After Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were labeled “disaster tourists” for visiting the smoldering ruins of homes destroyed within the Eaton fire, the couple is reflecting on the private, skilled and reputational challenges they’ve faced over the past five years , facing a brand new trial They left royal life and moved to California.

Unfortunately for the Montecito-based Duke and Duchess of Sussex, American Hustle a brand new cover story in Vanity Fair, appears to substantiate previous reports that Meghan was a “terrible,” “difficult,” and even “bullying” boss toward her employees. For the 8,000-word article, the magazine spoke to dozens of individuals, a few of whom could only be interviewed anonymously because they were required to sign nondisclosure agreements.

While Harry could be “charming” when he gives the look that he has “no inner life” apart from Polo, Vanity Fair reported that Meghan seems to strive to be “a good person” and to be committed to “the to improve the world (if at all). brand-building activities.” And yet the former television actor has become a polarizing figure in America. She also tends to engage in what author Anna Peele calls retaliatory behavior toward “people who find themselves so beneath her status.”

Someone who had difficulty working on Meghan and Harry's troubled Netflix and Spotify media projects told Vanity Fair that their relationships with their co-workers tended to follow a familiar pattern. She would “initially be warm and effusive, creating an atmosphere of professional camaraderie.”

When something didn't work out, often because of Meghan and Harry's own demands — such as having a teaser for their Spotify podcast released months before episodes were recorded — “she became cold and reserved towards the person she was rooting for.” held accountable,” the source told Vanity Fair.

The source said it was “really, really, really terrible. Very painful. Because she's constantly playing checkers – I'm not even saying chess – but she's just very aware of where everyone is on her board. And if you’re not there, you’ll be thrown to the wolves at any time.”

Meghan's interactions with subordinates could be “undermining,” the source also told Vanity Fair. “It eats away at your self-esteem. Sort of like a 'Mean Girls' teenager, actually.”

Before working with Meghan, the person found it difficult to believe the stories of Meghan bullying palace aides or yelling at them after she married Harry in 2018. The first reports came from Times UK in 2021, a year after Meghan and Harry left Britain. She denounces the cruel and racist treatment by the tabloid media and the royal family. But after working with Meghan, this person discovered that such behavior occurred “on any given Tuesday.”

Vanity Fair reported that one person took a leave of absence after working with Meghan on three episodes of her Spotify podcast “Archetypes,” while “several others” said they took prolonged breaks, quit their jobs, or former television actor underwent long-term therapy.

“I think if Meghan acknowledged her own shortcomings or personal contributions to situations rather than remaining trapped in a victim narrative, perhaps her perception would be better,” one person told Vanity Fair, before the person half-jokingly said, “But who Am I opposite? Criticize Meghan Markle? She’s doing great.”

The Vanity Fair report comes at an important time in Harry and Meghan's efforts to succeed as media moguls, entrepreneurs and global do-gooders.

Meghan's plan to ascertain herself as a way of life guru together with her recent Netflix series “With Love, Meghan” last week was placed on hold following the outbreak of the deadly Los Angeles wildfires on January 8. Meghan announced the postponement to March 4th “as we focus on the needs of those affected by the wildfires in my home state of California.”

Her critics said she and Netflix clearly had no alternative but to postpone a show during which the duchess celebrates her lavish Southern California lifestyle together with her celebrity friends after so many others lost every part in Pacific Palisades and Altadena.

Meanwhile, Harry and Meghan initially made big headlines for stopping by Pasadena last Friday to serve meals, leave donations and hug survivors of the Eaton fire. But they soon faced harsh criticism online from actress Justine Bateman and others outraged at being photographed, and got a private tour of burned-out neighborhoods by the mayor of Pasadena.

Bateman called them “disaster tourists” and “Ambulance Chaser.” TMZ founder Harvey Levin and his producers also criticized the couple to see earlier this week. “I think it's crazy that people exist. Most people can’t access these areas, especially in Altadena, and don’t even know if their homes are still there,” Levin said. “Meghan and Harry showing up from Montecito and getting a tour? For what purpose?”

Executive producer Charles Latibeaudiere agreed that it was an “abuse of resources,” while senior news producer Charlie Neff said their visit “doesn't go down well with people in the community…” It feels fake and unnecessary to go there.”

It stays to be seen whether the criticism of the “disaster tourist” will proceed. But the Vanity Fair story raises questions on their marriage, as Harry is portrayed as a naive, lonely one who has made no friends and is eager to reconnect along with his family. A source suggested he wasn't necessarily aware of the damage his tell-all memoir “Spare” would have on his relationships along with his family. He can be described as having such a wierd, privileged upbringing that he doesn't “know what life really is” or understand the concept of ​​having to make a living.

The story could also reignite Meghan's bullying controversy. Her representatives initially dismissed the 2021 TImes UK report as a part of a “calculated smear campaign” launched by a royal establishment and the British press that had change into hostile towards her. The bullying allegations appeared to subside after Buckingham Palace said in 2022 that it will not release the outcomes of an internal investigation into Meghan's alleged bullying.

