The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Family, News and Events 9: August 2023 -

[Tatiana Maria]

Regardless of who first reported the story, the Sun or the Express,

As far as I know, the story has only been reported by the Sun, with other news sources reporting that the Sun reported it. Please correct me if I am wrong.

I still think that the purchase and production of this bestselling novel is a very good idea for Harry and Meghan. .

To be clear, my previous comment wasn't intended to express any view about the contents of the story or about your comment on the project.

 

[Granada]

Well that will be nice for the Sussex's if they can pull of a successful Netflix Novel adaptation. Maybe revamp and reset the "no talent" - "grifters" label that took off like wildfire here.

God knows they could use some positive news. In the States, their reputation and standing is abysmal. So unbelievable how it all went so wrong, in such a short time.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

On an unrelated note, as there have been countless sensationalistic tabloid headlines about the British royal household's social media not posting about the birthdays of members of the Sussex family, I would like to note that a policy of restricting official social media birthday wishes to working royals was already announced by Buckingham Palace in February 2022 because of the backlash against the Duke of York (not the Sussexes).

See The Protocol Thread.

The royal social media accounts indeed did not acknowledge the Duke of York's 62nd birthday.

Ed Southgate of The Sun wrote:

Buckingham Palace confirmed there has been no public message as the Duke marks his birthday today.

It is understood public birthday wishes are not made for non-working members of the Royal Family.​

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/17704123/queen-prince-andrew-birthday-snub/

 

[Alison H]

I think they're still going to post wishes for "big" birthdays - 50, 60, etc - but not other birthdays. As you say, it's because of the backlash against Prince Andrew, but the press are making out that Meghan's been snubbed, which isn't what's happened at all.

 

[FigTree]

https://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/1799188/meghan-markle-prince-harry-netflix-film-rights

‘Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are set to work on their next big Netflix production after securing the rights to a best-selling book.’

‘The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who signed a multimillion-dollar deal with the streaming giant in 2020, will move away from their personal documentaries into fiction production.

The royal couple have since gained the rights to the romantic novel Meet Me At The Lake by Carley Fortune, according to The Sun.

It is believed the "love story" which echoed the Duke and Duchess’s real-life relationship cost up to £3million.‘

I think this is an excellent project especially as the book is a best seller and therefore will have fans already

Books are constant.y having their rights bought and 99% of the time nothing ever gets made. Many rights are eventually sold on. I wouldn’t get excited.

I think they're still going to post wishes for "big" birthdays - 50, 60, etc - but not other birthdays. As you say, it's because of the backlash against Prince Andrew, but the press are making out that Meghan's been snubbed, which isn't what's happened at all.

It’s a job thing. Zara doesn’t get a shoot out either or her children. I think everyone is just looking for a story. Anywhere.

 

[Asteria12]

While I wish them success moving into a different arena at last, I just wonder if there is an appetite for a movie that is an allusion to the Meghan and Harry saga. I kind of think many people are over it.

 

[Hallo girl]

Books are constant.y having their rights bought and 99% of the time nothing ever gets made. Many rights are eventually sold on. I wouldn’t get excited.

I am maybe becoming confused but was there not a story out that they were going to do a film based on their own love story. I have not read this book as romance is not my thing but from comments it is a similar story to theirs.
Whether it is a story similar to them or not I hope it works for them and they appreciate that they can make a good life for themselves without clinging on to royal stories.

 

[Heavs]

While I wish them success moving into a different arena at last, I just wonder if there is an appetite for a movie that is an allusion to the Meghan and Harry saga. I kind of think many people are over it.

Well the book is apparently popular but if it's promoted as the "Meghan and Harry Movie 4.0" or whatever number they're up to on Lifetime now and NOT about the popular book itself, then that might end up turning people off.

Whilst buying rights to things and producing them is not a bad idea and may work, as said upthread a massive % of popular books who's rights are sold never have movies or TV series created from them. Many languish in development hell for years as well.

Producing live action scripted content is more complicated, expensive and risky than the projects they've done so far and they didn't even excel at those really. Also a lot of their production staff like Ben Browning have left.

If as has been claimed, they were perceived as lazy grifters at Spotify with their own pet projects then I can't see them personally working day to day on getting a movie off the ground. Of course someone else will probably do the day to day stuff and Harry and Meghan will put their names on it. Which wouldn't necessarily be unusual in Hollywood.

Will be interesting to see.

 

[Alison H]

I am maybe becoming confused but was there not a story out that they were going to do a film based on their own love story. I have not read this book as romance is not my thing but from comments it is a similar story to theirs.
Whether it is a story similar to them or not I hope it works for them and they appreciate that they can make a good life for themselves without clinging on to royal stories.

