Harry and Meghan - as it happened: Duke of Sussex reveals he has internally ‘blocked out’ early memories of Diana
Reactions to Duke and Duchess of Sussexes’ Netflix docuseries pour in as couple speak out on first dates, marriage, press intrusion and Meghan’s experiences of racism
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Your support makes all the difference.The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have received mixed reactions over their new Netflix documentary series, Harry and Meghan, which dropped on Thursday (8 December).
Parts of the much-hyped programme, which has been split into “Volume I” and “Volume II”, were described as “moving”, but the first three episodes did not deliver any new explosive allegations against the royal family - who will no doubt be relieved by the lack of revelations.
The Independent’s Arts Editor Jessie Thompson wrote in her review of the series: “There are no major revelations here, nothing so incendiary that it will cancel King Charles’s coronation next year; in fact, certain quotes are becoming a bit pat.”
Meanwhile, the Sussexes’ staunchest critics wasted no time in excoriating the couple for some of the claims made in the show. Piers Morgan accused Harry and Meghan of trying to “brand Britain as a racist country”, while the BBC’s veteran royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell dismissed Meghan’s claims that the media wanted to “destroy” her as “absurd”.
Meanwhile, neither Palace officials nor members of the royal family were approached for comment over the content of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s new Netflix docuseries, it has been alleged.
It was suggested that representatives for Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace, as well as the royals themselves, were not offered the opportunity to reply to the accusations lodged by the couple during the first three episodes of their highly anticipated series.
The second part of Harry and Meghan’s docuseries will begin streaming on 15 December.
Review: Intimate, self-aggrandising and wildly entertaining
At some points, it’s hard to tell if the couple are naïve or disingenuous. But, at other times, the couple are endearing or deeply sympathetic. Read this review by Jessie Thompson:
Harry and Meghan is intimate, self-aggrandising, and wildly entertaining – review
Harry and Meghan: Director of Netflix series hopes viewers are ‘open’ to couple’s story
The director of Netflix’s new Harry and Meghan docuseries hopes viewers will be “open” to the couple’s story no matter their prior preconceptions.
Liz Garbus, who is known for her critically acclaimed exposes and documenting the stories of “survivors”, described it as a “privilege” to work with the couple who she feels “bravely allowed themselves to be vulnerable”.
In volume one of the six-part series – released on Thursday (8 December) – the Duke and Duchess of Sussex share a firsthand, intimate look at their high-profile relationship and the current controversial state of the British Commonwealth that led to them stepping down from their full-time roles in the institution.
Read the full story by Naomi Clarke and Inga Parkel here:
Harry and Meghan Netflix series director hopes viewers are ‘open’ to couple’s story
ICYMI: Harry and Meghan had final ‘fun grenade’ with Princess Eugenie before romance was exposed
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have shared details from their final date before their romance went public.
In the first episode of their new docuseries Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex recalled their last night of freedom before news of their relationship broke to the world. In October 2016, Prince William and Harry’s communications secretary, Jason Knauf, had informed them that a tabloid was about to pick up a story about their under-the-radar romance.
The eve before the news broke, the pair decided to “pull the pin on the fun grenade” and go out in costumes to a Halloween party in Toronto with Harry’s cousin, Princess Eugenie, her then-boyfriend, Jack Brooksbank, and Meghan’s friend, Marcus.
Read the full story by Meredith Clark here:
Harry and Meghan had final ‘fun grenade’ with Princess Eugenie before romance exposed
Meghan reveals moment she feared father’s phone was ‘compromised’
Meghan Markle has recalled the moment when she believed her father’s phone had been “compromised” in the days building up to her wedding to Prince Harry.
In episode three of the new Netflix documentary Meghan and Harry, the Duchess of Sussex remembered the moment when she was told to call her father and ask if he had been taking money from tabloids to stage photos.
“‘No,’” Meghan’s father said, according to her interaction with him, as she recalled: “And on that call, I’d said to him, ‘Look, if they can’t stop this story then it’s going to come out tomorrow so why don’t we send someone to your house right now to get you out of there.’
