The real story about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and their relationship with the rest of the British royal family, has rarely been their story in their own words. Netflix’s new six-part documentary series Harry & Meghan promises to give a full, unprecedented look at these two at the most volatile time of their lives, as they chose to step away from their royal duties. With new interviews and unseen footage, the show promises to really let us in on the lives of the Sussexes.
HARRY & MEGHAN: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening Shot: a black screen with white type reads, “This is a first-hand account of Harry & Meghan’s story, told with never before seen personal archive. All interviews were completed by August 2022. Members of the Royal Family declined to comment on the content within this series.” In just a few short sentences, we’re already aware that not only will some of the contents of this show give us unprecedented access to the two royal outliers, but the rest of “The Firm” wants nothing to do with it.
The Gist: Here’s something I said out loud before I watched Harry & Meghan as I discussed this assignment with my husband: “I honestly don’t know why people care so much about these people.” I understood that there is, and always has been, a British obsession with the royals that has, over the last couple decades, spilled across international borders. But why does the public and the media care SO much about them, and in particular, why is there so much hate for Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle? I assumed racism, but also just people feeling some ownership over them as public figures. As a part of its narrative, the brand-new Netflix documentary Harry & Megan seeks to answer some of these questions by explaining the origins and evolution of their relationship, as well as offering an in-depth look at all the ways the media has shaped “the Firm,” the nickname for the royal establishment, and how the Firm has gone along with it in order to benefit from the press.
Prince Harry, second-born son of Prince Charles and Princess Diana, has seen firsthand what the media does to the people in his family, and especially the women who marry into it. The first ten minutes or so of Harry & Meghan is a long preamble in which Harry and Meghan explain why they’re choosing to speak publicly about their lives and their decision to excuse themselves from their royal duties before we really get into the who, what and where of their marriage, but Harry uses these opening scenes to indict the media for the role they have played in hurting his family. For many modern celebrities, it’s hard to feel sorry for them when they claim mistreatment by the media, but we all know what happened to Harry’s mother, so he has a better reason than anyone to feel this way.
He also explains that what led him and Meghan to this place is parenthood. We use the term “consent” a lot these days, but again, Harry’s family is unique in that they are some of the only people in the world for whom consent, as far as how they appear in public, doesn’t exist. From birth, they are the subjects of speculation and gossip, and Harry did not want that for his family. The trouble is, in stepping away from his title, he created an even bigger media frenzy for his family, which is how we got here.
But what the film makes clear is that the royal family are not people, they are symbols, extensions of every British person, which is why it’s so important for Brits to see themselves in the royals, and for Harry to turn his back on the establishment, is an insult. Further, it spends an awful lot of time explaining that in order for the monarchy to stay relevant and popular, it has a symbiotic relationship with the press, they feed one another in a mutually beneficial way. But is it actually mutually beneficial?
While a good chunk of the first episode is an account of Harry and Meghan’s meet-cute, the majority of it features Harry alone discussing his childhood. Photographed from birth, Harry has never known a life without cameras, and he explains how surreal it all was to be forced into photo ops and interviews on family vacations and at public appearances instead of just being allowed to enjoy them. Though Diana attempted to shield him and William from the overexposure, once Diana divorced Charles, she herself was no longer protected and the situation made her life a living hell. As a consequence, it made Harry keenly aware that any prospective bride of his would be met with a similar experience, which terrified him.
Nothing is off-limits here, Harry discusses his mother’s death and how he was forced to perform the role as a stoic royal rather than allowing him to be a publicly grieving son, and subsequent negative press he received as a teen, with his drug use and public scuffles with photographers painting him in a negative light. And now, as an adult, it’s clear from everything he says in the series that he knows he was born into a flawed system (“a gilded cage,” author Robert Hazell describes it), that he very quickly realized wasn’t healthy for him, or his wife and kids.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? There are really no shows about the royals that you can compare Harry & Meghan to, because up until now, there are no documentaries that have ever featured interviews with the royals themselves. If you want more of Harry & Meghan specifically, I suggest seeking out Oprah with Harry and Meghan, the interview the pair did with Oprah Winfrey in 2021.
Our Take: Old newsreels and paparazzi photos, and even the infamous Panorama interview that Diana gave Martin Bashir, are not just acknowledged but addressed head-on in episode one of Harry & Meghan, and Harry’s insights into what he was thinking or what was really going on behind the scenes during these events is fascinating and heartbreaking, it’s no wonder he wouldn’t want this life for his own kids.
As someone who has watched countless documentaries about the royals, I can tell you that one of the worst things about them is the fact that the only talking heads who ever participate are distant relatives or disgraced former press secretaries: people with grubby agendas, who feel untrustworthy. There is none of that here: while some of what Harry says is surprising, none of it is salacious or feels untrue or like he’s working toward an agenda, he simply provides context for situations we’ve seen on the news, as the person who lived them. When he brings up the Panorama interview, which he and William have publicly rebuked, he somewhat shockingly explains, “That Panorama interview, I think we all now know she was deceived into giving the interview, but at the same time, she spoke the truth of her experience.” (The inclusion of clips from the interview is surprising, considering the fact that William himself has stated that it would never publicly air again. Harry never calls out his brother for anything in this episode, but the inclusion of the clips and his statement that they “speak the truth” might feel like he’s sticking it to his brother just a little.Sex and Skin: None.
Parting Shot: Throughout the first episode, we hear stories of Harry and Meghan’s courtship. Though they managed to keep it secret for a couple of months, in October, 2016, their relationship was made public in the press. “Naively, I didn’t know what I was walking into,” Harry says, as a montage of scathing, racist, cruel tweets and newspaper headlines play us out.
Sleeper Star: Harry is easily the most intriguing part of the series. There has always been an air of mystery surrounding the royal family – for as much media exposure they receive, it’s impossible to really know them. Here though, Harry opens up about so many things that have been, up till now, off limits, and whether or not you like what he has to say, it’s a point of view we’ve never heard before and only speculated about.
Most Pilot-y Line: “[There’s a] difference between making decisions with your head and your heart. My mum certainly made most, if not all of her decisions from her heart. And I am my mother’s son,” Harry says when he describes the fact that most of the men in his family choose a wife based around how the women will fit the royal mold and expectations. Harry, as is obvious, chose Meghan for love, in spite of the consequences.
Our Call: STREAM IT! Harry & Meghan feels like a genuine and honest story of what it’s like behind palace doors. Is it propaganda? I mean, in so much as it is meant to spin Harry and Meghan’s story in a positive light, yes, but more than being a flowery, dazzling look at how great they are as a couple, or how brave they are to call out the flaws of the monarchy, it offers context for why we’ve been conditioned to think the way we do about the royals, and seeks to shatter those myths.
Liz Kocan is a pop culture writer living in Massachusetts. Her biggest claim to fame is the time she won on the game show Chain Reaction.