Edward Enninful is trying to rebuild his career or do something new. Two years ago, he left British Vogue after a six-year stint as editor-in-chief which revolutionized the magazine. Before Enninful, British Vogue was pretty staid and not inclusive in the least. Enninful put women of color on the cover, he brought in the Duchess of Sussex to guest-edit the magazine (in what would become the highest-selling issue in the mag’s history), and he prioritized global fashion and more international models. It’s widely believed that Enninful left British Vogue after he made a play to replace Anna Wintour and he got outmaneuvered. Whatever happened, Enninful is only hinting at it these days. He’s launched his own media company, EE72, and he’s launched a new quarterly magazine, 72 (his birth year is 1972). To promote the new venture, Enninful gave a lengthy interview to the Times of London, and it’s worth talking about some of these quotes.
He doesn’t blame Anna Wintour for his departure from Conde Nast. “I feel I really changed Vogue, and my work was pretty much done. I’ll have fond memories but I was never going to do a lifetime’s service. I couldn’t have done what Anna has done.”
He swears he hasn’t fallen out with Wintour. “I text a bit. I had a great run at Vogue. I’m different; I don’t have rules. I have boundaries, but I allow creative freedom. I have no forbidden colours, though I don’t embrace colour myself. I prefer to hide and get on with the job.” What about British Vogue’s new head of editorial content, Chioma Nnadi? “She’s very competent,” he says, as icy as Wintour suddenly.
He isn’t focused on class: “I love King Charles and Queen Camilla — I went to the coronation with Katy Perry. I am happy to have them in the magazine. They care about the same things I do.”
The rise of sexism: “Women constantly need to be vigilant, and I am there for the fight. There is the manosphere, but that is not my world or reality — Andrew Tate is not my thing. But I think we must meet the young on their platforms to counter him, give them something else, more optimism. Gen Z are very interesting. They care about issues; they are curious. They need to be protected as they navigate this new online world and I want to do it with them.”
His comments about the Duchess of Sussex: That is what Enninful does so adeptly: he loves gossip, rarely falling out with celebrities in the highly fraught fashion world — the Duchess of Sussex is rumoured to be one of the few exceptions after she guest-edited the September 2019 edition of Vogue. He pauses. “Meghan and I had a great moment with the issue we did, but I feel like I have done it and I wouldn’t necessarily repeat myself.”
Leaving the EIC position after six years because he felt his work was “done”?? Bizarre. Whatever happened – and we still don’t know – it feels less Game of Thrones and more like The Office, you know? Just petty office politics rather than a larger falling out. As for what he says about Meghan… curious wording from the Times and curious wording from Enninful. Earlier this year, there were some really odd stories about Enninful and Meghan falling out in 2022 because he wouldn’t give her a British Vogue cover or something. The nonsensical stories felt like they were coming from Enninful’s camp or they were happening with his approval. I strongly suspect that Enninful asked Meghan for a favor (something like, “will you appear on the cover, it would really help me out”) and she said no. I suspect that because he’s behaving like HE got jilted. Honestly, his public insistence that he doesn’t want Meghan for a cover shows that he’s a bad editor too, right? Like… why would you not want one of the most famous women in the world on the cover of your start-up magazine?
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
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- Edward Enninful attends the 65th Evening Standard Theatre Awards at the London Coliseum, London, England. 24th November 2019. (EDITORIAL USE ONLY – THE PHOTOGRAPHS ARE FOR EDITORIAL USE IN RELATION TO THE STATED EVENT ONLY) -,Image: 541036184, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: jw / Bang Showbiz / Avalon
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- Edward Enninful on the red carpet for the ‘Eternals’ UK Gala Screening at BFI IMAX Waterloo in London, United Kingdom.,Image: 640321802, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: To licence this image, email info@sidetrack.london for more information., Model Release: no, Credit line: Cat Morley / Avalon
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- THE KING AND THE QUEEN CONSORT VISIT THE AFRICA FASHION EXHIBITION AT THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM The couple met , Edward Kobina Enninful OBE is an English editor-in-chief of British Vogue wearing glasses and Ozwald Boateng, OBE is a British fashion designer,,Image: 735126389, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- Britain’s King Charles III (R) shakes hands as he welcomes British editor-in-chief of British Vogue Edward Enninful during a reception for African business leaders, at the Garrison Chapel, Chapel Barracks, in London, on October 18, 2023.,Image: 814729803, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: ***NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS***, *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: ADRIAN DENNIS/Avalon
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- Edward Enninful attends the Opening Night Gala of ‘Blitz’ at The 68th BFI London Film Festival at BFI Southbank, London, England, UK on Wednesday 9 October, 2024.,Image: 918762123, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Please credit photographer and agency when publishing as Justin Ng/Retna/Avalon., Model Release: no, Credit line: Justin Ng/Avalon
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- Edward Enninful attends the amfAR Gala Cannes 2025 presented by Chopard at Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc on May 22, 2025 in Cap d’Antibes, France.,Image: 1002284428, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: Olivier Sanchez/Avalon
Kaiser I agree…this is giving PURE “bitter bitch energy” on HIS part😝
He is obviously quoted out of context.
