Meghan: A Hollywood Princess(55)
Equally tongue in check was another photo she posted showing a cup of English breakfast tea and a jigsaw, perhaps indicating how the couple was spending their time indoors. But their lighthearted attitude did not last long.
There is a famous scene in the movie Notting Hill where Julia Roberts, who plays a glamorous American actor, opens the front door of the home of her bookseller boyfriend, played by Hugh Grant, to be confronted by a baying pack of photographers and reporters. Roberts promptly slams the door and heads inside. That’s probably how Meghan felt when, dressed in a long coat, a beanie hat, and dark glasses, she ventured out of her front door and made her way through the mob of media into a waiting Dodge van which then whisked her to work on the set of Suits. Harry somehow had managed to make his escape earlier and had caught a flight back to London.
Meghan might have been a veteran of promotional panels, forums, and podiums, but nothing could prepare her for the sonic boom, the shock wave of publicity that hit her.
Within the space of a few days, the print and digital media had painted her as a “gold digger,” whose “torrid sex scenes” from Suits were featured on porn sites. One story suggested that Prince Harry was responsible for breaking up Meghan’s relationship with chef Cory Vitiello, another that the prince had inundated her with texts until she agreed to meet for a date.
Under the headline HARRY GIRL’S ON PORNHUB, The Sun helpfully reported that she was featured on the adult site, where she could be seen “stripping off and groaning,” straddling her costar Patrick J. Adams in an office, as well as mounting him on a sofa. “It also includes close-ups of her crotch and her lacy bra—and has been viewed more than 40,600 times.” Another porn site superimposed Meghan’s head onto the body of a glamour model.
Commentators had a field day. Columnist Rachel Johnson, sister of British foreign secretary Boris Johnson, described Meghan’s mother, Doria, as a “dreadlocked African-American lady from the wrong side of the tracks.” She continued, “If there is an issue from her alleged union with Prince Harry, the Windsors will thicken their watery, thin blue blood and Spencer pale skin and ginger hair with some rich and exotic DNA.”
Her remarks acted as the call of the hunting horn for a torrent of racist abuse from online trolls. “Prince Harry could marry into gangster royalty—his new love is from a crime ridden Los Angeles neighbourhood,” claimed the online Daily Star. The story suggested that Meghan’s mother lived in a high-crime neighborhood surrounded by “bloodbath murders and drug-induced violence.”
In a matter of days, Meghan experienced racism and sexism on a level beyond any she had come across before. While she had been discussing and writing about such issues for the last few years, nothing came close to this onslaught. It was neither pleasant nor accurate, Meghan the campaigner, the humanitarian, and the woman reduced to a two-dimensional caricature. As biographer Sam Kashner wrote: “Criticism of Markle has been snob ridden, racist and uninformed.”
It was reminiscent of the gleeful horror that greeted Prince Andrew’s romance with American actor Kathleen “Koo” Stark when it was revealed that she had starred in an erotic film which involved a tender lesbian shower scene. But back then there was no internet. This time around Twitter, Facebook, online forums, and comment sections gave the whole world and its worst side the platform to “join the conversation.”
While Meghan was sympathizing with her mother who found herself accosted by photographers every time she went out as well as confused friends wondering what they should say to the media, other members of her own family added to the tumult.
Her half sister Yvonne, who was now calling herself Samantha, appeared particularly keen to share the limelight. Describing Meghan, whom she had not seen for years, as “princess pushy,” Samantha accused her of being a shallow social climber with a “soft spot for gingers.” Samantha, who suffers from multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair, went on to say that her half sister’s behavior was “not befitting of a Royal Family member,” berating her for shunning her family after she became famous. Then Meghan’s young half nephew Tyler Dooley weighed in, announcing that Meghan, whom he had also not spoken to for years, was “blissfully happy” and that the actor was “hurt and stung” by his aunt’s accusations. If nothing else these scattered comments gave a sense of the dysfunction at the heart of Meghan’s family.
The coverage was Harry’s worst nightmare come true. Meghan had made the mistake of falling in love with him. Now she, her family, and her friends were destined to suffer because she made him happy. Through it all, neither Harry nor Meghan had made any statement. Kensington Palace also remained tight-lipped. But the media bedlam could not continue for much longer. Perhaps the deciding story was the one that appeared in the Sun. Under the lascivious headline FANCY QUICK PUCK MEG, it was suggested that Meghan’s marriage to Trevor Engelson had collapsed because she had become close to Canadian ice hockey star Michael Del Zotto. While Del Zotto and his agent categorically denied the suggestion, Harry decided to act. He contacted his brother, who had faced similar hysterical coverage during his courtship with Kate Middleton. They chewed over the problem, and though William was cautious about issuing a statement, especially as it would confirm Meghan was Harry’s girlfriend, he felt that matters had gone too far to remain silent. Unlike their father, William and Harry are not of the old royal school whose motto was “Never complain, never explain.” They have a track record of aggressively using the law to seek redress against intrusive photographers and other media outlets that invade their privacy. Harry went so far as to suggest hiring a retired Scotland Yard protection officer to watch over her. Meghan thought the idea “charming but unnecessary.” That didn’t stop the Suits producers from hiring their own heavies to protect their valuable asset, increasing security on set and accompanying her to and from work.