According to my newspaper this morning, the book's a similar story to Harry and Meghan's because it's about a couple who meet in their 30s. Given that there are millions of couples around the world who met in their 30s, I'm not exactly sure how that makes the book particularly relevant to Harry and Meghan, but maybe I'm missing something!

 

[TLLK]

According to my newspaper this morning, the book's a similar story to Harry and Meghan's because it's about a couple who meet in their 30s. Given that there are millions of couples around the world who met in their 30s, I'm not exactly sure how that makes the book particularly relevant to Harry and Meghan, but maybe I'm missing something!

I have read that one of the main characters loses a parent due to a car accident. That might have been part of the appeal for the Sussexes to select this story over others.

 

[Heavs]

Also:

The novel — which shifted a whopping 37,000 copies in the first week of its release in May alone — deals with themes including childhood trauma over losing a parent in a car crash, mental health and post-natal depression.

It also has “steamy sex scenes” and “drug use” and is set near Toronto in Canada — where Meghan lived when she started dating Harry.

So I can see why they thought it echoed some of their story and it seems right up their alley to try and produce something popular that they can market as "their" love story.

 

[Ghost]

The main character loses her mother at age 32, not during childhood. (I’m at 16% of the book.)

 

[Granada]

Jeez, talk about a "stretch" that The Sussex's feel this novel "somehow" aligns with their now VERY highly oversaturated love story.

I guess I was hoping that they would pivot away, under Meghan's new Management Team, from selling out the Royal Family, and-or marketing themselves as some kind of original, unheard of, special romance for the ages.

Oh well......

 

[Heavs]

Jeez, talk about a "stretch" that The Sussex's feel this novel "somehow" aligns with their now VERY highly oversaturated love story.

I guess I was hoping that they would pivot away, under Meghan's new Management Team, from selling out the Royal Family, and -or marketing themselves as some kind of original, unheard of, special romance for the ages.

Oh well......

It is a stretch but it's one I can definitely see Harry and Meghan making when looking around for projects as they so often appear to see things only in terms of themselves and how it makes them feel. Apparently the main character's first name is Will and the female character is Fern Brooksbank so there may be some changes there.

A fiction project would be a good place to start pivoting away from marketing themselves but considering everything they've done so far (even The Bench) has been about them I suppose it wasn't likely. I guess we're lucky it wasn't something similar to the 1001 "royal Christmas " movies Hallmark does every year. About a plucky American who visits a tiny European country in the mountains and falls in love with the inexplicably English sounding prince and teaches everyone about democracy and feminism etc.

 

[Maryrose]

I think Netflix is a good fit for them. I hope they are successful.

 

[Curryong]

Have Harry, or Meghan, given any interview stating that they picked this novel because ‘it aligned with their love story’? If they have I must have missed it! That observation may well have come from some journalist reporting on this novel’s rights being sold to the Sussexes.

And the novel was a very popular bestseller, so hopefully a good film will come from it that viewers will enjoy. I’m looking on the bright side for this couple who are trying something new and I agree Netflix is a good fit for them.

Later, in fact those speculations about similarities between book and the Sussexes seems to have come from this article.

https://www.townandcountrymag.com/s...ce-harry-meet-me-at-the-lake-adaptation-news/

‘The novel shares parallels between Harry and Meghan's lives, including the main character who lost a parent in a car crash, postpartum depression, and mental health challenges. Plus, the book's setting of Toronto is familiar to Meghan, who lived in the Canadian city while filming Suits.’

The setting in Toronto probably appealed to Meghan but postpartum depression of the main character’s mother, who died in a car crash when the main protagonist (a female) was in her thirties? A very long stretch there imo.

 

[Asteria12]

It doesn't matter of course, it is a step in a different direction which is good for them, although there are so many amazing books that should be turned into movies. I personally think they'd gain far more respect if they turned their focus away from their Sussex brand. It might be awhile before we see the outcome of this purchase anyway, what with the hubbub in Hollywood at the moment.

 

[Curryong]

I haven’t read the book. Im not a fan of romance novels. Nor, I suspect is Harry. Have you read this novel?

 

[Asteria12]

I have not read this particular book but I am acquainted with the Australian-born author. As a fan of the Sussex's she's obviously beyond thrilled to have them pick up her novel. Good for her and for them if it gets off the ground. Its not something that I would watch though.

 

[classyjackie]

Signing production deals and being silent on the strike is not a good look for them.

