As I’m writing this, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have not released a new photo or video of Archie for his second birthday. They aren’t required to and if they weren’t feeling it, that’s totally fine. I just thought they might because they did something for Archie’s first birthday, the Save the Children UK video of Meghan reading to Archie (with Harry behind the camera). The haters were out in full force with that video last year, so perhaps H&M were like “nah, we’re not doing that again.” They did ask their fans to donate to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, in honor of Archie’s birthday. The donation page Omid Scobie links to directs to Global Citizen’s dedicated page for donations for Archie’s birthday. Impact!
To celebrate Archie’s birthday, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan are encouraging donations to benefit @Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, which buys COVID vaccines for the world (prioritising those in countries that cannot afford them)🌎
DONATE (via @GlblCtzn): https://t.co/btVsExz1u8 pic.twitter.com/bt142TI8Bh
— Omid Scobie (@scobie) May 6, 2021
In addition to this, Katie Nicholl also had to say some words about Archie’s birthday, and Nicholl’s words just read like her own little vague fan-fiction at this point.
Royal expert Katie Nicholl said Prince Harry and Prince William, 38, would put their differences to one side and come together for a Zoom call with Kate Middleton, 39, and Prince George, seven, Princess Charlotte, six, and Prince Louis, three, for the occasion.
Speaking to Okay! magazine, she said Harry, Meghan and Archie would also likely join the Queen for a call, adding: ‘Lockdown is lifting and the sun in California is shining – I’m sure they’ll have a lovely celebration at home…Harry will make a really big fuss of Archie.’
Katie said Prince Harry faces a difficult challenge in trying to help his children bond with their cousins. She revealed: ‘He always wanted his children to grow up close to William and Kate’s…Sadly it’s looking increasingly unlikely for Archie.’
Meanwhile despite difficulties in their relationship over the last 18 months, she said it was ‘hard to imagine’ the Cambridge’s wouldn’t be in touch with the Sussexes on Archie’s birthday.
Yeah, no. There hasn’t been enough water under the bridge yet, especially considering that just last month, William and Charles were making asses out of themselves towards Harry during the funeral of the family’s patriarch. So spare me the happy horsesh-t about Harry really wanting Archie to know his cousins. There’s a reason why Harry and Meghan have kept Archie away from the UK for 18 months.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Avalon Red.
They are a class act. Love seeing their little one. Happy birthday Archie!!
Why is the writer writing like he knows anything of the situation? “There hasn’t been enough water under the bridge yet” LOL… coming from a nobody who’s a paid Sussex Stan.
First of all. Happy happy birthday Archie!
This is a really lovely initiative however i wish these charities or initiatives would add a link to donate with ideal or paypal as creditcards really aren’t common everywhere in the world.
And about the birthday dedications of BP, CH, and KP…… they could have kept it. Literally.
Love this. Happy Birthday to Archie!
I really wish I could get a job as a royal insider. Harry is going to make a big deal about his son on his birthday???? THIS IS BREAKING NEWS THAT NO ONE COULD HAVE SEEEN COMING!!!! and they get paid for this!
Finally – if having his kids grow up close to the Cambridges was a big priority for Harry, they would still be in the UK, working royals or not. It’s not a big priority for him, and obviously I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Clearly Harry thinks it is better for his children to be far away from the UK and the royals.
Remember in the oprah interview when harry said that he could see where it was going? I think he was talking about archie being the scapegoat for the Cambs kids. Think about it. If harry and meghan hadn’t exposed the royals and their plans in that interview and they were still in the UK as senior royals, archie wouldn’t have gotten a title and thus no security. But there is as much interest in him as there is in prince george. The perfect set up for him to take all the bullshit while the camb kids are free. I also remember seeing a clip where a royal reporter said that they would have a lot of fun when archie starts dating. He said this with an almost sadistic smile on his face. Very much a threat. I think Harry wants this much physical space between his kids and williams kids. Which is why i also think they offered to be part time royals in a commonwealth country.
Yup, I agree. Harry saw the writing on the wall – we always talk about the “heir and the spare” dynamic for the Windsors and how that will play out with the Cambridge kids – but I think Harry realized that the dynamic would be the same. His family would still be “the spare” and William’s “the heir”, meaning the press wouldn’t pit George against Charlotte or Louis, but would pit the Cambridges against the Sussex children and the Sussex children would always be the scapegoats for the Cambridge children, esp since Archie and Louis are so close in age. He got his family the hell out of there for a reason.
100% this. His reputation got trashed growing up to protect William’s. I can see that happening to Archie’s to protect George and even Louis’. I’m glad they got out. Hopefully Charlotte and Louis know they can escape to Uncle Harry’s when they become the lambs to slaughter.
