There is now little stopping the Sussexes from unleashing their version of events. Photo / AP
OPINION:
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are not, it has been said repeatedly, making a reality television series. They are absolutely not making a fly-on-the-wall show about life in their California home either.
They may just, however, be making the royal documentary to end all royal documentaries; the last word on the story that has captivated half the world and horrified the rest of it.
In the coming months, Prince Harry and Meghan are to embark on a round of media activity never-before-known in royal history. A Netflix series and a book from Prince Harry, both part of the blockbuster commercial deals that the Sussexes have signed in the wake of the departure formerly known as Megxit, are on their way.
Timed for release one after the other – at least until the death of Queen Elizabeth II changed everyone's calendars – they are set to be a tour de force of the Sussexes' truth. Or "truth", as some might pointedly call it.
For the couple, it is their chance to fully control the narrative – the dream Prince Harry has held since he was an Eton schoolboy plotting to set up his own newspaper full of his own royal facts.
Now, on camera and in print, he is finally in the driving seat for what he hopes will be the final, definitive, canonical version of his own life.
"It's interesting," said the Duchess of Sussex recently, in what was for some a mild observation and for others a nuclear-level threat. "I've never had to sign anything that restricts me from talking."
The world is about to find out just what the Sussexes want to say.
"This is about where they've come from, what they've been through and where they are," said a source familiar with the Netflix show.
"I think it will explain a lot about the decisions they've had to make and how they've ended up here."
It's been a long time coming. The first rumours of a fly-on-the-wall reality show were printed in The Sun in September 2020, and scathingly denied by Team Sussex.
Then, US tabloids printed tales of an "at home-style" series for Netflix, with photographs soon emerging of professional camera crews following Harry and Meghan during a working trip to New York.
Netflix has still not confirmed that any such television series exists. The reluctance to promote what will doubtless be a ratings hit has been remarkable by UK standards, a sign either of the streaming services' last-minute shock-and-awe PR strategy or, perhaps, nerves over whether the programme would ever actually make it to the screen.
It will, television insiders believe, be make or break for the Sussexes' careers.
Their deal with the streaming giant is reliant on their output, and their appearing on screen to a certain degree.
While Harry's no-doubt worthy Invictus Games documentary is still in the works, Meghan's animated children's series has been dropped and the pressure is on Netflix – whose business has taken a reputational dive this year after figures showed a drop in subscribers – to deliver a hit.
And if the New York Post's Page Six is to be believed, the couple are now "at odds" with executives and wanting to "backtrack" on what they have filmed in the wake of the Queen's death.
"Harry and Meghan are panicked about trying to tone down even the most basic language," it reported.
"Ok, the timing isn't ideal," said one source yesterday, with some understatement.
But, another insists, there is no wholesale editing going on to add or remove bombshell royal revelations.
"There seems to be a big misconception that they need or want to turn the project on its head," they said. "There are always edits being made, but that's how it works – people give notes, sometimes things are changed if there's time before a deadline."
One industry source confirmed to The Daily Telegraph that there has been "back and forth" on release dates, with a multi-episode series pencilled in for December.
The Harry memoir will follow, probably next year and likely subject to edits to make it make sense after the Queen's death, even down to the basics of clarifying the tenses.
Fundamentally, The Telegraph understands, there has been no thawing of the relationship between the Sussexes and their British family that would leave a contrite pile of deleted accusations on the Netflix or Penguin Random House cutting room floor.
If the Sussexes were frustrated by "The Institution" before they travelled to Britain, not a great deal can be said to have changed. While they rubbed along respectfully in public during the 11 days between the Queen's death and her funeral, the chaos behind the scenes over everything from Prince Harry's journey to Balmoral to his military uniform highlighted rather than calmed their differences.
Moreover, it was the Queen both Harry and Meghan have always publicly lauded above all others. Even a sympathetic American audience will draw the line at her being disrespected after death.
With "the boss" gone, one school of thought goes, there is less to stop the Sussexes unleashing their version of events. But, one who knows them insists, the documentary and book are not designed as "Harry's version of the story. They are his story, full stop."
"This isn't supposed to be a take-down of anyone or anything," they said, predicting people who watch will have greater "empathy". "There's no finger-pointing."
It is likely, however, to explore old ground from a newer, Sussexified perspective.
Their time in Britain, their departure, their US "life of service" and their plans for the future are all thought to be up for discussion, likely accompanied by wholesome footage of their happy family life. The "Lili Bunny Garden + Larder" – the homemade labels on homegrown produce named for their toddler daughter and revealed in a recent profile – may make an appearance.
The latest edits are "collaborative", television sources say.
The show's director, Liz Garbus, is "incredible", Meghan says.
The biggest clues as to content can be found in her own words in The Cut magazine interview in which she explained the "difference between a historical documentary and a reality docuseries".
"The piece of my life I haven't been able to share, that people haven't been able to see, is our love story," she said.
