There are important indications of her future plans, but the Duchess of Sussex’s most recent Netflix show has been discontinued and away from the festive crafting and cooking advice…
Meghan is apparently a woman with a plan. Calling all serial Christmas preppers: get ready to wrap your children’s teddies using a wine bottle, add lavender scent oils to Christmas crackers and serve a broccoli and aspargus wreath as Meghan Markle’s festive hosting tips have officially arrived.
The Duchess of Sussex’ hour long Christmas special has landed on Netflix and it’s brimming with recipes, crafts and food tips from celeb chefs. But away from the glossy Ina Garten-esque tricks, Meghan gives viewers the most intimate glimpse into her family life yet, with Harry making a two-minute cameo having been practically invisible in her last two seasons. Her children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, are also front of mind and Megan even reflects “nostalgically” on her time living in the UK before the couple’s shock royal exodus.
Following her two previous seasons that were widely criticized by critics, and a new “downgraded” deal with Netflix that sounded the alarm with PR experts, Melanie’s most recent show comes. But what lies behind the rare PDA, cookie crafting and jolly prancing around a Christmas tree farm? We interview body language and communications expert Judi James to learn how Harry really feels about getting a small part in the glitzy series as the most recent installment of With Love, Meghan, which launches on the streaming giant’s platform.
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‘Mama’ Meghan and ‘child-like’ Harry
The duke and duchess exchange a brief smooch on the set of her cooking show before arguing about Harry’s tolerance for spices in a rare display of public affection. Top Chef star Tom Collichio joins the couple and helps whip up a festive salad while Meghan works on her mother Doria’s gumbo recipe.
Betroot, black olives, fennel, and pickled vegetables are all part of Tom’s salad, according to Meghan, who warns Harry against eating it because it is so high in them. “I’m so excited to eat this,” she says, before warning: “He [Harry] hates all these flavours.
Before declaring, “Hi guys, I smell gumbo,” Harry waltzes in and is kissed by Meghan. ” But his excitement soon wanes when he realises what’s in Tom’s salad. The duke responds, “Oh wow, that’s like the anti-salad.” You must have known I was coming! He joked, “Me and the salad are having this sort of eye off.” It’s amazing how there’s not many things in the world that I don’t like and they are all in one bowl. ” “
The duchess admits making the dish with a spicier sausage, which Harry isn’t used to, and the banter continues. “We’ll get you a little towel because he’s gonna sweat,” she jokes.
Harry teases Meghan and says, “I’m not sure it’s as good as your mum’s,” after eating one of his favorite dishes. The cheeky remark leaves her in shock as she animatedly says: “What? Oh my goodness! ” and then adds “What a good thing to say for your mother-in-law”.
Analysing the exchange, Judi, speaking on behalf of casino.ca, says: “As love language goes it looks rather maternal and this is compounded when, surprisingly, her guest’s wife calls Meghan ‘Mama’ when she speaks to her here. The ‘Mama’ theme seems to be retained in the body language displays as Harry makes a cameo appearance towards the end of the video.
She continued: “‘Mama’ is doing some very grown-up cooking with a chef, and Harry sidles in with a very tentative and impersonal ‘Hi guys’, looking like a fish out of Gumbo here as his slightly hushed voice suggests he might be intruding rather than being the undoubted star turn.
“His behaviour does everything to signal that it’s Meghan who is the star here, and that he has no desire to pull rank or to upstage her, and as a result his non-verbal displays convert to those of a child. His “I smell Gumbo” has a lower, submissive head and a slightly rictus smile as though he’s looking for food. He’s rewarded by Meghan’s over-the-shoulder glance and a closed-lip smile that suggests she’s doing grown-up things here”.
Experts have also noticed Harry’s submissive relationship with Meghan for the first time. The Duchess even gushed about his “childlike wonder” in a recent interview with Harpers Bazaar, revealing that it was a key trait that first attracted her to the prince.
Plans for royal “nostalgia” and “re-regalizing”
Although her days in the Royal Family are a thing of the past, Meghan makes a rare remark on her time living in the UK in the new series, and Judi believes it marks a switch from “triggered” to “nostalgic”.
Meghan reveals that they will create their own personalised Christmas crackers, a British custom she’s putting her own stamp on with the arrival of restaurateur Will Guidara.