Read the full story by Peony Hirwani here:
Meghan reveals moment she feared father’s phone was ‘compromised’
Meghan Markle claims Palace aides told her not to invite her own niece to royal wedding
The Duchess of Sussex has claimed Palace aides told her she should not invite her own niece, who she described as like a “little sister,” to her royal wedding.
Meghan said she was given guidance that Ashleigh Hale – the daughter of her half-sister Samantha Markle – ought not to be a guest at the high-profile celebrations in 2018.
Lawyer Ms Hale, speaking during the Sussexes’ Netflix docuseries, said that in the run up to the wedding, she felt Meghan’s relationships were being “managed on some level” by the royal household.
Read the full story by Laura Elston here:
Meghan Markle claims Palace aides told her not to invite niece to royal wedding
Meghan’s curtsy demonstration was ‘mocking’, Gyles Brandreth says
Royal author Gyles Brandreth has called the Duchess of Sussex’s demonstration of her curtsy to the Queen “mocking” and “embarrassing”.
The writer and broadcaster told Vanessa Feltz’s Drivetime show on TalkTV: “Nobody curtsies to the Queen like that, and nobody would have advised her to do it that way.”
In the Sussexes’ Netflix documentary, Meghan, who was sitting on a sofa as the Duke of Sussex looked on beside her, put her arms out wide and bowed her head down low as she recounted how she tried to greet the late monarch when they first met.
Read the full story by Laura Elston here:
Meghan’s curtsy demonstration was ‘mocking’, Gyles Brandreth says
ICYMI: Meghan Markle recalls ‘amazing’ first Christmas with royals at Sandringham: ‘It’s a big family like I always wanted’
Meghan Markle has recalled her “amazing” first Christmas spent with the royal family.
On Thursday (8 December), the Duke and Duchess of Sussex released the first three episodes of their tell-all Netflix documentary series Harry and Meghan.
The couple announced their engagement in Nocember 2022, with Meghan spending her first Christmas with the royals at the Sandringham Estate the following month.
“I remember so vividly the first Christmas at Sandringham,” Meghan said. “Calling my mom, and she’s like, ‘How’s it going?’ and I said, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s amazing. It’s just like a big family like I always wanted.’
Read the full story by Isobel Lewis here:
Meghan Markle recalls ‘amazing’ first Christmas with royal family
Harry shares three reasons Meghan is ‘very similar’ to Princess Diana
The Duke of Sussex compared the Duchess of Sussex to his late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, in the couple’s new Netflix documentary series.
Prince Harry said that Meghan Markle has the “same compassion”, “empathy”, and “confidence” as Diana, as he opened up about how he wanted to “protect” his family from his mother’s tragic fate.
In the first episode of the series, Harry and Meghan, which aired on Netflix on Thursday morning (8 December), Harry said: “So much of what Meghan is, and how she is, is so similar to my mum. She has the same compassion, she has the same empathy, she has the same confidence. She has this warmth about her.”
Read the full story by Kate Ng here:
Harry shares three reasons Meghan is ‘very similar’ to Princess Diana
ICYMI: Prince Harry recalls ‘panicking’ after turning up 30 minutes late to first date with Meghan
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex reminisce about how they met and their first dates in the first episode of their Netflix documentary series, Harry & Meghan.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s explosive series is expected to cause waves among the royal family as the first three episodes are released today (8 December) – but the couple also reveal the moments they first fell in love.
They met in 2016 after being set up by a mutual friend, as they were both single at the time. The couple revealed that they first met over Instagram, after Meghan asked to see his social media feed.
Read the full story by Kate Ng here:
Prince Harry recalls first date with Meghan
Why Meghan Markle says joining the royal family was nothing like The Princess Diaries
Meghan Markle has shared insight into her experience joining the royal family and why it was nothing like what she had seen in the iconic film The Princess Diaries.
In the third episode of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s docuseries, Harry and Meghan, the 41-year-old duchess revealed that there was no formal instruction on how to follow royal protocol after meeting Prince Harry.
Like most Americans, Meghan’s knowledge of royal life was limited to what she had seen in movies. However, the soon-to-be duchess said she was never taught how to curtsy, how to wave, or told what to wear.
Read the full story by Meredith Clark here:
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