COMMENT:

Regards the Sussexes documentary played out in the UK yesterday, there'll be those who empathise with an American actress lobbed into royal life and then pilloried by the British tabloid press - and seemingly now struggling to cope.

And then others of us who think, how could Meghan not see that coming?

I have sympathy for her in that the tabloid press are brutal, no question, but life as a royal is a completely different world and I felt from the get-go like she took it on as some kind of acting role. That she could play the part of princess, all the while keeping up her celebrity lifestyle of private jets, lavish holidays and designer outfits.

How she thought she could jump into royal life so quickly, and not just royal life, but British life is beyond me.

She now admits her friends warned her about the tabloids, and given everything Harry's been through, how did they not cover the basics then, like locking down rogue family members who kicked this all off in the first place?

Why was her Dad and half-sister not briefed and shooshed before they could go feral and ignite the flames of a tabloid takedown? Why did Harry not offer her some kind of initiation into British life: the cultural differences, less extravagance on display, less prima donna behaviour, less celebrity, more strong and stoic.

What are the royals famous for? 'Never complain, never explain'.

When you have a new mother with an army of nannies, chefs and staff at her disposal, living in the grounds of Windsor Castle, complaining to others that being a new mum is tough (it is a bit) well, I mean come on.
Try telling that to a solo mum on a benefit with no staff and no castle - that's tough.

Yes the press have given them a bad rap - but how much of it did they walk right into themselves? And why should you expect 100 per cent positive press? Who gets that?!
And as for the line from Meghan that there's no tabloid press in America... hello? TMZ, US Weekly, the National Enquirer supermarket tabloid - the list goes on.

Harry's been changed by this relationship: as he was busy falling in love with her, the British public were busy falling out of love with him. He got more serious, more intense, more judgy - lecturing people on climate change while taking private jets - falling out with his brother, suing the press, while at the same time talking to TV about how hard royal life is?

There's just a wee bit too much hypocrisy in there for me to think this was a smart move.
Whoever's advising them, it's way off.

This very American, very celebrity response to the conundrum of 'being royal' seems more out of step with the Brits than ever.

I know they're trying to show they're human, but what they've also done here is tried to portray themselves as victims.

It's very 2019, but it's not very Royal.