Will, who is more unfamiliar with the concept, asks Meghan about their significance. She goes on to say, “I live in the UK, I’m sure of that.” Typically, people cross their arms and do it. They all pull simultaneously while they are seated around the table.
“The way that I started to know them was, they’d always have some sort of fortune cookie-size joke or riddle. Lastly, something sweet. ” As she makes a personalised cracker for Harry, she adds: “My husband’s has a little love letter, a chocolate, a little hat”, and she labels the cracker: “My Love” rather than: “Harry”
Judi revealed: “During previous films any mention of her time in the UK has been treated with non-verbal signals to suggest she still finds it either triggering and possibly too triggering to mention directly, with just some solemn, knowing part-references like ‘back then’ or ‘he knew me before, during and after’ or that she finds it an experience to mock, like her low curtsey comedy routine or mentions of having to wear tan pantyhose etc.
Her implication was that she had a moment to forget and put her fears behind her now that she has found freedom and a new life. But the holiday season seems to have mellowed Meghan and her first reference of the UK here sees a seismic change of mood and narrative as she almost takes ownership of UK life and throws a possibly hint of a sliver of nostalgia into the mix too. ” “
The body languge guru added: “She performs her signature rapid blink that for Meghan is usually associated with pleasure and non-verbal ‘purring'”. According to Judi, the brief but significant mention of her life in the UK may even be a sign of the future. She added: “There does seem to be some mellowing towards her life as a royal in the UK and even her royal family. However, if so, it follows that she might prefer to resume any rekindling of relations on her own terms.
She uses her own values and tenets to redefine Christmas, which she very firmly embodies in her own visions and tenets. The crackers could be a case in point. She recalls lovingly when she first saw crackers in the UK, but she is also passionate about how much confetti and dried flowers should be added to the personalized messages and love notes.
“The thought of a royal table and guests covered with confetti and reading love notes out loud might not fit in with the cooler behaviors of the UK royals. Her portrayal of Lili in regal fashion and her raising of the royals make it seem like Lili might want to re-regalize in the future.
Meghan’s glossy new Christmas special comes hot on the heels of the Sussex’ new downgraded Netflix deal, announced earlier this year. Harry and Meghan signed a new more flexible contract with the steaming giant, which gives the company a ‘first look’ option on any of their ideas, with the couple then able to take them elsewhere if Netflix passed them up. Their previous deal with the platform was said to be worth a staggering £75 million, but now they are reportedly getting a lot less cash.
The updated terms have led to speculation that Netflix may be distancing themselves from the couple. Critics had a negative opinion of the Duchess’ lifestyle show With Love, Meghan, and the second series received lower ratings than the first.
Speaking out on her deal with the video powerhouse, Meghan said in October: “My husband and I were in an overall deal with Netflix, and then not just similar to Higher Ground in the Obamas’ deal, once that had come to its term, the extension of it, which was such an incredible sign of the strength of our partnership, was now being in a first look deal. ” “
“Which is also exciting because it enables us to shop content that might not be appropriate for Netflix but has a home elsewhere, first and then at the same time.” So for our non-scripted team and our scripted team, we’ve been doing a lot of content development that can meet different rooms. ” “
Meanwhile, PR crisis expert Mark Borkowski told the Mirror that it’s a sharp change in strategy for Netflix bosses. “I think Netflix has done a very neat job of pivoting away from two very expensive people who didn’t deliver, and they’ve taken that deal off the table, and they’ve given them a modest one,” he said.
He went on to explain that the signing of the new contract shows that the streaming giant still wants to have a solid relationship with the Sussexes, but is also cautious not to spend too much money on content that may not resonate with viewers. Borkowski continued, “It’s not like they’re uncoupling all of a sudden. It’s a downgrade. Netflix won’t be willing to spend those funds, and Netflix says, “Well, look, let’s have a look at your content, but we’ll pick and choose, mate.” ” “
Harry’s unprecedented cameo in Meghan’s Christmas special comes just weeks after the Duchess gave a candid interview about her marriage and their dynamic. In her first magazine cover since joining the Royal Family, Meghan took part in a huge Harper’s Bazaar photoshoot, plumping for a powerful bare-faced look for the glossy snaps.
However, her revelations about Harry really piqued people’s ire. In her most personal admission about her husband yet, Meghan revealed she was captivated by the Duke’s “childlike wonder and playfulness” when they first met. Meghan said, “He loves me so boldly, fully, and he also has a different perspective because he sees media like I wouldn’t.”
