It has been a little over a year since Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, declared their plan for Megxit’s departure from the British royal family. This all seems really a long time ago: there is nothing like a pandemic to distract everyone from the real drama, even an event as historic as a prince of England leaving a job that no one knew could be abandoned. The pandemic is not over, but lately you may have noticed that the names of Harry and Meghan are in the air again, with a certain interview that stokes anxiety on the horizon. So it looks like a good time to check out our favorite exiled prince and princess. Here’s what’s been going on with the Sussex lately.
What happened to Megxit, anyway?
When Harry and Meghan announced their plans to “get away” from the royal family, it was unclear how involved they would remain. They initially hoped for some sort of hybrid role, even though Queen Elizabeth, Harry’s 94-year-old grandmother, never seemed very interested in this idea. Buckingham Palace recently confirmed that Harry and Meghan will not return to their real roles. The couple agreed to give up their “HRH” (His Royal Highness) titles last year – well, technically, they keep them, but don’t use them, a lovely piece of the absurdity of the fine print in the royal family.
Losing these titles is a big deal symbolically, and the palace has now also confirmed the loss of several other official responsibilities and royal appointments. Harry is reportedly especially upset about losing his honorary military titles. “While everyone is saddened by their decision, the Duke and Duchess remain very dear members of the family,” said Buckingham Palace in its amusing and petty statement. In response, the Sussexes pledged to remain committed to public service, HRH or not.
Is there any reason why this news is coming out now?
Harry and Meghan officially stopped working as royalty in March 2020, and the plan was for them to reevaluate the situation a year later, in late March 2021. According to People, the timeline has increased due to tension about the couple continuing to represent the queen while making lucrative plans for their post-royal lives with deals with Netflix and Spotify.
There is also the Oprah factor: on March 7, CBS plans a “broad” interview between the media mogul and the couple, who are supposed to have Buckingham Palace “preparing for embarrassing disclosures,” according to the New York Times . The newspaper added, for those who did not watch The crown this season, “Tell-all interviews tend to be train disasters for the royal family.” Both sides are now preparing their public relations movements very carefully.
So that’s why Harry was on James Corden’s show …
Yes, Harry probably got it right The Late Late Show this week as part of a planned charm offensive that will take Oprah and all that comes after. At the same time that Harry was on a double-decker bus through Los Angeles with the dawn host, the queen was on TV in England talking about the coronavirus vaccine. The Washington Post noted that “the two rare appearances left the impression that royalty is discussing their differences in public and on the front pages.” And these will not be the last duel interviews: on the same day that Oprah’s interview is scheduled to air, members of the royal family who have not been demoted will be on TV in England for a Community Day special, whatever for.
How did Harry look in Corden?
He looked good! He joked that walking around with the host was finally giving him a chance to see more of his adopted home, Southern California, which has been in lockdown essentially during the entire time he lived there. The two visited the mansion of Fresh prince of Bel Air as a joke, and Harry proved that he was familiar with (or at least could successfully recite with some practice) the lyrics to the show’s famous theme song. They also did a brief FaceTimed Meghan while visiting the mansion; she called Harry “Haz”. The prince also shared some ideas on other subjects, including The crown– it is not entirely accurate, but it is better than most of the British press, he said. (He was probably smart not to criticize the Netflix show, since he now … works for Netflix.) Who would he choose to play alone? Damien Lewis. Not bad, Harry. The prince also added some anecdotes designed to show that he is still on good terms with his family, despite everything: Prince Philip, his 99-year-old grandfather, you don’t know, is still learning to use Zoom!
Hey, Harry and Meghan were not involved in some kind of process with the British press?
Yes, they were – some of them actually, and they recently had two major victories. Sweet vindication! This month, Meghan obtained a summary judgment in her case against the parent company of the notorious tabloid Daily Mail over the invasive publication of a letter she wrote to her father several years ago. Harry also recently accepted an apology and “substantial damages” from the same company for claiming in an article that he had “turned his back” on the Marines after leaving the royal family.
On the deals the couple made with Spotify and Netflix: Are they really going to do podcasts and TV shows?
Everyone wants to be a content creator today. Making a surprise appearance at a Spotify event this week – again, just in time! – Harry and Meghan talked a little about their ambitions for Archewell Audio, the production company they formed to create podcasts for this streamer. So far, they have produced a podcast episode, a 2020 holiday special, but they have big plans to, uh, “conduct powerful conversations” “that inspire, challenge and educate”. Great. As for the deal with Netflix they signed in September, there are rumors about what they will do and possibly completely baseless reports that Netflix is not happy with what they have released, but so far no official word on their plans. It seems unlikely that Meghan will return to the roots of her acting, but you never know.
Wait, aren’t they having another child too?
After suffering a miscarriage, which she revealed in an article for the New York Times in November, Meghan (and Harry) recently announced that she is pregnant again. (The couple’s son, Archie, will be May 2.) Will the royal baby’s craze still be a thing when the royals involved are no longer royalty? We’re about to find out.
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