Meghan has mentioned him many times. Including the fact that she contacted him to assist her in finding a designer, or another time when she mentioned he introduced her to someone.
Yes, his head is up Charles’ arse, but I don’t believe there was a “falling out.”
This is not accurate and I advise checking the source before making such statements.
I don’t know, what the Times wrote before printing his quote and his quote sounds like they were trying to be messy and he was trying to be diplomatic. He may want her to do something, but knows that she’s not interested in it, or he may have overstepped and they have a cool relationship now and he doesn’t want to get into that in public, who knows.
I do remember the stories from this summer though and it was definitely trying to come across as I don’t need her, so either he realized that wasn’t painting him in a favorable light or he realized it didn’t benefit him for people to think he was trying to shade her.
It’s just weird. Bc while it was the fastest selling issue, iirc, Meghan was absolutely pilloried in the press for guest-editing vogue. She was really raked through the coals for it during the height of the smear campaign. And from what I can tell, he did not bear the brunt of it. Not that we know of anyways. I can believe the quotes are pulled out of context but it makes it seem like he’s happy to have Charles or Camilla or Katey Perry in his magazine any old time but not Meghan.
Yes! Best selling Vogue issue of all time, & the toxic tabloid went after her! Petty, bitter & blatant jealousy! Like it’s been said many times: the manosphere cannot abide successful Black women; & the White billionaire media barons (all men) certainly have to shriek, tear their hair out & have a monumental tantrum every time Black women triumph!
I’m trying to remember who Ive seen him with recently that are in Meghan’s orbit. I want to say Serena and Oprah? Sucking up to the BRF may work in the UK but if he’s trying to work in America too it’s not going to to do him any favours to be openly rude to Meghan. Maybe in MAGA world but Meghan moves in a pretty elite group in the LA adjacent world. Anyway he seems like a bitchy dude and I can’t imagine this magazine will be a success.
I know that he recently was with Serena and I believe at least one other friend of Meghan’s so I don’t think that he is slighting Meghan but as someone else said above, he is being diplomatic because he still has a relationship with Charles. To me him referring to her as Meghan comes across as a more friendly mention of her when he could have avoided calling her by her name at all or calling her “she” or whatever instead. The title of this post implies that he doesn’t want to repeat himself to her when it seems as if he just wants to not repeat what he did in his previous job. I don’t trust him entirely because to me anyone linked to the royals isn’t trustworthy, but I don’t think that they are anything more than casual acquaintances. Meghan has true friends who aren’t really famous or well know public figures and those are the ones she has a closer relationship with and I don’t thing that EE ever was in that category because why would he be? She worked well with him and they created something great and historic, and that didn’t require them becoming lifelong friends.
Honestly I don’t care whether they did or didn’t have a falling out at this point. The constant rehashing of this non story is boring. His new magazine also looks boring. Good luck to him, he’s going to need it!
Well he loves chuck and cams so that is all I need to know about this kiss ass. I hope him and his start up. Stay just that , a start up . Yup . I too can be petty because I won’t be reading it .
@Over it My sentiments exactly.
I think Meghan and Edward had more of a business relationship than anything. Sure, they were friendly and maybe goofed around the Vogue office but I don’t think they were ever BFFs. He wanted to be on the BRF’s good side and giving Meghan such a huge platform by guest editing a Vogue issue likely deeply annoyed them. Even if it was British Vogue’s most bestselling issue and them a ton of money, they didn’t want Meghan to outshine them so they may have asked him to tone his relationship down with her. Or he made concessions to stay on Charles’s and Camilla’s good side. He was asked to pick a side when the Sussexes left and he chose the BRF. It’s as simple as that.
Exactly. What an odious creature he has revealed himself to be, sidling up to the “definitely not racist” royal family- a 21st century Uncle Tom. He is really disgusting. It seems he is really trying to insinuate himself into the aristo crowd as well.