In other words, the Sussexes are now happy.
Asked whether the programme would nevertheless ruffle feathers back in the UK, sources left little doubt.
"Everything they do ruffles feathers," said one dismissively. "It doesn't matter what they say or write, the chatter will be there regardless. Even if they didn't mention the Royal family at all, people would still say it's a snub."
There is little question that the show must mention the Royal family. ("What are Netflix paying for otherwise?" wondered one British observer). The level of "bombshell" has been somewhat pre-empted by a tell-all Oprah interview, but the fascination still remains.
The sins of the media, a preoccupation of both disinformation campaigner Prince Harry and Archetype-fighting podcaster Meghan, are also bound to feature.
"They need to have the last word," says one who knew them during their time in the Royal family.
A different source, more optimistic about how the show and book are pitched, said: "This is Harry being able to – for the first time – talk about his own life. His family are obviously part of his story, but it's less an exercise in record-setting as a means of setting himself free.
"And then he can move on."
The question remains: where and just how far from his old home will that moving on take him?
Millions will watch and hear the Sussexes in action.
"When the media has shaped the story around you, it's really nice to be able to tell your own story," the Duchess has said.
The Royal family, watching (or not, as the case may be) back in Britain, will be largely powerless to stop that story taking hold.
The Telegraph understands there are no plans for palace aides to be able to read the memoir or watch the Netflix series before the general public.
If they did, the royal reluctance to launch legal action or comment would usually render them silent spectators in the face of all but the most extreme of accusations. When pushed for a response to Harry's public declarations, King Charles's team has tended to fall back on the truth that he loves his son. Prince William, whose "different path" from his brother is now so evident as he steps into the role of Prince of Wales, sees no value in the airing of family linen.
Perhaps the answer lies with the late Queen, whose own response to the Oprah interview has gone down as a masterclass in gently reminding the public that there is more than one side to every story.
"Some recollections may vary," she said.
As the Sussexes' recollections spill forth via the combined force of a global TV platform and book, and the looming threat of both becomes reality, there remains a grain of hope for all sides.
Once there is nothing left unsaid, and no truth left untold, both royals and ex-royals may finally be able to draw a line and move on.
Who will or won't be watching?
King Charles
Let's start with the obvious. In the wake of Harry and Meghan's decision to step down as working royals, they've not been shy to fire a few broadsides at the now-king, suggesting that he might be in for a pasting. But, since the Queen's death, Charles has been riding a wave of public approval for his reverence and work ethic – he even wished the estranged couple love in his first public address as monarch. He's currently got the upper hand – he'll need to gauge if it's going to stay that way.
Queen Camilla
Even Camilla – as sensible and self-assured as she is – must feel some trepidation about this Netflix venture. Rumours washing around the palace suggest that Harry struggles with his feelings over Camilla, potentially blaming her for ending his parents' marriage. No one wants to be framed as the wicked stepmother and Camilla and her team have done an incredible job of laying that trope to rest. But this documentary may just give it new life. She'll be watching. With a stiff gin in hand.
Thomas Markle
Poor old Thomas Markle. While he's not exactly blameless in his dealings with his daughter and son-in-law, this documentary might be his first chance to actually see extended coverage of his grandchildren, Archie and Lilibet. Thomas has previously raged against the couple and invoked "grandparents rights" (which, in legal terms, don't exist). Still, he'll have to weigh up whether it's worth sitting through some likely humiliating revelations from his daughter just to witness some beautifully framed reels of his grandchildren.
The Prince of Wales
The jury is out on how William will fare in the documentary; the brothers have a complex bond but it's not clear whether a shared childhood will spare him from the worst. Encouraging Harry and Meghan to join him and Kate to meet wellwishers at Windsor gate was a masterful PR stroke and framed him as the "bigger person" – replete with the maturity and grace one would expect from a monarch-in-waiting. Care will now need to be taken to ensure Harry's documentary criticisms don't seem off-target; William will be invested to see if his smart power moves have paid off.
The Princess of Wales
Accounts from the days surrounding the Queen's funeral will have you believe that our new Princess of Wales barely looked Meghan's way, let alone speak to her. Certainly, the unpleasantness about who made who cry – laid out on a global public stage, no less – has a hue of schoolground nastiness about it. Little wonder the two aren't falling over themselves to play nicely. Kate, no doubt, will still be bristling from being named as a distresser-of-brides, which does not fit with her public image. She and her team will be primed, ready to see what other brand-denting claims are coming her way.
The Courtiers
Many of the staff who worked for Meghan and Harry – said to have dubbed themselves The Sussex Survivors Club – will be glued to the screen. The briefing and counter-briefing that has gone on since the Sussexes stepped down has fuelled gossip columns across the globe and the truth is anyone's guess. Those staff who feel they were wronged will be picking apart every detail, phone in hand, ready to reframe every clever edit and behind-the-scenes shot to eager journalists. After all, recollections, as we're told, do vary.
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