The Sussex Struggle: A Royal Author’s Perspective

According to British writer and former BBC journalist Tom Bower, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are experiencing what he describes as a “crisis” in their post-royal life. In his upcoming book about the Sussexes (a follow-up to his 2022 release “Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the War Between Windsors”), Bower suggests that the couple is facing significant challenges that stem from fundamental differences in their expectations.

COMMENT: It’s worth noting that Bower has been a consistent critic of the Sussexes, so this narrative aligns with his previous portrayals. While some might dismiss his views as biased, his first book contained allegations that went unchallenged by the couple’s legal team – something that speaks volumes given their willingness to pursue legal action in other cases.

Status Struggles and Identity Crisis

Bower claims that Meghan aspires to be a “billionaire celebrity” but hasn’t achieved “the status she craves” since leaving the royal family. According to him, this has created tension as Harry, who grew up with royal privilege, doesn’t fully comprehend Meghan’s ambitions and perspective.

“He doesn’t understand where she’s coming from,” Bower told The Mirror, explaining that Meghan “worked phenomenally hard, struggled hard, and was constantly humiliated, and wants the security of finance and status.”

COMMENT: The psychological dynamic here is fascinating. Harry seems caught between two worlds – the structured royal life he abandoned and this new celebrity-entrepreneur identity in California. Meanwhile, Meghan appears to be discovering that royal adjacency without royal duty doesn’t translate to the automatic status and influence she may have expected. Their Netflix docuseries and Harry’s memoir were seemingly attempts to solidify their narrative and public image, but both received mixed receptions at best.

Family Reconciliation Prospects

Perhaps most definitively, Bower dismisses any possibility of reconciliation between Harry and the royal family, particularly with Prince William and Princess Catherine. “There is zero chance of reconciliation because there is irreconcilable anger on the part of William and Kate,” he stated.

COMMENT: This assessment, while harsh, tracks with what we’ve seen publicly. The absence of Harry at key family gatherings, including during Princess Catherine’s cancer treatment, speaks to a fundamental breakdown in trust. Family rifts can heal with time, but when they’ve been monetized and publicized as this one has, the path to reconciliation becomes exponentially more difficult. The royals operate on discretion, while Harry and Meghan have chosen transparency (on their terms) – these approaches seem fundamentally incompatible.

Security Concerns

The article also touches on Harry’s ongoing legal battle regarding his security arrangements in the UK. Court documents revealed that Harry requested police protection after alleged threats from Al Qaeda, which reportedly called for him to be “murdered” following his disclosure in his memoir “Spare” about killing Taliban fighters during his military service in Afghanistan.

COMMENT: This situation illustrates the complex consequences of Harry’s decisions. By revealing specific details about his military service, he potentially created a genuine security concern. However, many have pointed out the contradiction in demanding UK taxpayer-funded security while no longer performing royal duties. It’s a difficult balance – his royal birth makes him a potential target regardless of his current status, yet the precedent of providing high-level security to non-working royals would be problematic.

Financial Realities

While not explicitly addressed in Bower’s quotes, the financial dimensions of the Sussexes’ situation cannot be ignored. Their lifestyle in Montecito comes with significant costs, and the couple needs substantial ongoing income to maintain it.

COMMENT: Their initial deals with Netflix and Spotify generated headlines about huge paydays, but the Spotify arrangement ended prematurely, and they’ll need to deliver content that resonates commercially to secure further deals. Meghan’s new lifestyle brand faces stiff competition in an already saturated market. One wonders if the financial pressures are mounting, particularly as they maintain the high-visibility lifestyle to which they’ve become accustomed, complete with security teams and staff.

What’s Next for the Sussexes?

While the couple continues to pursue various projects in the US, including Harry’s charitable work with Sentebale (though he recently stepped down from this role) and Meghan’s various business ventures, Bower’s assessment suggests they’re at a crossroads.