The way the quotes are framed does make it seem like a choice was made.
It reads as if he’s been encouraged to choose a side. You can’t be my friend if you’re her friend. Sorry villerose, we typed at same time.
He absolutely should have given her a British Vogue cover. What a huge miss!
I think at the time the cover was offered. But Meghan was already being told to tone down her shine by the firm so it makes sense why she went with a guest-edit instead. And yet I remember so many tabs piling on about who does she think she is, too good for the cover and trying to make Kate look bad for doing a Vogue cover. All of it was deeply weird and nasty.
Where did he say he didn’t want Meghan on the cover? I only saw the part about guest-editing.
Whatever. It will be interesting to see this foray into “slow information.” With only 10 issues a year, he’ll have to be really focused on the long-term rather than short-term trends, no matter what art form he’ll be talking about.
I think its in the last line when he says he wouldn’t want to repeat himself…but you’re right in that he’s talking about guest editing with Meghan again and not a cover.
That’s the thing about the last line, he isn’t necessarily saying that he doesn’t want to guest edit with Meghan specifically, so he could simply just mean that he won’t be doing a guest edit with anyone or that he won’t be doing a guest edit similar to the same type of issue that he did with Meghan.
He does reference Meghan’s name though. But yeah it can still be open to interpretation. The tabs and the Times have glommed onto this like there is something there when we really have no idea.
I think a lot more happened than Enninful is saying with Vogue. He probably felt under appreciated and under acknowledged considering what he did at that role. At the same time he has never really given Meghan any credit for her contribution to his success and the impact of that cover. Nor does he seem to have an inkling of understanding of the hell she caught for that cover and what she went through over there, not to mention the past 5 years. But you know, we’re supposed to care that she can’t sit with him at fashion week.
I think you nailed it. That cover was all Meghan, and it was the biggest-selling issue of his career. At least subconsciously, I don’t think he likes that he wasn’t the brainchild of it. Vogue doesn’t strike me as a share-the-credit kind of place, and to get so high in the chain, you probably have to be more than a little narcissistic.
I’ve had a British Vogue subscription forever and I really enjoyed how he mixed things up and changed the magazine.
That said, I recently finished reading the edition with Doechii on the cover and it was one of the most interesting issues I’d read in a while, they’re all decent these day but that one stood out. They had a really interesting range of articles about all sorts of women, from the England rugby team to the women who do have big jobs in fashion these days (even if they are few and far between). Credit to the lady who took over from him, I like her work.
Didn’t he also say at one time that Meghan didn’t follow the rules and soon after he was buddy buddy with Charles and Camilla. He’s choosing his side. But also this doesn’t sound like he’s saying no to a cover. He seems bitter
I think the answer for this break between him and Meghan lies in his answer about his admiration for the King and Queen. I bet after that issue (and how successful it was), he got a phone call from BP — saying what, I don’t know, but I bet a potential OBE or something like that was on the line. Meghan possibly called him for a follow-up — had a great idea, can she do it, or something like that — and he either ghosted her or was coldly told her no, and she knew exactly what happened (BP) without it being explicity told that.
Never underestimate the power of — particulary with British citizens — the dangling of a title (David Beckham, for example).
In previous stories it sounds like the problem wasn’t even Meghan but was scheduling conflicts and maybe Edward being mad that Meghan didn’t bow down to him enough. They did the variety cover instead of the vogue cover and he seems to be really upset about that.
Mark my words but I swear so many of these people will come to regret their words or lack of outright support.
There was a period of time where Taylor swift was a punching bag, Kim kardashian, etc. now those people are powerful.
Wait and see.
Awwww too bad Uncle Tom.
He doesn’t seem to care for her based on prior and now quotes. No idea what happened, but he was one of the ones that tried that I will never work with her again mess like 2 years ago though. And he could have said I wish her well instead of acting like she’s old and washed up and why work with her again. He has a new company, she sells out everything in seconds. He’s obviously being catty and thinking people won’t catch on.
He wouldn’t put Meghan on the cover because he doesn’t want to hurt his friendship with Charles and Camilla. He did leak Meghan’s 40/40 intiative before it was announced and I think if it’s true that’s why he and Meghan fell out. Plus he did deny that Meghan faced racism in the Royal Family. He didn’t seem very enthusiastic about his successor at British Vogue even though he says it was his choice to leave. There’s more to him leaving Conde Naste than meets the eye.
I’m so sick of this man and him and his team playing games with Meghan’s name to endear him with the press and promote his new thing.
I have no respect for him allowing the continued abuse for his own benefit.