 

[Curryong]

We don’t know when the production deal was signed, could have been before this strike started. And Meghan hasn’t been an actress since Nov 2017, so there’s no reason for her to be publicly commentating on the strike. We don’t know whether she’s offering encouragement in private. I’ve no doubt Meghan is sympathetic to it and if working as an actress would be out on the picket lines.

However, if she does comment on this dispute that means a furore from right wing commentators (and probably studio and company reps) once again. Whatever this couple say, do, react to, is dissected by the media and subject to a load of criticism and jeering from those who are seemingly opposed.

 

[classyjackie]

We don’t know when the production deal was signed, could have been before this strike started. And Meghan hasn’t been an actress since Nov 2017, so there’s no reason for her to be publicly commentating on the strike. We don’t know whether she’s offering encouragement in private. I’ve no doubt Meghan is sympathetic to it and if working as an actress would be out on the picket lines.

However, if she does comment on this dispute that means a furore from right wing commentators (and probably studio and company reps) once again. Whatever this couple say, do, react to, is dissected by the media and subject to a load of criticism and jeering from those who are seemingly opposed.

We don't know when the rights were purchased, but it's being announced now, during the strike. It looks bad, optically. They are aligned with the bad guys here, and on top of that Meghan in particular continues to miss the opportunity to speak out about her history as a SAG-AFSTRA member and the ways that the union supported her when she needed it.

 

[Hallo girl]

Have Harry, or Meghan, given any interview stating that they picked this novel because ‘it aligned with their love story’? If they have I must have missed it! That observation may well have come from some journalist reporting on this novel’s rights being sold to the Sussexes.

And the novel was a very popular bestseller, so hopefully a good film will come from it that viewers will enjoy. I’m looking on the bright side for this couple who are trying something new and I agree Netflix is a good fit for them.

Later, in fact those speculations about similarities between book and the Sussexes seems to have come from this article.

https://www.townandcountrymag.com/s...ce-harry-meet-me-at-the-lake-adaptation-news/

‘The novel shares parallels between Harry and Meghan's lives, including the main character who lost a parent in a car crash, postpartum depression, and mental health challenges. Plus, the book's setting of Toronto is familiar to Meghan, who lived in the Canadian city while filming Suits.’

The setting in Toronto probably appealed to Meghan but postpartum depression of the main character’s mother, who died in a car crash when the main protagonist (a female) was in her thirties? A very long stretch there imo.

I actually wonder if the couple were the inspiration for the novel, the author herself has stated she is a fan.
I also don’t think it is a stretch, it is not unusual within film scripts/ novels for details to be tweeked or amended so as not to be too obviously based on real people.
The basic storyline appears to contain elements associated with the couple but presented in a different format, just a thought.

 

[Maryrose]

We don't know when the rights were purchased, but it's being announced now, during the strike. It looks bad, optically. They are aligned with the bad guys here, and on top of that Meghan in particular continues to miss the opportunity to speak out about her history as a SAG-AFSTRA member and the ways that the union supported her when she needed it.

I understand your viewpoint regarding Meghan not speaking up but there are also plenty of other actors with lucrative deals with streaming services that also haven't said anything. As far as this project being revealed during the strike the timing may not be perfect but who was the source? was it from Harry and Meghan, Netflix or the author.

 

[Maryrose]

Also they bought the rights to the book but it doesn't mean they are looking to put together a team of writers or are looking to hold auditions to start production right now.

 

[Ghost]

Harry arrived in Tokyo.


https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...-Harry-arrives-Tokyo-Airport-visit-Japan.html

 

[valeas]

German press is e reporting the webiste was updatetd and Harry no longer named a HRH?
Anything official or just gossip by yellow press? TXS.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

German press is e reporting the webiste was updatetd and Harry no longer named a HRH?
Anything official or just gossip by yellow press? TXS.

You can always verify reported updates to the official website by visiting the official website. It is accessible from outside of the UK.

https://www.royal.uk/the-duke-of-sussex

(Most of the "His Royal Highness"es were already removed much earlier, as they were for the Duchess of Sussex and the Duke of York. Personally, I thought the remaining ones were fine, as they referred to events which took place before he gave up the use of HRH.)

 

[Heavs]

German press is e reporting the webiste was updatetd and Harry no longer named a HRH?
Anything official or just gossip by yellow press? TXS.

The website chops and changes on using HRH for all the family members, including working royals depending on the paragraph and context.

And none of them use HRH on the list showing the LOS for example. It's not a big deal (except to Harry I guess) he hasn't had it taken away from him but they tend not to use it for him, even in many "non commercial" contexts.

 

[Ghost]

They made some updates yesterday and all remaining HRH on Harry’s page have been removed. They still left a lot of errors or unclear things but it’s a step.