But The Hollywood Reporter revived the difficulty in September with a scathing report during which a source said Meghan “belittles people,” doesn't take advice and is a “dictator in high heels” who’s indignant and barks orders. Both she and Harry are “poor decision makers,” a source also said, which might explain why after two years and a reported $20 million contract, the pair only managed to supply a 12-episode podcast. The Daily Beast followed up with one other report that quoted employees describing her as “a demon” who had “mental moments.”

For its report, Vanity Fair spoke to individuals who had good experiences with Meghan, including producer Jane Marie, who tried to assist them develop podcasts for his or her Archewell productions. “She’s just a lovely, genuine person,” Marie said of Meghan.

Peele, the Vanity Fair author, tried to offer a sensitive explanation for why Meghan may need trouble managing employees or be annoyed that others judge her or look down on her. That goes back to when she claimed she was an outsider in highschool, Peele noted.

“Is it any surprise that a sense of victimhood and justice could persist in a person who was treated so horribly by the press and her husband's family?” Peele wrote.

Meghan may additionally view certain people as enemies or intruders, and not only “the vile” media or “her deplorable father and half-sister” who’ve sold stories about her to the tabloids, Peele said. Meghan's enemies is also professionals who work for her, from palace staff to those that “actually knew how to do a podcast,” Peele suggested. She may begin to view her as more powerful than she is, “despite her immense fame, wealth and privilege,” Peele wrote.

“And whatever happened to them, well… they shouldn't have gotten in the way of Meghan and her good work,” Peele concluded.

Originally published: January 17, 2025 at 4:10 pm PST

Meghan Markle has suffered one other setback in her efforts to acquire a trademark for her planned food and lifestyle brand American Riviera Orchard.

Harry and David, the famous 90-year-old gift basket maker, have filed a “protest” with the US Patent and Trademark Office, the Daily Mail reported.

The $2.2 billion company claims that the name “American Riviera Orchard” is just too much like “Royal Riviera,” the trademark given to brothers Harry and David Rosenberg the premium pears They began raising in 1914 of their father's 200-acre orchard in Oregon's Rogue River Valley. Twenty years later, the brothers began their mail-order gift business, selling their gold foil-wrapped Royal Riviera pears, which have turn out to be popular holiday treats over the a long time.

Harry and David's protest against Meghan's planned trademark “American Riviera Orchard” has been deemed “relevant” on account of “likelihood of confusion” and has been referred to the trademark office's reviewing attorney, the Daily Mail said.

This move by Harry and David appears to lend credence to recent comments from Tina Brown, Princess Diana's biographer and former editor of Vanity Fair and New Yorker. Brown criticized Meghan for selling Prince Harry on the concept she was a “savvy Hollywood wheeler-dealer” who would make them stars and really wealthy after her exit from royal life in 2020 Founded media and charity empire. Instead, Meghan has proven her lack of business acumen, is burdened with bad ideas, has “the worst judgment in the world” and a talent for “doing everything wrong,” Brown said.

“Her problem is that she doesn’t listen,” Brown said in an interview with The Ankler podcast. “She has all these people, asks them their opinion and then doesn’t follow it. She does what she wants to do. And unfortunately all of their ideas are total crap.”

According to the Daily Mail, Meghan's try and launch a way of life brand has proven to be an ongoing saga, because the Duchess of Sussex has faced recurring issues with the trademark office.

A yr ago, Meghan tried to secure a brand for The Tig, the life-style blog she began as a TV actress on the series “Suits” before she began dating Harry. However, the Daily Mail reported that this trademark bid was stalled because she didn’t submit a “statement of use” together with her application, forcing her lawyer to hunt a six-month extension.

American Riviera Orchard was similarly hit last month when the trademark office told her that “American Riviera” was too vague a term and told her she had three months to offer clarifications and $700 to file her application to proceed.

It seems that American Riviera Orchard's launch can have been premature and reasonably convoluted. This was recently revealed by Daily Mail columnist Richard Eden that he got wind in March that Meghan was starting a way of life brand. Before publishing a story, Eden said he reached out to her office for comment.

Eden believes Meghan was “desperate” to stop news about her lifestyle brand from appearing within the Daily Mail because she and Harry “despise” the tabloid and Harry has launched a legal battle against its owner. “But that hate can lead them to make stupid decisions,” Eden wrote.

To snag the Daily Mail, Meghan pulled the trigger on her launch on the American Riviera Orchard and shared links to an Instagram page and website. She also had her celebrity friends promote jars of strawberry jam and dog biscuits that bore the label.

However, this reportedly happened before Meghan could actually sell products or recruit executives to run the corporate. In an in depth report by Puck, she also faced suggestions that her idea for American Riviera Orchard was heavily “inspired” – or more so – by one other Southern California-based company, the “decadent lifestyle outfitting company” Flamingo Estate .

Either Meghan Markle or her associates at William Morris thought they might show that she enjoys the support of Hollywood celebrities by revealing to Chrissy Teigen on Instagram this week that she was among the many privileged 50 who were gifted a glass from the Duchess Limited edition strawberry jam from American Riviera Orchard.

