By: Lieba Nesis
Unless you have been living under a rock, you have either seen the trailer or read in the newspapers about Harry and Meghan’s Netflix series which debuted with 3 episodes on December 8th and another 3 scheduled for December 15th. This 3 hour enjoyable snooze fest directed by two-time Oscar nominated filmmaker Liz Garbus was riddled with inaccuracies, lies and distortions but was nonetheless enjoyable. While complaining endlessly about intrusions into their privacy Harry and Meghan have documented nearly every day since their meeting in the summer of 2016 and shared it with the public-as long as they control the narrative and receive compensation they are open books.
The series begins with a selfie Harry “spontaneously” snaps of himself at Windsor Suite (named after his family) in Heathrow airport after completing the final two weeks of royal engagements having just escaped the horrific confines of Buckingham Palace. After hearing for years that he and Meghan were introduced through a mutual anonymous friend, the professional prevaricators reveal they met when a smitten Harry spotted a picture of Meghan on Instagram. Meghan then proceeds with her inconceivable assertion that she had no idea who “Prince Haz”, as she annoyingly calls him, was but enjoyed his picturesque Instagram so agreed to go out! When Harry shows up a half hour late the exasperated Meghan nearly leaves-she “Haz” had enough.
Two dates later “H”, as she calls him, invites “M”, as he calls her, to Africa for a week where they fall in love under the stars. Once again they document the private time with endless romantic photos; despite Meghan claiming it was time for them to get to know each other without her being all done up full extensions and makeup are revealed in carefully orchestrated pictures. They apparently were planning this story a month into their courtship.
There are endless comparisons drawn between Meghan and Princess Diana with Harry remarking on their shared values of empathy and compassion. Meghan’s compassion has never been divulged; however her bullying of staff and Kate Middleton to the point of tears and shaking as well as the 14 employees who have fled the Sussexes’ tyranny has been widely disseminated. Let’s not forget Meghan’s 2018 wedding grievances which included the wrong tiara and the musty 15th Century George’s Chapel which left Harry barking “What Meghan wants, Meghan gets”. And so this couple continues their endless claims of blameless victimization as the paparazzi and press continue to scapegoat the hapless couple with nary a word from the palace.
Meghan’s expectations of a handbook on how to comport herself as a royal were unrealized as she mocks the required curtsy to the Queen leaving viewers cringing. “Grin and bear it” was the royal motto. “Hugger” Meghan slyly critiques Kate Middleton’s icy demeanor decrying the formalities of the royal household which is foreign to convivial Meghan; who earned her title “Duchess Difficult” in July 2019 upon showing up in jeans to Wimbledon and cordoning off 4 rows of the VIP section to ensure no photographs would be taken. The documentary, similar to Oprah’s 2021 interview, never addresses any of these allegations.
A lengthy portion on how Brexit impacted London’s racism towards Markle and how colonial Britain and the queen’s commonwealth “Empire” were paradigmatic of Britain’s prejudice were convoluted assaults on the royal family that never gain traction despite the poignant British accents of African American scholars David Olusoga and Afua Hirsch- where was all this nonsense going. The contradictory documentary recounts the excitement of Britain in anticipation of the wedding ushering in a modern era as a mixed race Meghan joins the royal family. If the unconscious bias recounted by Harry was so pervasive why would the royal family accept Markle with King Charles walking her down the aisle?
Meghan’s frustration mostly lies with the public failing to buy her narrative of saving the royal family through modernization. She and Harry have been subjected to very little press harassment as they venture out a few times per year and do so with a massive security detail. The most laughable assertion is Meghan’s claim of trying to blend in and deflect attention by wearing muted colors during her time in England. In the end the rivalry between Kate and Meghan proved too much for any household to bear as Harry and Meghan continued to grab headlines from main protagonists William and Kate.
What is readily apparent is that most of Harry and Meghan’s celebrity friends have run for the Hollywood Hills as these two remain radioactive. Gone are Amal Clooney, Priyanka Chopra and Tyler Perry-even Oprah has attempted to distance herself from this toxic twosome. Not one bona fide celebrity appears in the Netflix special. The recent Ripple of Hope Award Gala which honored Harry and Meghan was paradigmatic of celebrities going AWOL as an event that normally contains celebrities such as Chris Tucker, Bon Jovi and Danny DeVito was left with the lone scandal ridden Alec Baldwin who may soon be in jail-hopefully the Kerry Kennedy organization can bail him out. Harry and Meghan never show up to events that cost less than $2,500 per ticket lest they get stuck with the upper middle class.
A recurring assertion from the Markle documentary is that she and Harry were drawn to each other as they both seek a life of service. Aside from an 11-year-old Meghan writing a letter to Proctor & Gamble to object to their advertisement saying “women are fighting greasy pots and pans” and a couple of trips by the couple to Africa on private planes the two have little charity work or donations under their belt.
They started their foundation Archewell in October 2020 and have since raised less than $45,000 as of their last filing – a staggeringly low number. Meghan and Harry were cut off financially from Charles in the summer of 2020 after receiving about $3 million a year for their royal duties in addition to living expenses and security. They have increased their earnings astronomically with $100 million from their Netflix documentary and $20 million up front for Harry’s book “Spare” with another $38 million later for a total of $58 million.
Additionally, Meghan’s podcasts and Harry’s position as Chief Impact Officer at BetterUp ensure they are on their way to billionaire status. Yet their recent donations are meager with a $5,000 check to a GoFundMe in honor of 9-year old George Zafjen who died suddenly and a donation of 2,000 copies of Meghan’s poorly received book “The Bench” to a host of libraries. The pledging of $1 million to women facing hardships in conjunction with VING project and an additional $100,000 to feed those suffering from hardships due to coronavirus from profits from their BBC wedding broadcast are murky-at best. The $1.5 million Penguin Random House is giving to Sentebale, an organization helping African children with AIDS, and WellChild, from Harry’s $60 million book proceeds, are miniscule amounts. Harry and Meghan are woke hypocrites.
The Netflix documentary reveals little new information with a couple of token pictures of toddlers Lilibet and Archie to assuage the higher-ups. Unless the December 15thepisodes go scorched earth on the royal family Meghan and Harry have duped Netflix in one of the greatest royal robberies in history.