and it seems like the Queen would be tired of all of her failures to handle the scandals. I mean, the church ride with Andrew, post-Epstein: the writing’s pretty much on the wall.
Setting the Sussexes aside for just a minute, let me focus on Royal Ass Kisser Kate Nicholl:
For starters, Katie Nicholl is so far up W&K’s ass that she’s not about to ruin that gravy train with actual reportage (rhymes with bon voyage). Exhibit A: She reports one side only and does not even pretend to get opposing comment from the Sussexes. Exhibit B: Where TF was she when Randy Andy got dumped? Oh right, busy kissing W&K’s ass. It’s interesting that she leaves the “hard” stories on the BRF to the other VF reporters.
Also, let me point out that Nicholl could use a serious copyeditor. Because her shit is never, ever in order, with misspellings, bad grammar and just sloppy writing. Like, Vanity Fair apparently just lets her post her stories without standard protocol. But I guess they’re not paying her for journalistic expertise. They’re paying her because ^^see above^^.
That said, I don’t know what the end game is here, but it wouldn’t surprise me one GD bit to find out she’s getting kickbacks from Kensington Palace to line her own pockets.
Yes. It’s that cynical.
If I’m not mistaken, and I’m not, she’s also getting dragged into phone hacking investigations. Apparently that’s where she got all her scoops on Harry and one of his blond girlfriends.
I have to stop reading these stories. I am way more upset by this than I should be. I don’t actually know Harry and Meghan and I shouldn’t be feeling such hate for William.
Angie, I feel yah, but I am confident my intense dislike for Harry’s Family is completely justified. 😜
They probably will lose their titles right? Interested in how that may effect plans to build on the “Sussex Royal” brand. My guess is the palace wouldn’t want to allow that. Wish them all the best – however it doesn’t really feel right that they would be able to personally profit off of a royal title in that way. My guess is that particular angle will be blocked hard.
I get people don’t want Sussexes using royal titles if they puruse private income. BUT the royal family still call some members “royals” who are not really royal, so what’s the difference? I mean, they still think Philip is a “prince” of Greece, even though Greece does not have a monarchy. So if H and M use “Sussex royal” after losing their HRH titles, is that really different from calling Philip a prince of Greece?
Technically, I don’t see why they can’t still use “royal” since Harry is still one because he can’t be stripped of his birthright as a prince. He’s still the grandson of a reigning monarch and son of a future one. Would they like to erase that as well?
If PH wants to write books, give speeches and sit on boards to earn an income, I hardly see why the family would object. It’s not like they are selling royal branded bed sheets. As far as them losing the titles, even the Duke of Windsor was still HRH after he was booted. And there is no precedence for removing the HRH from someone who is still married to an HRH. If Andrew keeps his HRH and is not a working royal, then why deprive Harry?
This whole system and pearl clutching BS is eye rolling. I understand that certain “traditions” must be upheld as a part of the royal family but really…a grown man has to explain himself to his grandmother on why he wants to make a personal decision for himself and his family when he intends to be financially independent from her…not only that but he has to go through several grouchy old men to even speak with her. Not only that but said old woman’s favorite son is literally a child rapist and THIS is what is being presented as breaking apart the monarchy?! Meghan and Harry run as far away as you can.
Let them walk away free of burdensome titles and daddy’s (Duchy of Cornwall) money that comes with strings attached. Let them earn their millions from sales of “Sussex royal “products, TV shows, book deals. Heck, I’ll watch their reality show ..it’s gonna be fun.
That is the whole point. He is a grown man and is probably tired of explaining himself. He has a wife and child, a family of his own. He needs to do what is best for THEM, not his 90 year Grandmother the Queen. He needs to stop taking their money and make his own way if he wants to live for himself
“Budget-Flight stunt queen William”
LMFAO 😂
This is how William’s name should always be written in the future. Bravo, Kaiser.
I just hope the old hack doesn’t croak any time soon or else Harry and Meghan are going to be blamed for it til Kingdom Come.
And to think I used to be, well not a “fan” exactly, of the Royal family – but I used to enjoy following them! Get away as fast as you can Harry and Meghan!
Well said… the chickens are coming home to roost. Britain may have to as the Royexit discussion soon.
The only reason Queen is making a fuss is to ward off any future threats of a republic, she doesn’t want to make it looks so easy to get rid of the Royal institution.
Well, this is what happens when you take people for granted. They expected Harry to show up every day, do the work, support his brother, his sister-in-law, his dad, his grandmother, the institution that he was born into, all while they lie, leak stories, throw his reputation under the bus for personal gain, and let their petty jealousies get the better of them because Harry might win in an overrated popularity contest, even though ultimately, the Queen, Charles and William are gonna be the fcking monarchs at the end of the day.
I don’t deny that the Queen is devastated. I think she’s had a lot of work to do over the years, trying to keep William and Harry in the royal fold after Diana’s passing, because William and harry really saw what life was like inside, and what it was like after you leave. They do know something about both sides of the coin, and I think the Queen really didn’t want any further disruptions to happen down the line. I think the Queen really wanted to show that what happened with Diana was just a momentary step out of the ordinary, and that everything down the line from there will be rock solid in terms of her family. And then this happens.
Was The Queen ‘privately devastated’ about Prince Andrew’s behaviour and was he ‘expected to explain himself’?
The RF’s priorities astound me.