Daily Mail, Tuesday, July 30, 2019 Page 13who inspired her
positivity, kindness, humour
and inclusivity.’
Meghan ends by saying that
the experience of working on
the issue while pregnant, and
then on maternity leave with
son Archie, has been a ‘joy’.
Responding, Mr Enninful
says he has had a ‘deep and
profound respect’ for the duch-
ess – whom he describes as a
‘brilliant, biracial, American
powerhouse’ – since she ‘first
began to navigate the waters
of the British establishment’.
Describing her as ‘an influ-
ential beacon of change’, he
adds: ‘And then there is the
gently modernising manner in
which she has approached hernew role at the centre of Brit-
ain’s public life. From negoti-
ating first-time motherhood
within an ancient institution
to changing how we frame the
conversation around women
who face rabid media inter-
est, her positive influence is
everywhere.
‘I simply never imagined
that, in my lifetime, someone
of my colour would – or could- enter the highest echelons
of our Royal Family.’
O The September issue of
British Vogue, guest-edited
by the Duchess of Sussex, is
available on news-stands and
digital download on Friday.
F
oRgIVE my imperti-
nence, but having read
your Editor’s Letter
in the forthcoming
September issue of
Vogue, I had to get in touch.
As you Americans are fond of
saying, ‘we need to talk’.
You started off so well. A breath of
fresh air, just the right mixture of cool
and confidence, the perfect consort
for the nation’s beloved Harry. Some
of us were genuinely excited at the
prospect of new blood in the Royal
Family. We loved your story, your
style, your sass. And, of course, we
loved your mum. Still do.
The wedding was lovely, a genuine
moment of national celebration. But
as with all marriages, the hard work
starts after you leave the chapel. And
for you it’s doubly hard.
Because, not only are you learning
to make a life together with Harry; as
a prominent member of the Royal
Family, you are also having to learn
how to live with the great British
public. And that, dear Meghan, is
arguably the hardest task of all.
There is no shortcut to the hearts of
the British people. As all the
royal consorts, from the Duchess
of Cambridge to the Duchess of
Cornwall know, there can be a lengthy
trial period before we’re prepared to
chuck the recipe in the bin.A
nD lately, dear Meghan, it’s
all been a bit fraught. I
don’t know who is advising
you, but I suggest you ask
them to stop. Because it’s clear they
have very little understanding of the
way the relationship between royalty
and public works in this country.
or, maybe they do, and you’re
ignoring them.
From the poor handling over the
refurbishments of Frogmore Cottage
to the wholly unnecessary and frankly
rather precious secrecy that sur-
rounded the birth of baby Archie, to
the Clinton Card Instagram pictures,
to the haughty refusal to name
Archie’s godparents, the past few
months have seen, not to put too fine
a point on it, a catalogue of PR
disasters in the Sussex Household.
And now this. A guest editorship of
Vogue featuring a list of inspirational
women, half of whom no one’s ever
heard of, many of whom are justcelebrities, and all of whom have been
seemingly chosen more for what their
inclusion says about you than
anything else.
Meanwhile, you fail to nominate the
one truly inspirational woman in your
life, the Queen, whose years of selfless
devotion to this country knock all of
the others into a cocked hat.
It’s hard to see what you might have
been trying to achieve with this
ill-fated stunt. Then, yesterday,
details of your ‘Editor’s Letter’ were
published amid great fanfare.
only, as ever, it was fanfare of the
wrong kind.
The thing is, Meghan, people don’t
have your ‘woke’ antennae. They may
not share the ‘pain’ of a newly minted
member of the Royal Family, who, as
you explain yourself in your letter,
wants so much more. Who lives only
to ‘shine light in a world filled with
seemingly daily darkness’.
As you say, to be a mermaid, one
who has ‘no fear of depths and a great
fear of shallow living’. They may fail
to rejoice in your determination. You
want to ‘pivot from a perspective of
frustration to one of optimism’.
And, to be frank, they may bridle at
you taking the chair at Vogue
magazine in order to show the world
exactly how serious you are about
showing the world how serious
you are.
And not just any issue of Vogue,
either. The September issue,
the most vital, important tome of the
year, the one with the most pages of
lucrative advertising and the most
clout in the fashion world.
Put simply, there is a difference
between being fashion royalty and
actual royalty — which, by the way,
can be just as hard work.
So, for the benefit of yourself and
any new advisers, the arrangement is
as follows: we furnish you with the
funds and prime real-estate to live a
life of luxury and undertake not tocut off the heads of you or any of
your relatives.
In return, you let us coo over baby
Archie and try not to get all shirty
when we ask who the godparents are.
So far, we, the people, have fulfilled
our side of the bargain. You, my dear,
not so much.
Even after a lavish wedding
and the even more lavish refurbish-
ment of Frogmore Cottage, the
general impression remains that
you see us all as a slightly
grubby inconvenience.
Where fashion, the lifeblood of
Vogue, is all about change for change’s
sake, newness for the hell of it (and
for profit), proper royalty is about
tradition and duty, self-effacing(^) service and loyalty — year after year
after year, season after season.
Ask Princess Anne. Ask the Queen.
Ask Kate. That is not to say that a
monarchy cannot or must not move
with the times — simply that it has to
resist the temptation to be buffeted
by passing cultural trends.
Fashion is the exact opposite. And
as fashion’s most famous bible, Vogue
exemplifies the transient nature of
the beast.
It is the ultimate fantasy, a shrine to
the impossible, to all that is beyond
the reach of ordinary people — a
place where £12,000 dresses are the
norm and where £600 for a pair of high
heels is considered commonplace.
O
F CoURSE, royalty is also
about privilege; but it’s a
different kind. The privilege
afforded to members of the
Royal Family is not decreed by a
self-appointed elite of editors and
designers, influencers and socialites;
it is the gift of the British people.
This is my worry, Meghan. This, I
admit, is a subtle distinction — and
one I sincerely hope you come to
understand as you grow into your
royal role.
Because the truth is, however much
you and Harry may have a — perfectly
understandable — desire to want to
do things your way, the fact is there is
an unspoken understanding between
the Royal Family and its loyal
subjects which, ultimately, you have
to respect.
You will not earn our love by flitting
around the corridors of Vogue House
playing journalist. You will, however,
earn it by being a hard-working
member of the House of Windsor
who, ultimately, understands that
status and privilege are very real
gems to be treasured.
Memo to Meghan:
We Brits prefer
true royalty to
fashion royalty
by SARAH
VINE
sucked into a destructive menage a
trois. Nin was born in France in 1904
and moved to New York as a young
child after her parents split up.
She began writing her diaries aged
only 11 and continued to write
throughout her life, detailing her
inner thoughts and relationships.
Her work chronicled her search
for fulfilment in what she found, as a
woman, a restrictive culture.
Much of her work was published
after her death from cervical can-
cer in 1977, attracting a new legion
of fans, particularly as a result of the
feminist movement of the 1960s. Struggle: Anais Nin
Pictures: PETER LINDBERGH/MILLER MOBLE
Y/CAMERA PRESS/VOGUE.COM