With their Netflix deal behind them and new ventures like Meghan’s American Riviera Orchard brand just launching, only time will tell if they can achieve the influence and status they seek, or if they’ll need to reassess their expectations and approach.

COMMENT: The fundamental question remains: what do Harry and Meghan ultimately want? Fame without scrutiny seems impossible. Respect without royal duties is difficult to maintain. Influence without institutional backing requires extraordinary personal accomplishment. Their narrative of breaking free from an oppressive institution initially garnered sympathy, but to sustain public interest and support, they’ll need to define themselves by what they’re building, not just what they’ve left behind.

Public Perception Evolution

The comments section of the Daily Mail article reveals a predominantly negative reaction to the couple, particularly in the UK. While online comments aren’t representative of broader public opinion, they do suggest a significant shift from the initial excitement around their relationship and wedding.

COMMENT: The honeymoon period with the public has clearly ended. The challenge for Harry and Meghan now is whether they can reinvent themselves in a way that resonates authentically. Celebrity is fickle, and without the structure and purpose of royal duties, they need to establish a clear mission that goes beyond personal brand-building. Their greatest opportunity may lie in focusing deeply on a few meaningful causes rather than spreading themselves across multiple ventures.

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Note: This blog post is based on claims made by Tom Bower in his upcoming book and statements reported in the Daily Mail. The views expressed are his opinions and may not reflect all perspectives on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s situation.

WHO IS TOM BOWER:

Tom Bower is a British investigative journalist and biographer known for his scathing, often unflinching portrayals of powerful figures—and Meghan Markle is one of his most controversial subjects.

Born in 1946, Bower began his career as a barrister before joining the BBC, where he spent 25 years producing hard-hitting documentaries, including for Panorama. His transition into unauthorized biographies made him notorious. He’s written about the likes of Robert Maxwell, Richard Branson, Boris Johnson, and Jeremy Corbyn. His method is aggressive and unapologetically adversarial: he rarely seeks consent or cooperation from his subjects, and often paints them as morally or intellectually compromised.

His 2022 book Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the War Between the Windsors was one of the most polarizing royal biographies in years. Bower portrayed Meghan as manipulative, ambitious, and corrosive to family relationships—claims she and Prince Harry have not legally challenged, which many of Bower’s defenders take as tacit validation.

In a July 2024 appearance on The Royal Exclusive Show, Bower escalated this characterization by calling Meghan “an agent of poison” who is “remorseless in her hatred” once she believes someone should be “neutralised and destroyed.” These remarks go beyond critique into the realm of character assassination, raising serious questions about media ethics and the intent behind his commentary.

He accused Meghan of deliberately fracturing not just her relationship with her own father, Thomas Markle, but also Prince Harry’s ties to the royal family. He stated:

“She is a person who is absolutely remorseless in her hatred if she decides that someone should be neutralised and destroyed. And that is her strength—but also her weakness.”

The rhetoric is inflammatory. It mirrors tabloid tactics that frame Meghan as a kind of femme fatale figure—calculated, destructive, and emotionally void. But it’s also part of Bower’s brand. He specializes in constructing binary narratives: heroes vs villains, order vs chaos, tradition vs subversion.

Critics argue that Bower’s work lacks balance, prioritizing narrative punch over factual nuance. But his defenders say he’s merely willing to say out loud what others whisper privately. His refusal to pull punches has made him a media darling among right-wing outlets—and a lightning rod for critics who say his portrayals fuel online abuse and racialized harassment of Meghan Markle.

At its core, Bower’s work is a study in projection: he tells stories of institutions threatened by outsiders, of power structures tested by non-conformists. In Meghan Markle, he found the perfect antagonist for the British monarchy—a biracial American woman, divorced, self-made, and outspoken.

Whether one sees him as a truth-teller or a professional provocateur, Tom Bower’s influence on the Sussex narrative is undeniable. He doesn’t just write biographies. He shapes the battlefield.