@niqgee: i think there is a chance that louis might get an easy ride and will be the “edward” of the Cambridges so to speak. Charlotte tho….. she’s in for it. Especially since the BM loves to be sexist and those kind of articles generally do well. Part of me thinks that that is why the Cambridges are so angry with h&m. Because they thought their kids would come out of this, no harm done. But now they know they’re going to have to offer one of them up.
I agree with this analysis. Just curious as to why that wasn’t the way it was for the previous generation. What dynamics (aside from William being an a$$) caused this to change?
@KA it boils down to interest. People were just as interested in harry as in william when they were both in their late teens/ early 20’s. I would say people were even more interested in harry, making him the perfect distraction from the mistakes of the “heir”. The Cambridges care A LOT about their family image and want to seem perfect. Like i said there is as much interest in archie as there is in George, ergo archie would have been the perfect distraction. The BM would get their pound of flesh, while the heir remains untouched. Meghan and harry moving away ruined that plan.
I think it’s also due to age difference. The closest in age to harry and william, cousin-wise, were Zara and Peter, who were in a different world in many ways bc they weren’t HRH and were never going to be working royals. We did see it a little bit with Beatrice and Eugenie, but there is more of an age gap there – Beatrice is 6 years younger than William and Eugenie is 8 years younger. So if you want to distract from WIlliam’s misdeeds in high school, its easier to use his younger brother who is 15 than the cousin who is 12, you know? and I also think in general the press is going to pit two of the same sex against each other – William vs. Harry rather than William vs. Beatrice. Archie and Louis are only a year apart and both boys so I think the comparisons would be inevitable.
And then like @Cecilia said the public was just more interested in Harry, so he worked better as the scapegoat than someone like Zara or Beatrice who people just didn’t care about that much.
@Cecelia, this using Archie as a potential scapegoat for the Cambridge kids make a lot of sense. Remember the Tatler article on Kate mentioned how Will and Kate thought the Sussexes threw the Cambridge kids under the bus by leaving, and I wonder if that has to do with them taking Archie and sibling away from that mess.
Off to donate now.
I donated! I love supporting anything Harry and Meghan do. The impact that they have is amazing. I love how much tangible, real life support they get for their projects and charities from their supporters. I feel like I’m part of a movement.
What link did you use?
In the tweet by Omid there is the link for donating. This part:
DONATE (via @GlblCtzn): https://bit.ly/3ethe6B
It takes you to:
https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/connect/duke-duchess-sussex-covax-donation/
Thxs
Me too! What a worthy cause too.
Nice idea. Once again, happy birthday Archie!
As for releasing something, they might or they might not. But they might also release something around 11pm UK time so that means any pictures/videos they do post don’t make it in time for tomorrow’s front pages.
If they do decide to release something i hope they do it this way
I don’t get it. They own the copyright no? Can’t they just forbid the tabloids from using the picture?
Its a bit harder to argue that when you release a picture to the public willingly. But since they do have the ownership the tabloids would have to pay for the use of the picture/ video. If they do then fair is fair. I they don’t than that would be legal ground for h&m to sue.
After everything they went through last year with the release of the video of the book reading, I hope the Sussexes do not release anything to commemorate Archie’s birthday this year.
@BTB It is so disgusting, so disappointing, that so many people are so twisted that they would slam a video of a mother reading to her little son. I pity them: their lives must be a thing of darkness.
BTB, I also wondered that the pap picture would stand–why put another one out there into the public arena. Just a thought.
For me it’s very easy to imagine the Cambridges not being in touch for Archie’s birthday. Perfectly in brand with them. Anyway it’s a nice gesture asking for vaccine donations in honor of Archie’s birthday. I had already made a donation for the Sussexes Baby Shower, I’ll be making another one for Archie’s birthday to Gavi.
Will do the same.
What a wonderful way to celebrate Archie’s birthday and to keep the eyes on the much needed support that is needed to fight this virus. I love them.
Happy Birthday, Archie!
Katie Nichols should write for the Hallmark Channel.
Archie is spending time with Meghan’s friends kids, the kids at his pre-school and other kids in Montecito. He’s not going to suffer if he doesn’t see his cousins for extended periods of time. Most of my first cousins grew up on the West Coast while I grew up on the East Coast. We rarely saw each other growing up, but we connected as adults.
Archie will be fine.
Yep. Came here to say this. I too grew up far from my cousins and extended family, but we connected as teenagers when my family moved back from the Midwest to the Southwest, and we’re all pretty close now. You don’t have to grow up on someone’s doorstep to have a good adult relationship.
