All the headlines focused on the Duchess of Sussex after the respected US celebrity bible Vanity Fair’s 8,000-word demolition of her and Prince Harry, which was entitled ‘American Hustle’. Some former employees described Meghan as a ‘Mean Girl’ and some even said they needed long-term therapy after working for her.
No surprises here in Blighty following the allegations. Remember those claims that she bullied staff when she was a working royal during the two years after she married Harry?
The claims back then, it must be said, were vehemently denied by the Sussexes. They were investigated by Buckingham Palace, only for the report to be buried by the Firm which was desperate to ‘keep the peace’ with the couple, according to insiders.
These latest accusations about Meghan and Harry in Vanity Fair have been dismissed as untrue by some of those close to the couple. Others defended them, describing the Sussexes as ‘caring’ bosses.
Maybe so. But the claims are undeniably brutal. And what struck me, having read the article, was how Harry is depicted as a sort of ‘useful idiot’ in the way he helps further Meghan’s ambition.
He comes across, to my mind, as a dim-witted, besotted prince who provided a minor TV actress with royal status and prominence on the world stage. And, though he provided the path to fame and fortune, he ended up playing a walk-on part in this sad saga.
True, the Vanity Affair article debunked rumours the couple’s marriage is in trouble. In fact, former staff say they are so loved up, the sexual chemistry between them is still so strong, so palpable, that employees in their presence felt as if they were intruding on them.
And yet, Harry is far from the main character in their story.
Harry appears in just one snap promoting his wife’s Netflix series With Love, Meghan
What struck me, having read the Vanity Fair article, was how Harry is depicted as a sort of ¿useful idiot¿ in the way he helps further Meghan¿s ambition, writes AMANDA PLATELL
For instance, he appears in just one snap promoting her upcoming Netflix series With Love, Meghan, where she transforms herself into a loving homespun ‘mom’ preparing meals for celebrity friends and family with thoughtfulness and tenderness. (No mention of love for her dad, however. Just saying.)
Only one snap of Harry tenderly hugging an adoring Meghan. Yet it is only down to his royal status that she’s doing the show in the first place. Only because of him did the couple got their Netflix millions for their self-aggrandising and resentful ‘docuseries’ Harry & Meghan.
Yet former employees of streaming giants who spoke to Vanity Fair said Harry was missing in action. A former Spotify staff member who worked with them described Harry as disengaged and ‘challenging to engage with’.
In other words, either not interested or having the concentration span of a goldfish.
More damningly, another former employee who was ‘inside the couple’s circle’ said it was their belief that Harry would ‘be happy if Meghan made all the money and he didn’t need to’. She felt hapless Harry’s attitude was: ‘Why are we doing this?’
One who was interviewed for a job with the couple said: ‘I just felt like he [Harry] didn’t want to be there doing that at this time.’
Harry’s big idea for his series on the Invictus Games sank after just five episodes in 2023. His Netflix series on polo last year was met with universal derision – a posh bloke paying a game for millionaires which, despite his profile and royal status, failed to register on the charts of must-watch shows.
The fact is that, as the couple are now finding, Harry’s royal name can get them only so far. There has to be talent, too, if they are to be taken seriously in their desire to make money.
Those who have worked with them say they had no comprehension of the podcast business, while Spotify executive Bill Simmons said that the Sussexes were ‘f***ing grifters’ after the couple’s $20million deal with the company ended prematurely in 2023.
One former Spotify employee told Vanity Fair the couple ‘had no ideas’ when it came to producing podcasts. Rumours Meghan could get stars like Taylor Swift and Beyonce on her show withered without trace. Even her former besties Sienna Miller and Amal Clooney who attended her wedding didn’t appear on her short-lived podcast, Archetypes.
Harry nowadays just seems to play the devoted dad who spends time with his kids and dogs and chickens, and provides the occasional photo op for Meghan’s next venture.
Isn’t there something unedifying in this? He was the one who, in times gone by, was perhaps the most popular of all royals and had the world at his fingertips.
His mother Princess Diana reportedly worried he wasn’t as ‘bright’ as his brother William – and now he comes across as little more than a royal title and a cash cow for Meghan’s ambitions.
In many ways it’s tragic to see this dimwitted lad floundering for a purpose. One thing is for certain: he’s not cut out for the world of media.His big idea for Spotify was pitching a ‘sociopath podcast’ in which he would interview Mark Zuckerberg, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump about their past, saying: ‘I had very bad childhood trauma. Obviously. My mother was essentially murdered. What is it about me that doesn’t make me one of these bad guys?’
He’s certainly no Vladimir Putin. But – I’m sorry to break it to you Harry – your behaviour since you left the Royal Family has made you a bad guy. A prince who married a ‘grifter’ and became one yourself, you sacrificed your family’s love and reputation to make millions in California.
Trouble is that the millions will dry up at this rate and the role you’re reduced to now is Meghan’s ‘useful idiot’.
