A lot of people have a lot of strong opinions on what they think Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are like. And, to some extent, that is fair enough as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are much more open with their personal stances, and even their political persuasions, than the rest of the Royal family. Still, let’s not think we know the pair intimately just because we’ve watched them cry in a Netflix documentary.
There’s much speculation on Harry and Meghan’s private life right now, especially as the king’s second son just celebrated his 40th birthday this September and he’s being pulled back to his native U.K. without his wife by his side. The Sussexes’ status as good neighbors has even been called into question by those who live near the couple and their two children in Montecito, California and feel they are anti-social and “rude.” But in response to those accusations, a friend of the family has something to say.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s old pal reveals the truth that will “disappoint” the world
Bryony Gordon, an old pal of the Sussexes, felt the need to defend her friends in a guest column she wrote for The Daily Mail in which she strives to paint a very different picture of Harry and Meghan from the one often depicted in the press.
In contrast to many former friends and employees of the couple, Gordon is still in active contact with the duo. Just this spring, she stayed with the duke and duchess and was lucky enough to get her hands on one of Meghan’s first products for her new food and lifestyle brand, although she humorously lost it before she could give it a try:
“When I left, packed off by the happy couple with a jar of their homemade jam (which I then left in the back of a taxi in a jet-lagged stupor; somewhere in Los Angeles, a cab driver has one of the earliest batches of American Riviera Orchard’s produce),” Gordon recalled.
This visit with the couple was what led Gordon to make a realization about the kind of people she sees Harry and Meghan as. “I was reminded of the fact that they are a pretty ordinary couple existing in an absolutely extraordinary situation,” she stated, before continuing:
“There are no airs or graces with them. No desire to do anything other than protect their children from an increasingly digital world that likes nothing more than seeing the worst in people.”
Gordon admitted that people become “disappointed” when she tells them that Harry and Meghan are much more normal and down-to-earth than they might expect and she has no scandalous gossip to share about them.
“A world that forgets that no matter how high profile a person is, they’re just doing their best, like everyone else,” she concluded. “This is not what people want to hear, but it is what I’ve found, time and time again.”
Other sources claim differently, of course, with Meghan recently facing fresh bullying accusations amid reports that ex-employees have dubbed her “Duchess Difficult.” What is certainly true is that the Sussexes prioritize their children’s welfare above all else. In that way, they are just like everyone else. If you forget the fact they are actual royalty, that is.
