When Meghan first joined the Royal Family, I was a fan. A big fan. I was so excited that Harry had finally found THE ONE and that I now had double the Royal Watching fun. Looking at Meghan's Instagram, she seemed like a natural fit for Royal life: she was well traveled (and already familiar with London life), had done lots of charity work, had experience with fame (on a "beginner's" level if you will), was extremely well-spoken, and had great fashion.
At the beginning, the news was - for the most part - positive, and she was welcomed wherever she went with cheering crowds. We all sympathized about the mess with her father. Her first tour was a massive success.
Then the cracks began to show. I was deeply shocked and disappointed when they announced they were leaving Royal life. I thought that maybe it could have been avoided if they had taken things a little slower. When I watched the Oprah interview, I was even more shocked... for a little while. The following day I started noticing the inconsistencies in their stories. And then with every subsequent interview, documentary, book, article - every word THEIR OWN - the stories kept changing. The details were always different. How can there be three different versions of an engagement story? Which stories were true and which were not? And always in the back of my mind was that fact that Meghan was an actress. Which expressions were fake and which were genuine? (I DO think that, unfortunately, Meghan has a little bit of rbf, which the haters LOVE to use to illustrate their lies. And I find the whole moon bump/fake kids arguments absurd).
The mocking curtsy was the turning point for me. It was then that Meghan's true feelings towards the Royals were revealed. I still felt sorry for Harry at that point, but that left, for the most part, when I read Spare. The recent revelation about him popping drugs into a woman's mouth to see if he could trust her turned any remaining pity I had for him to complete disgust.
The saddest thing to me was that, even when they moved to America, they still could have focused on continuing their charitable works (maybe things would have been different if it hadn't been for Covid, we'll never know). But every single good thing they have down has been overshadowed by the constant spewing of hate against the very institution that gave them such a huge platform. Instead of making an impact for good, they are known for "their truth," court battles, and jam. I have also found the timing of Meghan's posts/announcements/projects to be odd. It is to be expected that there would be some overlap with Royal engagements, but it has happened far too many times to be simply a coincidence.
For years I still tried to keep an open mind because I always thought, "But what if some of what they said IS true?" I watched With Love, Meghan and... didn't hate it (some parts were cringy but it wasn't as bad as some people said). "Maybe she really has been maligned." (This reluctance to accept some of the allegations against them also boils down to the fact that if they ARE true then that means I am one of the ones who was fooled by them). But unfortunately, as the saying goes, where there's smoke there's fire. I watched/read all of the primary sources for myself, rather than read someone else's opinion, and it's always Harry and Meghan's version that falls apart under scrutiny (I wasn't able to stomach all of the episodes of their first Netflix documentary however).
Well, I said a lot more than I thought I was going to say, but these have been my thought for YEARS. Now for today's news.
First of all, this is all speculation on my part (with 15+ years of Royal watching and numerous biographies read - books with actual sources, not tabloid trash).
Harry and Meghan never wanted to quit the Royal life completely, but when given the "in" or "out" option chose out. They have regretted it (From Berkshire to Buckingham has written many an analysis on this point and I agree with her). So they "told their truth" and burned all their bridges. First covid threw a wrench in the works and then the double cancer diagnosis of Charles and Catherine. Then, when Harry wanted to come back, he couldn't because of giant issue he had made about security.
This summer, he FINALLY brought his kids to the UK. And... everything was fine. No photos were leaked and apparently he ended up feeling so safe that he's... moving the entire family back to England and enrolling his children in school there!?!
If they had simply started visiting regularly, that would have felt like the next natural step, especially since Harry keeps expressing the wish that his children know their grandfather. But to move them back to a country where he has so many bad memories? That is baffling.
One theory is that Meghan realized just how much more fragile King Charles is than when she last saw him. I'm sure she knows there's no way back to the Royal fold for her and Harry once William becomes King (at least not without massive apologizes and a retraction of all the damaging things that were said), and she realized that this could be much sooner than she thought. So, it's now or never. Sources are saying that King Charles is firm that "there is no half in-half out option," but in the past we have seen him saying that Camilla would NOT be called Queen, which changed to she WOULD be "Queen Consort," to NOW she is "THE Queen," (which didn't really surprise anyone). That, however, happened over many, many years. This is much more recent and still very fresh in everyone's minds. I can easily see him wanting to reconcile with his son and see his grandchildren. But in order for Harry and Meghan to take back up their Royal lives, if that is in fact what they are hoping for, there HAS to be an apology! And it can't only come from the Royal's side.
Do I think they've run out of money? Maybe. Harry did just lose a big lawsuit.
Do I think they're heading for divorce? Not at the moment.
Do I think they want to be working Royals again? Yes, especially Harry. Maybe they think they can get their half in-half out by having Harry be "in" and Meghan be "out."
Now for my next opinion. I think this is a terrible decision for the happiness of their kids. They will be uprooted from their familiar environment and friends and have to deal with the culture shock of moving to another country (where the only thing that will be familiar is that everybody talks like their dad). Instead of being equals with their classmates at a US school, they will suddenly be Royals at a British school. They will have Californina accents. They might call things by different words. It seems odd that Harry, who at one point said he didn't even like England, would now bring his children back there to be educated.
And then there's the whole issue of cousins. Archie is at an age where he will be more aware of what's going on. How will Harry and Meghan answer his questions? I don't see how there can be family get-togethers without some sort of privacy agreement, especially with the Wales.
I could probably work on this post for a week, tweaking it, adding to it, etc. But only time can answer these questions. Maybe I'll be proved wrong or maybe I'll be proved right. We'll just have to wait and see!
~ Laura A. / Solidmoonlight on X
*I have given this a lot of thought over the years and looked at the situations/stories from all angles and viewpoints. And we really will never know the truth unless ALL PARTIES share their side of the story.
*If you follow me on X, you know that I am a huge supporter of The Princess of Wales. I hate that she keeps having to deal with these situations, especially given her recent cancer battle. Toxic family relationships can be very draining and I hope she continues to have the strength to deal with it.
