Apparently, Prince Albert of Monaco fired his longtime accountant last year and the guy, Claude Palmero, is going on some kind of revenge tour through the French press. Palermo kept detailed accounts in every way, accounts of Prince Albert’s spending habits and those of his wife Princess Charlene. Albert had/has an intricate payment system to all of his children conceived before he married Charlene, and Albert and Charlene also employed undocumented immigrants as nannies. Some highlights from the Mail’s reporting:

Charlene’s allowance: According to Palmero’s notes, Princess Charlene, who at 45 is 20 years the Prince’s junior and spent four months in a hospital in 2021/2 for ‘deep fatigue’, was routinely given an allowance of around £1.2 million a year – but still managed to overspend. In 2017, she reportedly needed more than £500,000 to pay off a substantial overdraft. Two years later, the speed at which Princess Charlene apparently burned through money so worried the Prince’s accountant that he wrote in his notes: ‘It’s crazy! I have no control over the Princess’ spending.’

Charlene’s real estate: Charlene poured nearly £2 million into renovating a holiday house in Corsica and redecorating her office, Palmero said. He also claimed she rented another house on the French island where she spent time apart from Albert. Palmero’s notes also show that on one day in April 2016, she asked for £60,000. On another occasion, in 2020, Palermo recorded a one-off payment to Charlene from Albert of £171,000, plus £4,200 in cash.

Charlene’s family gets money too: Meanwhile, Charlene’s family, in particular her brother Sean with whom she runs a charity, were also benefiting from the spectacular largesse of husband Albert, with Sean receiving £786,000 to buy a house in 2022. He now runs a coffee shop in Monaco.

Albert’s finances are struggling because of all of his kids? The entries in Palermo’s notebooks seem to suggest that Prince Albert’s chaotic personal life has drained his riches. He has two acknowledged love children: Alexandre, by former air hostess Nicole Coste, born in 2003; and Jazmin, by U.S. estate agent Tamara Rotolo, born in 1993. According to Le Monde, Jazmin Grace Grimaldi, 31, Albert’s love child with Rotolo, receives £73,000 every three months – despite not being part of the royal family. Palmero noted she was given £4,200 for her 18th and a flat in New York worth £2.6 million seven years later.

Nicole & Alexandre Coste: Palmero also noted that the palace was paying for kidnap and ransom insurance for Alexandre, 20, Albert’s son with Coste. The Prince acknowledged paternity of Alexandre in 2005. In 2015, Alexandre’s mother persuaded Albert to back her fashion business, which was fronted by a shop in London’s Knightsbridge, Le Monde said this week. Palmero noted in 2015 that it was ‘on course [to cost] one million [euros] a year’.

Albert’s private accounts: Libération, another of the French newspapers to whom Palmero spoke, said the Prince had an account at French bank BNP under the name AG for ‘Albert Grimaldi’. The newspaper said the account was used to pay Albert’s former mistresses and their children without his wife knowing. Prince Albert married Charlene in 2011. But Palermo notes that Coste ‘fears’ what Princess Charlene might do to her cosy financial arrangements upon the death of Prince Albert, which is why she had an apartment in London put in the name of their son Alexandre.

Charlene’s nannies: However, some of the most potentially damaging comments in Palmero’s notebooks refer to Charlene’s staff. He notes she employed nannies and other domestic staff who were illegal immigrants, or living in Monaco illegally. ‘Her Serene Highness the Princess makes people work for her who are not compliant,’ Mr Palmero warned Albert. He also referred to ‘a moonlighting Filipino woman who ties up dogs in the shower’. In a letter written in January 2017, he said another employee from the Philippines had been ‘illegal for five years’, despite being on a one-month tourist visa. ‘He gets paid 100 euros a day [£85] which is off the scale,’ Mr Palmero wrote.

