Ever since Meghan Markle married Prince Harry, she has been accused of narcissism by many critics around the world. Her new podcast is bringing more of the same criticisms.
Markle launched a podcast called “Archetypes” on Monday. The first episode consisted of an interview with tennis star Serena Williams.
The title of the episode promised a discussion about “The Misconception of Ambition,” but many listeners said it was mostly just Markle talking about herself.
“If the rest of the season is anything like the premiere, what we’re really going to be listening into week after week is Meghan interviewing herself,” Celia Walden of The Telegraph wrote in her review of the episode.
Walden said Markle found a way to take over most of the podcast, including a story about how she and Williams met.
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“Even the anecdote about how Meghan first met her supposed interviewee — at a 2010 Super Bowl party — is somehow turned into self-aggrandisement,” she wrote.
“Spotting Serena heading towards someone, Meghan wondered who on earth could have sparked this special woman’s interest, and — oh, my goodness! — it was her.”
Markle claimed to be discussing the difficulties of public life with Williams, but instead of letting Williams talk about her experiences, Markle compared every struggle to one she had personally faced.
“Every woman has had a girlfriend like Meghan: the one who turns every confidence back to them and hijacks every distressing anecdote with one of their own — only theirs is longer drawn-out, more distressing,” Walden wrote.
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The podcast reportedly had plenty of wokeness to go around, too. Markle began with a story about how she convinced Proctor & Gamble to change the word “women” to “people” in an advertisement when she was 11 years old, Walden wrote.
James Marriott of The Times had even worse things to say about the episode, giving it a rating of one out of five stars.
“The podcast is a tastefully soundtracked parade of banalities, absurdities and self-aggrandising Californian platitudes,” Marriott wrote.
“The effect of all the tinkly music and vapid conversation is to make you feel you’ve been locked in the relaxation room of a wellness spa with an unusually self-involved yoga instructor.”
Claudia Aoraha of the Daily Mail shared a cringe-worthy quote from the episode on Twitter.
“I don’t ever remember personally feeling the negative connotation behind the word ‘ambitious’ until I started dating my now-husband,” Markle reportedly said. “Apparently, ambition is a terrible, terrible thing — for women, that is, according to some.”
Meghan Markle on her podcast #Archetypes: ‘I don’t ever remember personally feeling the negative connotation behind the word ambitious, until I started dating my now-husband. And apparently, ambition is a terrible terrible thing, for women that is, according to some.’ Ouch…
— Claudia Aoraha (@claudiaaoraha) August 23, 2022
But British television personality Piers Morgan quickly dismantled this suggestion and gave Markle an unpleasant new nickname.
“It’s not your ambition we dislike, Princess Pinocchio – it’s the vile way you trash the Royal Family whilst simultaneously exploiting your royal status for millions of dollars as with this podcast,” Morgan tweeted.
🤣🤣 It’s not your ambition we dislike, Princess Pinocchio – it’s the vile way you trash the Royal Family whilst simultaneously exploiting your royal status for millions of dollars as with this podcast. https://t.co/53vVjo49zI
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) August 23, 2022
In addition to criticisms about the podcast lacking entertainment value, some critics even questioned some of the facts Markle presented. In particular, a story she told about a fire in her son Archie’s room was called into question.
According to the Daily Mail, Markle said on the podcast that a fire once broke out in the room where Archie was supposed to be sleeping. Even though Archie was not in the room at the time, Markle told Williams she was “in tears” after the incident, but she was forced to continue with her royal engagements.
The Mail reported that others recalled the incident, but they did not remember seeing an actual fire. Instead, witnesses saw smoke coming from a heater, which was subsequently unplugged.
In addition, royal expert Angela Levin said Markle should not have been surprised that she had to continue with public engagements, especially since Archie was never actually in danger.
“Meghan was outraged that she had to go on another royal engagement in South Africa after she heard there was a fire in baby Archie’s room,” Levin wrote, according to the Mail. “Nasty to hear but as an actress doesn’t she know the show must go on[?] Luckily he wasn’t there but odd it was never leaked to the press.”
By most accounts, the first episode of Markle’s podcast was a disaster. The narcissism she has become known for is likely to weigh down any future episodes.