And I’m glad Archie is away from that toxic mess. All children deserve a happy life, unburdened by expectations and un-cast in roles not of their own making. Happy birthday, little one!
PS I donated!
absolutely he’ll be fine! I hate when the press does that ‘poor Archie who won’t grow up with his cousins’. He’s loved and that’s all that counts. Not to be petty, but I feel like Archie really is loved by Meghan’s fans, i don’t ‘feel’ that kind of vibe for the Cambridge kids.
And have you noticed: the initiative/overture ALWAYS has to come from the Sussexes, as if they are expected to be supplicants to the rage-monster wannabe king and his assistant. KMT
(Laughs in incredulousness.)
My maternal grandparents made a mess of things and most of their kids don’t speak to each other. I have 2 groups of cousins on that side I’ve never met, and the rest of them I see maybe ever couple of years at most.
Archie will be fine. I think it would be very, very tough growing up around those particular cousins.
Happy Birthday. Archie! Welcome to the Terrific Twos! Here’s to a fun day of cake and presents, even if you don’t understand what exactly is going on today quite yet. And yes, off to donate to this very deserving cause in honor of Archie.
Note how Katie Nicholl claims Harry would be on the Zoom call with William, KATE and the kids for Archie’s birthday. I guess Archie’s mother shouldn’t be included on this birthday call.
If the Cambridges think they will be able to have a relationship with Archie but ignore his mother, they truly are delusional.
Katie Nicholl does not know anything. Katie Nicholl is just writing porky pie stories to generate comments. I doubt Harry and William are even speaking let alone Zooming.
BTB, if such a fairytale came to pass, I wouldn’t have Archie anywhere near a camera if W&K are watching. Who knows how many pictures they would take and sell? My but I’m getting cynical.
My cousins and I have a whatsapp group. We’re scattered across multiple countries and multiple states. Those of us in the same country don’t even see each other for months at a time, sometimes once a year. We’re as close as ever and are fully abreast on each other’s lives. It’s fine. Technology really bridges the gap.
Lovely idea.
American spelling in the letter, UGH.
Ashley, you lost me. What letter? Why is American spelling a problem? Makes me wonder how you think of those of us here on this site who use American spelling.
Katie said the exact same thing last year. She ALWAYS says Harry and William have mended things and are super close again. She is such a liar.
I also love what Harry and Meghan did for Archie’s birthday. Amazing.
A few things:
1) Yes, the father (and mother) of a 2 year old will likely make a fuss over their child on their birthday – super reporting skills.
2) I don’t believe that Harry really wants to involve his child(ren) in the royal family cousin cosplay. Letting Archie (or Miss Montecito Baby) be involved with the Cambridge brood will only set them up for the inevitable competition years down the line. I don’t think they want to encourage that.
3) It is in no way hard to imagine that the Cambridges will not be in touch with the Sussexes. Cain and Unable have never said Archie’s name in public. I don’t think they’ve actually said Meghan’s name publicly either.
Happy birthday to Archie! I like how they made celebrating his birthday into a way to raise funds for Covid vaccines.The photo at the top of the post may have confused many people hoping for a peep of Archie. You know, people got so bothered about seeing him last year so good on them not showing anything because it’s their choice alone and too many haters wrote whole screeds on a baby in a onesie ( remember that awful writer Emily Giffin just trashing Meghan). Anyway, will be nice if Archie has a little birthday play date with some cupcakes and a few toddler pals. This year, not too many birthday parties and they’ve all been low key and outdoors (California weather) or with our bubble group. Off to donate now.
Update…there’s a little pic of Archie up on the site but sepia toned abd back to camera. We see how you go Sussexes,lol. Get the attention to the cause, then a glimpse of baby boy.
Happy birthday Archie! People can also sign the petition in support of Harry’s letter asking the CEOs of vaccines manufacturers for them to share vaccines to poorest countries.www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/prince-harry-meghan-letter-big-pharma-vaccines/
@Petra Done! The more we act positively and communally, the greater chance we have to not only eradicate the most harmful effects of the virus but pay testament to, and stand with, the people of the global south.
Just donated. I love that they did the work to get matching funds from several organizations so if you donate $5.00 it becomes $20.00 and goes from 1 dose to 4 doses . They are VERY good at organizing and networking so they have the most impact.
Doesn’t everyone have family that they see once a year or only at the family reunion? And that is for people who live the same country! Its not like its the 1800s where mail has to travel by sea and then by horse, lol. They can call and Zoom to their hearts content. And its not like they wont ever see each other again, its really up to their parents. The media is so extra with this “not close to their cousins!” thing. Dang!