[From The Daily Mail]

The stuff about Charlene’s allowance and her overspending… like, we still don’t know where she lives even now. She spends some time in Monaco, but she reportedly lives in Switzerland now? Or maybe somewhere else. I genuinely hope she squirreled away some money. The undocumented nannies situation is awful, especially given that Albert and Charlene were blowing through millions on ridiculous stuff, yet they couldn’t pay a regular, fair salary to a nanny with a valid work visa? The stuff about Albert’s other bank accounts and the money he gives to his other kids and mistresses… I mean, I expected that? No one is even sure how much Albert is even worth.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Tuesday night, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex made a surprise appearance at the Bob Marley: One Love premiere in Jamaica. For hours, Sussex fans blissed out on the excellent vibes on social media, because the vile British media was fast asleep. As soon as the royal reporters woke up and saw the photos, the sh-tstorm commenced. Yesterday, I wrote about the Mail’s coverage, which was laugh-out-loud funny as they grew more and more outraged by how “insensitive” it was to pose for photos with the prime minister who fired William and Kate live on television. Well, it gets even better. The Mail’s Sarah Vine wrote a side-splittingly funny column about how Meghan and Harry should be stripped of their titles because they went to a premiere in Jamaica. For real. Vine is also incredibly bitter that the Sussexes did not issue a public statement about Charles and Kate’s health issues… and yet “royal sources” insisted days ago that H&M did get in touch privately, so who cares about a public statement? In any case, enjoy these completely unhinged highlights:

Vine is mad that Meghan isn’t ageing like milk: When I saw the pictures of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at the premiere of the Bob Marley movie in Kingston, Jamaica, the first thing that sprang to mind was how thoroughly refreshed they both looked. Indeed, I had to do a double-take to make sure it really was the duchess that Prince Harry was escorting and not some dewy, doe-eyed lookalike. Perhaps it was just a trick of the light, but she certainly seems to have upped her skincare routine since we last saw her.

Vine is mad that Harry has the money to sue the Mail: The prince, meanwhile, looked remarkably unfurrowed for a man who looks likely to have to pay three quarters of a million pounds in legal costs accrued by his failed libel action against the Mail on Sunday. I don’t know what they put in the water out there in Montecito, but it’s definitely working.

No word in public about the king’s health!! All that gloss doesn’t hide the ugly fact that the pair – normally so vocal when it comes to informing the world of their heartfelt sentiments – have yet to say a single word in public on the subject of Harry’s father, the King, and his health issues. Given how much the Prince likes to use his platform for good, you might have thought he would have seized this opportunity to remind other men of the importance of getting their prostate checked. As for the duchess, normally such a strong advocate for women’s health, it does seem rather unsisterly not to wish the Princess of Wales a speedy recovery from her abdominal surgery.

Vine is mad about racism (no, not that way): But there is something else driving Jamaica’s disdain for the Crown: the perceived notion that the British Royal Family is inherently racist and the Duchess of Sussex was a victim of prejudice during her time at the Palace. This idea was, of course, vehemently denied while the Queen was still alive but recently resurrected by the Sussexes’ mouthpiece, Omid Scobie, in his most recent hagiography Endgame, in which he ‘accidentally’ named the alleged ‘royal racists’ as King Charles and the Princess of Wales.

The racism allegations! These allegations will no doubt have caused a great deal of distress to both the King and the Princess. Effectively being cancelled by your own son must take its toll on a man, and I can only imagine how stressful it must be for the Princess of Wales to not only have to pick up the slack left behind by the Duchess of Sussex’s departure but to have to do so with a smile on her face while being kicked repeatedly in the teeth by the latter’s cheerleaders.

The Sussexes are sending a message to the palace! By choosing to break cover in such vehemently anti-monarchist company, the Duke and Duchess appear to be sending a very clear signal to the Palace. It appears to me that they intend to use their royal connection to undermine both the individual reputations of members of the Royal Family and that of the institution as a whole. I hope that I am wrong. By casting themselves as refugees from a regressive and repressive regime, they are tapping into the divisive culture wars that dominate so much of our public debate these days and helping to fuel anti-royalist sentiment throughout the Commonwealth and elsewhere.

Strip them of their titles: The late Queen, who loved the Commonwealth and used her position to foster forgiveness and understanding, would be heartbroken. As for King Charles, I can see only one course of action: he should give them what they claim to want and set them free of their royal shackles by stripping them, finally, of all titles.

[From The Daily Mail]

LMAO. As I said, royal sources (the palace comms team) rushed out to tell the British press that Harry and Meghan had gotten in touch and sent, I don’t know, get-well-soon cards to Charles and Kate. That’s all they can really do, right? While the press absolutely wants Harry to rush back to the UK, that’s not actually what Charles or William want at all. Even though the left-behind Windsors are being crushed by the bright, hot spotlight they craved for decades, they still can’t admit that they were wrong to throw the Sussexes away. So what else can Harry and Meghan do but live their lives and thrive? Ah, therein lies the problem – it’s not that the Sussexes didn’t issue statements about anyone’s health, it’s that the Sussexes are thriving. The fact that they were so warmly received in a country which will soon toss out the British monarchy is just icing on the cake. Strip them of their titles, I say! And explain that it’s being done because Harry and Meghan went to a premiere!