Sure, John Legend's influencer wife has long had a big social media presence, with 43 million Instagram followers. But she has also turn into a problematic celebrity as her repute never fully recovered after she was embroiled in a cyberbullying scandal in 2021.

Additionally, Teigen's crash was used as a possibility by Meghan's critics to reconsider the incontrovertible fact that she, too, was embroiled in a bullying controversy. The Times UK ffirst revealed in 2021 that Prince Harry's wife was accused in a Buckingham Palace investigation of harassing royal advisers in the course of the 18 months she was a senior working member of the royal family.

“Meghan Marble and Chrissy Teigen are the two biggest bullies on the D-list! I’m excited to see them teaming up!” wrote Stephanie Sidley in response to Teigens Instagram post, wherein she used Meghan's jam in a bacon and brie grilled cheese sandwich. “This may have been one of the best bites we've eaten all year,” Teigen wrote as cheese dripped from her mouth.

By the best way, Sidley hosts a YouTube show along with her sister that capitalizes on the criticism of Meghan and Harry. Following Teigen's post, fans of Meghan and Teigen were quick to show against Sidley, telling her she was “the bully” and the “hater.”

When the bullying allegations against Meghan first emerged, her spokesman strongly denied them, calling the Times story one other “attack” on her character and part of a bigger “smear campaign.” Teigen, then again, acknowledged her bad behavior prior to now and said she was a web-based “troll,” particularly when she sent malicious messages to teen media personality Courtney Stodden in 2011.

Now, some people commenting on Teigen's Jam post clearly don't consider Meghan has moved on from the bullying allegations. Teigen's post isn't the one place where discussion of the allegations is making a comeback, either.

Just as Meghan attempts to re-establish herself as a life-style influencer, media outlets in Britain, Australia and the United States have reported speculation that the palace staff who claimed they were bullied could also be ready to return forward. reported the New York Post.

Speculation began earlier this month when a former palace aide, Samantha Cohen, confirmed in an interview with Australia's Herald-Sun newspaper that she was certainly one of 10 staffers questioned concerning the allegations. Page Six reports.

Cohen declined to elaborate on the allegations, but pointed to the incontrovertible fact that there was high staff turnover amongst those that worked for Meghan and Harry. Cohen was a long-time adviser to the late Queen Elizabeth II, but worked for Meghan on the queen's request to assist the American actor prepare for royal life.

“I used to be only imagined to stay for six months but ended up staying for 18 months – we couldn't discover a alternative for me and once we did we took them on a tour to Africa with Harry and Meghan to indicate them the ropes but they left (resigned)” “That also applies to the stay in Africa,” Cohen said within the interview.

Cohen's interview led royal writer Tom Bower to suggest that more details about Meghan's alleged bullying may come to light after Cohen speaks out.

“The trickle of information will soon become a torrent,” said Bower, the writer of “Revenge,” a critical book about Meghan and Harry’s departure from royal life. wrote in an editorial for the Daily Mail on Tuesday.

Bower said Cohen was tasked with convincing Meghan, an independent and career-driven California-born actress, to “embrace the royal family's unchanging hierarchy and rigid protocols.” He said Cohen was likely annoyed with Meghan because she either didn't agree with or didn't understand “these non-negotiable elements of royalty.” “I believe that members of Samantha Cohen’s team viewed this as irresponsible self-indulgence,” Bower wrote.

According to the 2022 book “Courtiers” by Valentine Low, the Times royal reporter who first reported the bullying allegations, Cohen privately complained that she felt she had been “treated harshly” by the couple, and compared the job to “working with teenagers.”

Originally by Low Story for the TimesHe reported that Meghan drove two personal assistants out of the household and undermined the trust of a 3rd. She is alleged to have said: “It is not my job to coddle people” after aid staff were reduced to tears and humiliated by her “difficult demands”.

The Times also noted that Meghan's problems along with her royal staff weren’t simply as a consequence of a clash of cultures and the “no-nonsense” nature of an American. A former staffer said the duchess could possibly be harsh towards anyone she let down, saying: “I had unpleasant experiences with her. “I might definitely say humiliated.”

While Buckingham Palace issued an announcement in 2021 saying it was “very concerned” concerning the bullying allegations, in 2022 the palace said it might not release the outcomes of its investigation into the allegations.

Several PR experts interviewed this week from The Telegraph said the bullying allegations could possibly be certainly one of the obstacles to Meghan having the ability to restore her public image, particularly within the United Kingdom. She has also made enemies of royal supporters who dislike the best way she disparages the monarchy in interviews.

“There is a lot to unpack and correct, and that requires honesty, courage and patience. “If you air your dirty laundry in public, it takes some time to dry,” says Natalie Trice, a U.K.-based public relations consultant who has worked with CEOs of CNN and Discovery Channel, amongst other firms.

“Meghan has a voice and a platform, what does she want to say with it?” Trice told The Telegraph. “Who is she and what does she really stand for?” I don't think anyone knows that yet. And hopefully it’s greater than just handing out strawberry jam to wealthy people.”