The newspapers seem full of reports regarding Meghan and Harry's interview on TV in the States. I think circumstances like this underscore the difference between the British and Americans. For the British, the royal family are part of the constitution and people expect them to behave with a certain degree of protocol. For the Americans, they are just part of a media circus that they obsess about whereas they are effectively irrelevant to the lives of the people of the United Kingdom. The media seems split along two lines with the American's aghast at the attitudes of the royals and partisan to Meghan. I was surprised to see the "race card" played and I think that the royals are aloof enough for these comments to have some efficacy. It does beg the question as to whether this country wants a racist family at the head of our constitution. All in all, the push to topple statues of people from the past who might be deemed or have been demonstrated to have been racist now seems quaint in light of the fact that the Winsors themselves are perhaps more culpable.
The other side of the coin demonstrates how different we are from the Americans. Oprah may be something of a celebrity interviewer in the US but she would not cut it in the UK. I wonder how incisive the interview would have been had it been carried out by John Humphreys! I have to say that I have little sympathy with either side. I think Meghan has done well out of the marriage as she was otherwise destined to be an obscure, American TV actress. Te clips I have seen are suggestive that she is only thinking about herself. It is difficult to express any sympathy with someone who is so rich and moves in exalted circles.
The debacle between the royals and Meghan / Harry is all rather akin to a football match between Liverpool and Man Utd. Unfortunately, the sides cannot both lose and you still end up not liking either side. It does make you realise how pointless the royals have become and that it is time for them to go. Conversely, it is difficult not to be surprised that the Americans do not get the concept of the royal family and it does seem a bit rich coming from a country that elected Donald Trump! I suppose that at least the Yanks can vote to get rid of an unpopular president and we are stuck with the Winsors. However, I think that the British constitution is a slow moving beast than can accommodate change and you hope that today's news will help people wake up and think about why the vestiges of an early medieval institution still holds such sway in the 21st century. I think the time is get rid of them all is long overdue.