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mark Zuckerberg (@zuck)

When we last checked in with Mark Zuckerberg, he was busy lowering his property tax rate by raising high-quality cattle and feeding them a steady diet of macadamia nuts and beer on his controversial, 1,600+ acre Hawaiian estate called Ko’olau Ranch. It was really taking “wealthy, sustainable, and wacky” to a whole new level. Speaking of, if you ever wondered what it would be like if Zuck had a bunker in the world of Leave the World Behind, you won’t have to wonder for much longer. The world’s sixth richest person is reportedly adding a 5,000 square-foot bunker underneath Ko’olau Ranch for a cool $100 mil.

Meta Platforms Inc. CEO Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly constructing an extensive compound in Kauai, Hawaii, featuring a unique blend of luxury and survivalist elements. The compound, known as Koolau Ranch, is set to include a 5,000-square-foot underground bunker, complete with its own energy and food supplies. The bunker’s design incorporates a metal door filled with concrete, a feature commonly found in bunkers and bomb shelters.

The project, which reflects a growing trend among Silicon Valley elites for preparedness and luxury, is estimated to cost around $100 million to build on top of the $170 million spent acquiring the land. This brings the total investment to approximately $270 million, according to Wired.

The project has been shrouded in secrecy since the beginning. Workers on the ranch are required to sign strict nondisclosure agreements, and reports indicate people have been fired for posting on social media that they are working on the project. Workers on the compound undergo constant surveillance from hundreds of cameras, and military-style security measures have been implemented across the ranch.

The methods to acquire the land also give rise to issues and speculation. Zuckerberg initially hid the purchases of land using shell companies and brokers to disguise them. Those shell companies are now involved in several lawsuits claiming they pressured locals with ancestral land rights to sell the land or get into a bidding war at auction with one of the richest men in the world.

The sprawling 1,400-acre compound is planned to house more than just the bunker. It will include over 30 bedrooms and bathrooms, two mansions connected by a tunnel to the bunker and nearly a dozen tree houses linked by rope bridges. The tree houses are designed to provide guests with an immersive treetop experience. The compound also will feature a fitness center, guest houses and other operational buildings.

The county where the compound is being built offers tax incentives for building hurricane-resistant safe rooms, which might partially explain the construction of such a robust structure. Despite the grand scale of the development, representatives for Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, emphasize their commitment to preserving the natural beauty of the ranch. They point out that the development occupies less than 1% of the land, with the rest dedicated to farming, ranching, conservation and wildlife preservation. Alongside the sprawling farm and ranch, the compound is being designed to be self-sustaining. From underground bunkers to its own energy and water supplies, the compound has nearly everything you would need to survive for months at a time.

[From Yahoo]

Whenever I hear these stories, I’m always torn between rolling my eyes and lowkey wondering if the people on that billionaires WhatsApp chat know something that we don’t know. But reading the description of that compound with its 30 bedrooms, two mansions connected to the bunker by tunnel, and treehouses is truly f—king wild. How gross to store that much food for a “what if” scenario when there are children out there who are starving. Also, what a bummer that the treehouses probably won’t survive the apocalypse.

The real kicker here is that Zuckerberg and his family don’t even need this estate on this land, which has forced Hawaiian natives off of it. Like, it’s all just too much. Tax the rich more. If they have enough money to build bonkers (typo and it stays) that are like four to five times the size of most people’s homes, then they can spare a couple hundred million in taxes to help benefit the rest of us. Ugh, the more I hear about what Zuck’s been up to lately, the more I start thinking that maybe it wouldn’t have been such a bad idea to let Elon and Zuck duke it out.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mark Zuckerberg (@zuck)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mark Zuckerberg (@zuck)

Embed from Getty Images

Here are some photos from last night’s London premiere of Argylle. I couldn’t even make it through the trailer, but from what I gather, it’s Matthew Vaughn’s latest attempt at a glossy-yet-quirky action film full of British actors. He’s still trying to recreate the magic of Layer Cake (his first film) but nothing will ever touch it, honestly. Argylle is so full of celebrities, I couldn’t even fit all of the premiere photos in this post.

