Meghan Markle, The Duchess of Sussex, has the internet in a tizzy, as she recently announced her new show with Netflix, With Love, Meghan, on her revamped Instagram account featuring a trailer showing her performing several Martha Stewart-esc activities, from preparing decorative ice cubes, apertivos, and entrees in the kitchen, to flouncing around in her backyard garden and hanging out with her loved ones and close celebrity friends like Minda Kaling and of course husband, Prince Harry and their adorable children. Although the trailer has some folks mad on the internet, the 8-episode series is set to premiere on January 15th. It is described as an inspiring and uplighting series that “reimagines the genre of lifestyle programming, blending practical how-to’s and candid conversation with friends, new and old.”
It’s unfortunately not a surprise that Markle has already received harsh criticism and feedback online, mainly from British royalists and Megan McCain, who revealed that she was previously a fan of Markle before the debut of the trailer for her new show, as she named it, “utterly tone deaf to the moment.” The moment, being the state of the world, especially in the United States, we’ve recently experienced several harrowing public tragedies (some are labeling them as terrorist-motivated); the public is currently preparing for a new president of the United States. She continues, “I was originally a Meghan Markle supporter. I thought she was cool, stylish and refreshing,” McCain shared in n a post on X. “Like the rest of the world my opinion changed when she disrespected the royal family. Now that she wants to be American again instead of British aristocracy, what she seems to forget is Americans want real, raw, uncensored. All of this even in the trailer is highly curated, produced and out of touch.”
“There have been 2 terror attacks in 2 days, major wars raging and Americans can’t pay for groceries,” McCain continued. “We are a country in rage, uncertainty and intensity right now. This concept is ill advised. I would have told her to do a show helping bring fresh food to food deserts in low income neighborhoods. Do something to help people instead of your ego. This is why the world doesn’t like you, nothing else. Just completely and utterly tone deaf to the moment.”
While McCain and others have a right to their opinion, many are wondering why it is an issue to see a happy Black woman demonstrate acts of love in the form of culinary creations for the closest people in her life while inspiring other people to do the same, especially in light of challenging times? Don’t we need and deserve the joy?
Another critical point of Markle’s rebirth in the public eye that most are unaware of is that she’s deeply familiar with the culinary and lifestyle space, as she had a very successful lifestyle platform, The Tig, which included insights into Markle’s life, such as her friendships, relationships, and adventures in Vancouver. It was initially created for her to share interests in travel, fashion, wellness, food, and other lifestyle-based topics. It grew to a popular destination for all women to be inspired. The blog, named after her favorite wine, Tignanello, featured recipes, travel guides, beauty tips, interviews with successful women, and advice on how to live your very best life. While she shuttered the blog in 2017, shortly after falling in love with Prince Harry, the blog served as an entry point to a new next venture, and the public criticizing her “new career” choice should know this part of Markle is nothing new at all, but more so as the next step up.
