Meghan Thought Marrying Prince Harry Would Make Her the "Beyoncé of the UK," Claims Royal Expert
A new book examines Megxit.
When Meghan Markle first started dating Prince Harry, most of the world didn't know who she was. While she had a starring role on the USA show Suits and a popular blog, The Tig, she wasn't a household name by any means. However, the moment she was linked to the beloved youngest son of King Charles and Princess Diana, her star power soared. Overnight, she became a household name globally, with her picture on the cover of multiple magazines. While the Duchess has always maintained that she didn't even know who Prince Harry was when she first got set up on their first blind date, one royal expert claims it couldn't be further from the truth. In fact, she maintains that Meghan expected to be more beloved than Beyoncé in the UK.
A new book, Courtiers: The Hidden Power Behind the Crown by royals reporter Valentine Low, interviews multiple sources who maintain that Meghan had big plans of stardom. However, when her hopes backfired, she retaliated against the institution.
"I think Meghan thought she was going to be the Beyoncé of the UK. Being part of the royal family would give her that kudos," a source told Low. "Whereas what she discovered was that there were so many rules that were so ridiculous that she couldn't even do the things that she could do as a private individual, which is tough."
According to Low, the couple attempted to negotiate their role in the family. "But the Sussexes wanted their freedom: freedom to make money, freedom to dip their toes into American politics. There was no way for the two sides to reach an agreement on that point. Crucially, it was the Queen who took the view that unless the couple were prepared to abide by the restrictions that applied to working members of the royal family, they could not be allowed to carry out official duties," she writes.
A source told her that "compromise was off the table, removed by the Queen." "There was a very clear view: you can't be in and out. And if you've got such clarity of view, it's very difficult to say, 'Why don't we go 10 per cent this way instead of 20 per cent?'"
"I think that it was an impossible task," said another palace source. "I think in Meghan and the household, you had two worlds that had no experience of each other, had no way to relate to each other, had no way to comprehend each other. And Meghan was never going to fit in that model and that model was never going to tolerate the Meghan who Meghan wanted to be. So I think that it was inevitable that they would not be able to work together. I don't think there's anything Edward could have done about that that other members of the royal family would have accepted."