One big headline is that Henry Cavill brought his girlfriend to the premiere, a fact which I’m sure will upset the Cavill-cade or whatever his fans call themselves. Cavill has been with Natalie Viscuso for something like three years, and this isn’t the first time they’ve walked a carpet together. It feels like his fans aren’t in a full-blown panic about Natalie anymore, which is nice. Hopefully everyone has chilled out. They look nice together and three years together isn’t bad at all. Her ensemble is…not my jam. It feels very bridal in a weird way and that coat is just awful. Cavill always looks like a casino pit boss whenever he wears a suit.

Other photos…Dua Lipa looked fantastic, and I’m loving this hair color on her. Claudia Schiffer (Matthew Vaughn’s wife) looked beautiful and she got to carry the “cat backpack,” which is something significant in the film. Bryce Dallas Howard looked SO GOOD in that striking green gown. That’s one of the best things she’s ever worn!! Bonus pics of Sam Rockwell and Mark Strong (Strong looked delicious).

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

My Girl does not like the snow, so the past couple weeks have been hard on us. (Note: she’s a dog.) Last weekend I managed to scoot her out during a momentary reprieve, and while she was all about business and returning to indoor heating thankyouverymuch, we crossed paths with a pretty cute French Bulldog who was happily chowing down on the icy treat. His Person sheepishly said to us, “We’re just eating snow.” Hey, if it works for Reese Witherspoon!

So that little interlude is my segue into the breaking news in American Dogdom: after poring over records of newly registered dogs, the American Kennel Club is reporting that the French Bulldog is now most popular, taking the top spot from Labrador Retrievers who have led the pack for over three decades. What?! A French dog as America’s favorite?! Sacré bleu! Since My Girl is a marvelous Chihuahua-Dachshund mix, I have no horse in this race, so to speak. Here’s what AKC has to say:

Some statistics: According to the American Kennel Club, for the past 31, the Labrador Retriever was America’s favorite dog but it was eclipsed in 2022 by the Frenchie. The rankings are based on nearly 716,500 dogs newly registered in 2022, of which about 1 in 7 were Frenchies. Around 108,000 French Bulldogs were recorded in the U.S. in 2022, surpassing Labrador Retrievers by over 21,000. The French Bulldog’s popularity has grown exponentially over the past decade. They were the #14 most popular breed in 2012, and since then, registrations have gone up 1,000%, bringing them to the top of the breed popularity rankings.

In the spotlight: The French Bulldog was famous among America’s upper class around the turn of the 20th century but then fell out of favor. Their resurgence is partly based on several celebrities who have gone public with their Frenchie love. Leonardo DiCaprio, Megan Thee Stallion, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Reese Witherspoon and Lady Gaga all own French Bulldogs. The breed earned a lot of attention as show dogs last year when a Frenchie named Winston took second place at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show and first in the National Dog Show. The breed made national news in early 2021 when Gaga’s dog walker was shot in the chest while walking two of her Frenchies in a dog heist. He recovered from his injuries, and the dogs were later returned.

Looks, personality, size: “They’re comical, friendly, loving little dogs,” French Bulldog Club of America spokesperson Patty Sosa told the AP. She said they are city-friendly with modest grooming needs and “they offer a lot in a small package.” They are also popular with people who live in apartments. According to the AKC, Frenchies don’t bark much and do not require a lot of outdoor exercise. The French Bulldog stands out among other breeds because it looks like a miniature bulldog but has large, expressive bat-like ears that are its trademark feature. However, their popularity isn’t without controversy. “French bulldogs can be a polarizing topic,” veterinarian Dr. Carrie Stefaniak told the AP.

Health concerns: French Bulldogs have been bred to have abnormally large heads, which means that large litters usually need to be delivered by C-section, an expensive procedure that can be dangerous for the mother. They are also prone to multiple health problems, including skin, ear, and eye infections. Their flat face means they often suffer from respiratory problems and heat intolerance. Frenchies are also more prone to spine deformations and nerve pain as they age.