I saw this not too long ago on their website and definitely plan on donating! What an amazing cause to connect to their son’s birthday.
That’s a great initiative and I love that they match up to three times the amount donated.
Harry is right to protect his son from those who look down on him because of his race. Better to go where you are accepted rather than where you’ll be rejected and scapegoated.
I donated. Happy Birthday Archie!
Donated!!!!!
Aww. Happy Birthday Archie. My son was born on the same day. So he’s also turning two today as well. They grow up so quickly. As for the Cambridge’s and the Sussex’s. Yeah I think those relationships are still estranged. Despite the photo op Harry did at Philips funeral and I think that was mostly for his Grandmother’s benefit…
The only photo op was Kate’s Black Widow poses for her photographer. But yes, Harry attended mainly for the sake of the queen.
I meant that photo of him walking and talking with William and Kate.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Archie Harrison. And may you have many, many more!🎂👟🎈🎉
At this point, Katie Nicholl is a fan fic writer. None of what she says makes any sense or seems plausible given there is no relationship between the Sussexes and the Royal Family. As for there being no picture, it’s not surprising, the one year review is over they are no longer working royals and there’s no obligation for them to post a picture.
+1
“At this point, Katie Nicholl is a fan fic writer.”
A fan fic writer who writes to generate hate is all she ever was and ever will be.
There was no obligation to do so in the first place, working royal or not. That they did, was just a bonus. For their fans/admirers.
PS:
H&M (esp. M) just continue to confound their critics and even their fans! I believe everyone was monitoring the websites/SM of their charities (Wellchild, SmartWks, Luminary Bakery….perhaps even H’s military charity orgs) for H&M’s photo release of a birthday pic of Archie – just like they did via WellChild at Christmas.
But noooooo…….our Patron Saint of Original Ideas, aka one Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, has done it again! A new and different approach.
Anyhoooo….some of us are still keeping hope alive that we’ll see a birthday photo of Archie, even if its pixilated….perhaps released after shutter islands goes to sleep.
ETA:
OMG!!!!! They just released a photo of Archie. With balloons! With his back to the camera. In black and white. LOL
Go H,M&A!!!!
I just love that they’re doing so much good in the world. Happy birthday, Archie! How fortunate he is in his parents – and I think they have become the best parents they can be through adversity, so are astounding role models to grow up with.
I have to be honest. Today fully emphasised for me how much Harry and Meghan need some kind of social media content/ presence. I fully support this initiative and applaud their desire for equitable vaccine distribution but the roll out and ”impact” of this endeavour made it clear to me atleast how they are limiting their own reach. Their website is no longer engaging. What was once interesting (because it was new) has become predictable. I won’t lie I didn’t even bother to read their post and I consider myself an avid fan of their work.
It can’t always be this serious… sometimes I just want to like a picture or watch a video and go back to minding my business.
I don’t know, I could be way off the mark but today was a dud for me.
My expectations for them are really high based on previous content and behaviour and these past roll-outs have been below par for me.
I want them to succeed so badly because of all the awfulness they have endured and wish them well but their current strategy is not resonating with me.
I want to emphasize, I didn’t need a picture or video of Archie today but engaging content in celebration of his birthday or any of their other projects would have been great.
They co-chaired a whole concert about the vaccine, lol.
They announced the release of Meghan’s book inspired by watching Harry with Archie two days before his birthday.
You said yourself sometimes you just want to like a picture then move on. Their releases are about creating impact these days so maybe a picture that you can like and move on from is not exactly what they want to be about. But personally I don’t get how that approach resonates with you more than what they are doing.
If you want pictures and posts you can like and move on from, then visit the accounts of the organizations they are working with. I am sure this is part of their plan too – to use their status as public figures to draw attention to certain causes but to ensure they do not redirect focus from those causes onto themselves.
To each their own.
I write this with the full acknowledgement that this is very much a “me” problem. Harry and Meghan are not required to do anything that does not align with who they are or want to achieve, with that said I believe that the simplicity of liking a picture and your interpretation of their current method can exist in the same space especially since they were able to achieve a nice balance of those two approaches before on their Instagram page.
My main gripe is that the content they are creating when rolling out their projects is just not engaging. The very essence of what they are aiming to do is clear, it’s everything else around it that I find dull especially when they have proven they are capable of more.
Prime example would be the round table that Meghan had a while back.
Would it have been a little bit more impactful if a small video (which doesn’t have to have Meghan in it) accompanied the statement on their website, where the young women she spoke to spoke for themselves, something a little bit more elevated than what was given.
I respect them and their work. I just feel a lot more could be done to make it more engaging but like you said each to their own.
