Meghan: A Hollywood Princess(69)
His absence from the fields of Sandringham was notable—and duly noted, the Sun tabloid pointing the finger of blame at his California fiancée. “Gun-der the thumb already?” they asked.
Vegetarian fashion guru Stella McCartney was in the running to make Meghan’s wedding dress—Meghan being a fan of her clothes anyway—which perhaps indicated the general direction of Meghan’s thinking.
At least Harry had another excuse. He had to be in London to prepare for his stint as the guest editor of the Today program, the flagship BBC morning radio show. He had been given a clear editorial palette, deciding to highlight causes close to his heart, notably youth violence, mental health, social media in society, the armed forces, conservation, and the Commonwealth. He had lined up a number of big hitters, including his father, Prince Charles, who called Harry “my darling boy” and discussed the “untold horrors” caused by climate change, and former American president Barack Obama, whom he had interviewed at the Invictus Games in September at the Fairmont Hotel in Toronto.
Before the interview began, a clearly relaxed Obama jokingly asked if he should speak with a British accent. He also wondered if he should speak faster than usual because he was a “slow speaker.”
The prince replied: “No, no not at all. But if you start using long pauses between the answers you’re probably going to get the face.”
When Obama asked to see “the face,” Prince Harry gave him a stern look. “I don’t want to see that face!” retorted a laughing Obama.
The conversation covered topics including Obama’s memories of the day he left office and his hopes for his post-presidential life, including his plans to focus on cultivating the next generation of leaders through the Obama Foundation. With an oblique swipe at the man who took his job, former President Obama said irresponsible use of social media was distorting the public’s understanding of complex issues.
In a quick-fire round of questions, he was asked which program he preferred, The Good Wife or Suits. The ex-president replied: “Suits, obviously.”
A whimsical piece in the Times caught the mood of the broadcast. “The man who was once naughty Harry, drunken Harry, Boujis Harry, has left behind the fleshpots. Now he is Saint Harry who spends his time toiling among the needy and making outreach radio in which he speaks to those others ignore. The injured. The depressed. The Prince of Wales.”
Fortunately, the Radio Four presenters had backed their way into a scoop: Harry’s engagement had been announced long after they had arranged for his stint as a guest editor. The news angle was the upcoming nuptials.
Boxer Anthony Joshua, who was interviewed by the prince, offered to be his best man, while presenter Sarah Montague quizzed Harry about Meghan’s first Christmas with “the Firm.” “It was fantastic, she really enjoyed it,” he said. “We had great fun staying with my brother and sister-in-law and running around with the kids. I think we’ve got one of the biggest families that I know of, and every family is complex as well. She has done an absolutely amazing job.”
So far, so endearing. As the interview wound down he remarked: “She’s getting in there, and I suppose it’s the family she’s never had.”
Cue foot in mouth. Prince Philip would be proud.
14
Invitation to a Wedding
Retired Army captain Prince Henry of Wales walked straight into a fusillade of criticism when he told the world that the Windsors were the family that Meghan Markle never had.
The Markles galloped straight into action, Meghan’s half sister Samantha leading the charge. “Actually she has a large family who were always with her and for her,” she thundered. “Our household was very normal, and when dad and Doria divorced, we all made it so it was like she had two houses.”
For once her brother, Tom Junior, who generally had little time for his elder sister, went into battle on her side.
“My father will be extremely hurt. He dedicated the majority of his time and everything to her. He made sure that she had what she needed to be successful and get to where she’s at today.” As far as the pundits were concerned Harry “dropped a clanger, a howler” by commenting on the family set up of his future in-laws. In his defense, he was basing his account on that presented to him by his fiancée. When she was growing up, she felt little sense of family—after all, her parents separated when she was only two. That was her truth, no matter what others believed.
Within days the plotting and in-fighting among the Markle clan suggested a heavily conflicted family. Samantha continued to tout her upcoming book called The Diary of Princess Pushy’s Sister but insisted that its title was intended to mock the tabloids and that she’s proud of her sister. She made a tearful television appearance to ask for Meghan’s forgiveness and speak of her hope that she would be invited to the wedding. There were stories that she was being paid by a TV company to sail to England—her medical condition makes flying difficult—to host a red-carpet event outside Windsor Castle. Then she hit back at suggestions that her retiring father would not be speaking at the wedding. “He should not be deprived of the right that fathers have to give a proud speech at the wedding. That’s not patriarchy that’s poetry.”
Meanwhile Samantha’s estranged brother, Tom, was finding all the media scrutiny difficult to bear. His girlfriend, Darlene, ended up in jail overnight after an overly boisterous, boozy New Year’s Eve celebration at their Oregon home, the second time since Meghan and Harry’s relationship went public that police made an arrest at his house. Previously he was arrested in January 2017 for the “unlawful use of a weapon and menacing.” The charges were dropped. Tom later suggested that a member of his own family had sold the story to the press. As he admitted: “All this attention has been really hard on the family.”