[From Upworthy]

Full disclosure: apparently this bulletin was originally released in March 2023, but I didn’t see the tiny fine print at the bottom of the article until after a few read throughs. But for whatever reason the news has been recirculating and that’s just dandy with me because I always want to talk about dogs!! More specifically, I want to rile up passionate debate over whether it’s appropriate that the French Bulldog has dethroned the Labrador Retriever as America’s favorite breed. Thoughts? Questions? Consternations? I’ll start us off… As a city dweller myself, I understand the appeal of their size and temperaments. Plus anyone who has a trademark of “expressive bat-like ears” is someone worth knowing. I wouldn’t call My Girl’s ears bat-like, but they are equally captivating and communicative. (Note from My Girl: “I’m listening for food, Lady. That’s all it is.”) So between those factors combined with a little celebrity glow, I understand Frenchies gamboling to favorite breed. After reading all the health problems they’ve developed thanks to human intervention, though, I can’t help but wonder if they’d declare the same of us.

photos via Pexels as credited in file names

Lily Gladstone celebrated her historic Oscar nomination. [Just Jared]
While I’m glad that Bradley Cooper didn’t get a Best Director Oscar nomination, I hate that he got a Best Actor nom! And yes, he’s sort of a scammer. [Pajiba]
Oh, SNL spoofed Club Shay Shay and Shannon Sharpe. [LaineyGossip]
Naomi Campbell and Kendrick Lamar at the Chanel show [Go Fug Yourself]
Trixie Mattell reviews The Brothers Sun. [OMG Blog]
Rep. Nancy Mace wants a Fox News gig, I guess. [Jezebel]
More photos from the PFW Dior show. [RCFA]
I love Tiffani Amber Thiessen! [Seriously OMG]
Did any of the RHOBH cast members go to college? [Starcasm]
Noah Cyrus went to Paris Fashion Week as well. [Hollywood Life]
The five biggest snubs of the Oscar nominations. [Buzzfeed]

For a full week – ever since we learned about King Charles and the Princess of Wales’s dual health crises – the British media has been screaming, crying and throwing up about how Prince Harry needs to get on a plane and come “back” to the UK to help his father and brother. Well, Harry got on a plane. He flew to Jamaica with his beautiful wife and they made a surprise appearance at the premiere of Bob Marley: One Love. Meghan looked gorgeous in a black ballgown-skirt and a spaghetti-strapped top. Harry looked buffed, hydrated, well endowed and wealthy.

There are just too many funny parts to this surprise appearance. First off, they were greeted warmly by Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness and his wife Juliet Holness. PM Holness was the same person who brought Prince William and Kate into his office and fired them live on camera in 2022, and Holness is currently taking the bureaucratic steps to remove Jamaica from its ties to Britain. Holness really said: Harry and Meghan are the only royals worth a damn. Apparently, the Sussexes were also greeted warmly by the Marley family (Harry was seen shaking hands and being friendly with Ziggy Marley), and back in 2022, the Marley fam refused to meet with Peg and Buttons.

Also: this is a huge kick in the ass to all of the Salt Island idiots trying to convince themselves that the Sussexes are “D-listers” who are loathed in Hollywood – Paramount’s CEO Brian Robbins went out of his way to pose with the Sussexes on the red carpet, and I’d be willing to bet that the Sussexes were either special, invited guests of either Paramount or the Marley family or both. So, the optics are just… perfect. Harry and Meghan made it to Jamaica before the new king and queen. The Windsor clan looks old and out of touch, while the Sussexes look fresh, young and modern. I’m enjoying this so much!

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

It’s interesting to watch Kensington Palace try to deal with a PR issue they created. In this case, the issue is their lack of transparency around the Princess of Wales’s hospitalization, surgery and recovery time. While I can understand why KP doesn’t want to provide every single detail of whatever Kate is going through, and Kate has the right to medical privacy, William and Kate do have a long history of being way too squirrelly about too many topics. Back in the pre-Meghan days, that was a consistent complaint about William and Kate – they were always talking about their “privacy” and they didn’t believe they had to show the British public any part of their lives. Let’s not forget that William hid his serious case of Covid for months after the fact too.