Thanks for the reply
Nancy guessing there wasn’t a video for the Girls Inc round table because minors were involved.
They were doing lots of zooms previously but think those slowed down because of Meghan’s pregnancy. They will be seen for that Vax Live & sure Meghan will do things around her book.
It will be interesting to see what they do content wise as things open up & after Meghan’s maternity leave.
The content we would have gotten if the royal family, press & trolls hadn’t been so hateful.. sigh. Remember Meghan wasnt allowed to post a video about Vogue edit for being trivial but now Cambridges are doing blooper content. And then the hateful meltdowns over Archie’s last birthday video..
There’s lots of research that SM abuse mainly targets WOC & the aim is to silence & I think the organised mass trolling of Sussex Royal has had an impact.
I imagine they will return to SM but perhaps in line with their campaigning they want SM giants to crack down on online hate & misinformation & make it a safer space before they return. It’s a pity but don’t blame them for protecting themselves.
Totally! If any of us had to walk a day in their shoes, all while trying to keep your family safe, maintain a sense of sanity and do a small part to make the world better, well, we all know how that would go with most people.
I always have to remind myself to give them grace as they navigate their new normal especially after all the trauma they have endured. That my expectations are not their problem but my expectations unfortunately remain.
I fully support their desire to protect themselves from the vitriol they experienced on social media however I would think that they now have the means to hire a team to engage with social media on their behalf and I also wonder what is stopping them from making their current framework (the website) more engaging.
I just don’t think their current model is sustainable long term.
Hopefully I am wrong
This is Harry and meghan showing how to be mystique and having an aura magical air without having to be lowering their status as celebrities such as being youtubers to be relevant.
They don’t have social media but Meghans book presale sold out in hours. Fifty million people saw Oprah. Twenty million views Harry’s interview with James Cordon on YouTube. I think they are doing fine and without the headache of the trolls. I just don’t think they are eager to jump back into the mix, especially if they don’t have to.
Not trying to pile on but while so many want the Sussexes to have social media and to see some lighter fare, look at it from their perspective. As Meghan said, she is one of the most trolled people in the world. Their Sussex Royal Instagram, while great for content from our perspective, was a cesspool of racism, misogyny and violent threats for Meghan, with so many ugly comments, which only seemed to get worse, not better,and went nuclear level after they announced they were stepping back. From the Oprah interview, they are still bruised and maybe just don’t want to put themselves out there like that yet. Even people who are recently associated with them get harassed on their social media. I get that we want more content, some personal fluffy stuff, but they don’t want to do that right now and they get attacked for it, with accusations of hypocrisy relating to privacy or exploiting their titles, their child, being narcissists, etc. The result of this is they don’t see the value of it for them. Look at how that paparazzi pic of Meghan carrying Archie was attacked, with people accusing her of staging it with a child actor and smirking under her mask. That’s type of attack is not worth posting some cutesy picture of a cake fir likes. I’ve never been viciously harassed on social media but it can be really traumatic for people and we need to respect that. Archewell is a work website for their business and philanthropic ventures. It’s not their Instagram. Right now they want to focus on work and partnerships and keeping their personal life just that, personal.
I visit Archewell.com everyday and I continue to enjoy the posting there. I know some of us want the razzle dazzle of their lives on display. I like the seriousness of the site. The expectations on Meghan and Harry are a lot even from their fans. I’m starting to feel sad
for them even though they found their freedom from BRF. These couple can never totally win, the expectations are too much and very high. I hope they continue to stick to their own intentions rather than those of well-wishers and naysayers.
Katie words are confusing me. First she said they would put their differences aside and come together for a zoom call then she said it’s hard to imagine the keenbridges won’t be in touch with the sussexes . So which is it Katie. Also Archie has other family like eugine and Beatrice, maybe his parents prefer their company on their son birthday, you know peace and love over incandescent rage and bitter jealousy. Also why is always forgetting Chucky
, Harry and his family don’t need the keenbridges to be happy, hence why they left.
This 3 to 1 matching is honestly one of the best ive ever seen. You can donate $5, enough for 1 vaccine and that will be quadrupled to $20 which is enough for 4. It really is a testament to their soft power that they were able to get 3 organizations to commit to this with each saying they’d match up to $1 million. Like i can’t think of many other individuals besides Harry and Meghan who cam do this especially when they already had $54 million worth of committments for COVAX by last Sunday; that number is probably much higher now.
Yes, was amazed by this. And we’re not talking Mom and Pop organizations. See why that island is so salty.
Archie looks just like Harry…such a sweet little family 👪 best of everything to them all ❤