to gain or retain respect. Once enough of the public lose respect for a public figure, their earning potential begins to wane. This is something Meghan and Harry would do well to note, for none of us who wish them well wants them to go the way of Blair, whose story really is a cautionary tale.

Even so, Tony Blair did lead a country, and did do so for an extensive period of time. He won three general elections and might well have gone down in history as a great Prime Minister had he not deceived Parliament and the British people into the war with Iraq which no one in Britain but he wanted. Even then, he might well have become an eminent retired statesman had he not shown himself to be the acquisitive hypocrite he is now regarded as being. Nevertheless, Blair was, if only for a short while, respected. In that interval, he was able to capitalise upon his reputation, his former position, and his undoubted experience, to make a fortune.

Harry, on the other hand, has never led a country. He has never been elected to any position. He has no experience as a leader. He was only ever a minor ranking army officer who happened to be the second son of the heir to the British throne. Yes, he had star quality. Yes, he was a revered figure until his marriage. Yes, he had a great position, but he was never going to be number one, much less President of the most powerful nation on earth or Prime Minister of Great Britain. Moreover, he walked away from his position to seek his fortune in the great bazaar of commerce. In doing so, he lost the most prestigious part of his position, his transcendence above the fray. As Garter put it, you either are or you aren’t.

It remains to be seen, now that Harry and Meghan have stepped back from their royal roles, whether their frank commercial take on life will enhance or demean their earning capacity. Certainly, they were forthright in their announcements and their pitches, as was demonstrated by that famous clip of Harry nobbling Disney CEO Bob Iger at the Lion King premiere. Harry not only abandoned well-bred reticence, but he replaced it with a hustling technique that even Trevor Engelson would find enviable. ‘You do know she does voiceovers?’ Harry unexpectedly asked an astonished Iger, who spluttered, ‘Ah, I didn’t know that,’ before Hustling Harry zeroed in for the kill saying, ‘You seem surprised. She’s really interested.’ A clearly embarrassed Iger then rolled over, saying, ‘We’d love to try. That’s a great idea,’ while his wife, the journalist Willow Bay, looked on with a face like thunder. Harry and Meghan had clearly planned their ambush, because they then turned their attention to the director Jon Favreau, with Harry declaring, ‘Next time anyone needs extra voiceover work, we can make ourselves available,’ while Meghan stated, ‘That’s really why we’re here - it’s the pitch.’

It worked too. Disney signed a deal with Meghan to do voiceover work in return for a donation to the charity, Elephants Without Borders. Whether she received expenses, possibly running into the hundreds of thousands, has not been announced, but she did the work prior to departing for Canada in November 2019. When the programme aired in April 2020 the reviews were mixed, with an unfortunate proportion accusing her of being over-eager to please or being just on the right side of annoying, though a minority found charm in her performance.

Success or failure, when the Royal Family found out that Meghan and Harry had not only used an official engagement to pitch for work, but had successfully concluded negotiations behind their backs, they were furious, accusing the couple of entering into contracts ‘with firms like Disney’ without following procedure. Meghan was unrepentant. She told friends that her ‘work with Disney is far from over. The voiceover is just the beginning and there’s (sic) more collaborations to come. Meghan has no regrets and the sky’s the limit.’

This foray back into the entertainment industry was testing the water in more ways than one. They and their advisors needed to feel their way towards success, which meant maximising the Sussex brand and its earning potential while boosting the couple’s prestige. Make no mistake about it, this was one brand where there was a holy alliance between money and reputation. One was intended to feed the other, and there was a whole team in the background working away at making the Sussex brand successful in every way possible. Meghan and Harry’s American advisors fully intended them to be on a par with the Obamas in terms of earning capacity. But comparisons with the former Presidential couple seemed optimistic. Just as how Harry does not compare with Barack Obama in practical terms, in personal terms, how does a former cable television network ensemble actress and blogger, with political aspirations but no political experience and only a handful of personal appearances to her credit, compare with a successful lawyer, university administrator and two term First Lady like Michelle Obama? The Obamas were at the forefront of the world’s stage for eight years. They were admired for their accomplishments and their successes. There were many millions of Democrats who voted for him and still admire them. During their eight years in office they did not denigrate treasured national customs and institutions. They did not complain about how hard done-by they were, did not take on the press in an attempt to neutralise or control them, nor did they jump ship to earn themselves more money than they were already making in their appointed roles.

For all the optimism of their financial team, the Sussexes were not the equals of the Obamas in terms of status and accomplishment, nor did they have the wealth of experience or the scale and scope of vision of the presidential pair. What they did have was huge ambition and self-belief, and these, together with their royal

Добавить отзыв
ВСЕ ОТЗЫВЫ О КНИГЕ В ИЗБРАННОЕ

0

Вы можете отметить интересные вам фрагменты текста, которые будут доступны по уникальной ссылке в адресной строке браузера.

Отметить Добавить цитату