I’ll be fair – even if KP came out and made further disclosures about Kate’s hospitalization, I think there would still be a massive amount of speculation and conspiracies. But KP’s answer to the current speculation is to… get People Magazine to publish some truly odd stories. Yesterday, People Mag published quotes from an unnamed patient who went through a similar “abdominal surgery” and wouldn’t you know, the patient explained that their family couldn’t visit, etc. Now People has Kate on this week’s cover:

Kate Middleton shocked the world — and most of those around her — when the palace announced on Jan. 17 that she had been hospitalized. The Princess of Wales, 42, was admitted to the London Clinic a day prior for “planned abdominal surgery.” Yet just three weeks earlier there was no hint of any impending issue as Kate stepped out on Christmas morning alongside Prince William and their children Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5. Kate beamed as she greeted well-wishers, exchanging laughs and cheerful banter with the public following a church service.

Within their broader circle of family friends, there had been no indication that anything was wrong, and the carefully guarded news about Kate’s situation came as a surprise even to those who work closely with the royal family, PEOPLE understands.

Spending the holiday season at their country home, Anmer Hall, the couple and their children enjoyed family time with their royal relatives while catching up with friends for outings in the Norfolk countryside, PEOPLE reports in this week’s issue.

Around the New Year they spent time with Kate’s family, and as they resumed daily life at Windsor’s Adelaide Cottage, they celebrated Kate’s 42nd birthday on Jan. 9 privately. The following day George, Charlotte and Louis returned to their school, Lambrook.

However, as William resumed public duties on Jan. 11, it became evident that some expected public engagements for Princess Kate were unconfirmed—and behind the scenes, there were schedule changes and growing concern. According to the palace, Kate could remain hospitalized for “10 to 14 days” before returning home to continue her recovery, and it would be unlikely for her to “return to public duties until after Easter.”

“It is sensible to take the time,” says a source close to the royal household. “That is a great example to the rest of us, as you’re often told to get back to work as soon as possible, which can be damaging.”

Adds a former patient at the London Clinic: “The physical therapists are amazing, helping you recover and get back on your feet. After abdominal surgery, you need a lot of patience, and it’s a bit scary at first.”

Once back home at Adelaide Cottage in Windsor, Kate will receive ample support from her close-knit family, including parents Carole and Michael and siblings Pippa and James, who are a short car ride away. “Her parents are an enduring factor in the upbringing of their grandchildren,” a palace insider tells PEOPLE. “And they will be a reassuring presence when she goes back to Windsor to recuperate.”

Adds the source close to the royal household, “She is in great hands and will have lots of care and support at home.”

[From People]

“Kate’s situation came as a surprise even to those who work closely with the royal family.” Hm. I’ve wondered this whole time if Buckingham Palace even knows what’s happening with Kate, and I think it’s notable that BP hasn’t stepped in to clean up Kensington Palace’s PR mess. You can tell that the royal reporters are getting some kind of holding pattern from the comms teams too – the rota is either being stonewalled or they know exactly what’s happening and they’re simply waiting for someone else to break the story before they can actually talk about it.

Also: People Mag sort of clarified the timeline – Kate and William were in Anmer Hall in Norfolk until NYE, then they returned to Adelaide Cottage, Kate had a quiet birthday and then… something happened? This continues to be very odd, and I’m genuinely worried about Kate’s health. I hope she makes it through OK and, as these sources indicate, it’s just a matter of recovery time and taking it easy.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, cover courtesy of People.

The photos and videos of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex arriving at the Bob Marley: One Love premiere started coming out on social media around 8 pm EST, meaning very late at night over there in the UK. The Sussexes were surprise guests and since the British media truly has no f–king clue what Harry and Meghan are up to, they were shocked when they woke up to the photos. We knew it would be good, we knew it would be DELICIOUS when the British media got a chance to see the Sussexes being greeted warmly by Jamaican officials like Prime Minister Holness (who fired Will & Kate) and Jamaica’s minister for legal and constitutional affairs, the same person who will make Jamaica a republic. I don’t know how the Daily Mail’s editors do it, but they managed to throw a full tantrum in their headline (read this to yourself in a panicked voice): “Meghan and Harry pose next to anti-royal Jamaican Prime Minister who wants to ditch the monarchy and warned Wills and Kate they’ll never be King and Queen of his nation – as Charles undergoes prostate surgery and the Princess of Wales recovers in hospital.” Please!!!

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were branded ‘insensitive’ today after posing with Jamaica’s Prime Minister who wants to ditch the monarchy – just as King Charles III prepares for prostate surgery and Kate recovers in hospital from abdominal surgery.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex flew from their £11million home in California to Kingston for the glitzy premiere of the new Bob Marley film One Love last night. Their visit has raised eyebrows given Jamaica continues to move ahead on plans to cut ties with the British monarchy with a referendum set to be held later this year. And nearly 5,000 miles away in London, Harry’s sister-in-law Kate Middleton was in hospital after abdominal surgery while his father the King was preparing for a prostate procedure following a double health scare announced last Wednesday.

Meanwhile Sussex cheerleader Omid Scobie pointed out that Harry and Meghan’s smiles with Jamaica’s Prime Minister were ‘a different vibe to the last time we saw PM Andrew Holness with members of the Royal Family’ – referring to when he told Prince William and Kate in March 2022 that he intended to get rid of the monarchy.

The Sussexes also posed with Marlene Malahoo Forte, Jamaica’s minister for legal and constitutional affairs, who said last year that Jamaica could soon ‘sever ties’ with the monarchy, because it was time for the nation’s future to be ‘in Jamaican hands’. Ms Forte tweeted a photo of them, prompting an X user to say: ‘Even more hilarious: the person with them here is the minister in charge of changing the constitution and making us a republic.’ Ms Forte then responded, saying: ‘This is #OneLove!’

With other observers still waiting for a statement from the Sussexes about Charles and Kate being in hospital, royal commentator Phil Dampier told MailOnline: ‘It seems Harry and Meghan will turn up at the opening of an envelope these days. Under normal circumstances there would be nothing wrong with them going to a film premiere. But at a time when his father is going under the knife and Jamaica is making noises about ditching the monarchy, this is rather insensitive.’

‘The royals have of course always said it’s up to individual countries to decide whether to become republics. But I always thought it was very sad that Barbados got rid of the Queen near the end of her life without a referendum. Jamaica will have a referendum but it’s almost certain they will go their own way eventually.’

Mr Dampier added that Harry has ‘happy memories’ of Jamaica, including when he famously ‘won’ a run against Usain Bolt during a visit in 2012. However, he continued: ‘Clearly the couple felt at home. But it’s sending out a message that they support that country when they haven’t found the time to make a public show of support for the King and the Princess of Wales. They may have done so in private, but they are certainly not going out of their way to say they want a reconciliation and this appearance emphasises yet again the different world they now live in.’

[From The Daily Mail]

I wonder what it feels like for the British royal reporters to lose this badly, and have to narrate their own pathetic irrelevance. “The Sussexes are so insensitive, how dare they live independently and fly to Jamaica without telling us!” Or better yet: “How dare Jamaicans hate the British monarchy yet they greet Harry and Meghan warmly!” This was so well-done by Harry and Meghan – a complete screw-you to the media and monarchy.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

In honor of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s surprise appearance in Jamaica last night, let’s take a moment and remember what happened the last time members of the Windsor clan visited Jamaica. Picture it, Jamaica March 2022. The then-Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are on a multi-country Caribbean tour as part of Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee year. Kensington Palace largely organized the agenda of the tour, which included a lot of day-drinking, scuba diving and colonialist cosplay. William and Kate were facing criticism and protests wherever they went, but it went next-level upon their arrival in Jamaica.

Within their first two days in Jamaica, the hits just kept coming. Bob Marley’s family wouldn’t meet with them so they posed awkwardly with a Bob Marley statue. They greeted Black children through a chainlink fence. Kate winced when a Black woman touched her. Jamaica’s prime minister marched William and Kate into his office and fired them live on camera, telling them that William would never be King of Jamaica. William and Kate’s last event in the country was a deliriously bad photocall which was meant to evoke the “good old days” of 1950s colonialism.

The Jamaican leg of Will and Kate’s Caribbean Flop Tour was a game-changer. Nothing was ever the same after that. William and Kate have never recovered from it, and it’s one of the reasons why Kate refuses to do anymore commonwealth tours and why she’s barely traveled out of Britain since then. The Windsors also spent months playing the blame game publicly, with Kensington Palace blatantly trying to throw QEII and Charles under the bus for their own sh-tty planning. Anyway, it’s just hilarious to me that Harry and Meghan just popped up in Jamaica and got a rock-star reception this week.

Note by CB: Get the Top 8 stories about the disastrous royal Caribbean tour when you sign up for our mailing list! I only send one email a day on weekdays.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Instar.