When the Kardashian family’s matriarch is celebrated at the opulent abode of one of the world’s wealthiest individuals, it’s bound to capture widespread attention. Factor in the presence of Harry and Meghan as attendees, paired with mysteriously disappearing photos of the duo, and you’ve got the makings of a media frenzy that spans several days.
Here’s a quick summary: Last Saturday evening, Kris Jenner marked her 70th birthday with an extravagant James Bond-themed celebration at Jeff Bezos’s residence. A couple of days later, Kris shared a photo that showed her in the company of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
Meanwhile, Kim Kardashian, Kris’s daughter, shared three images: one showed her posing with Meghan while Harry engaged in a lively discussion with another guest; another captured Meghan embracing Netflix’s CEO, Reed Hastings; and a third depicted Meghan laughing with her hand affectionately placed on Kris’s shoulder as a seemingly tired Harry looked on.
These intriguing snapshots vanished almost as quickly as they appeared, leading to an online uproar.
The media swiftly churned out a flurry of headlines: Harry allegedly felt ‘humiliated’; Kris Jenner reportedly executed ‘cold’ revenge; Kim Kardashian was said to be ‘furious’ and vowed never to speak to Meghan again; the Sussexes were labeled as ‘tacky’.
A sample of stories running: Harry has been ‘humiliated’; Kris Jenner has served ‘cold’ revenge; her daughter Kim is ‘furious’ and will never speak to Meghan again; the Sussexes are ‘tacky’.
Multiple theories – some more credible than others – are swirling. These include that Meghan has made a powerful Hollywood enemy in the shapely form of Kim Kardashian as a result of allegedly asking for the pictures to be taken down.
Others point to Oprah Winfrey’s alleged role: some claim that the Sussexes came to the party only because Oprah asked them to, and after the sudden and embarrassing deletions, their long-standing friendship with the Queen of Chat, a neighbour in Montecito, has been compromised.
The Sussex version is this: the teams looking after each guest were asked if they would be comfortable for images of them to be shared. Meghan and Harry said they would rather not
The Jenner version runs like this. There was NO consent form, and no one signed or opted into anything to come to the party
So what is really going on? And could the Sussexes’ standing have been damaged in the eyes of the gilded, moneyed Hollywood crowd whom they seem so very anxious to impress? Trying to find out what truly took place is tricky, as sources close to Kris Jenner and the Sussexes are, alas, singing from two rather different hymn sheets.
The Sussex version is this: before the party, the organisers asked the teams looking after each guest if they would be comfortable for images including them to be shared on public forums. Via one of their representatives, Meghan and Harry emailed the party planners that they would rather not. The couple, after all, have a long history of complaining about alleged intrusion into their privacy.
This message, according to the Sussexes, did not get through to Kris. So when she posted pictures including the Sussexes online, there was a bit of a panic, and Kris was asked by the party organisers to take them down. Which she did. The Sussexes were, they say, ‘relaxed’ about it and didn’t really care one way or the other. (This seems like a bit of a stretch as the Sussexes are seldom ‘relaxed’ about what people think of them, but it could be true.)
The Jenner version runs like this. There was NO consent form, and no one signed or opted into anything to come to the party. A source close to Kris says that the guests were her friends and family, so she wouldn’t have asked for something like this.
Regarding the bizarre deletion of the pictures of the Sussexes, Team Jenner insists that there was an ‘ask’ to post photos by one party – and then an ‘ask to take them down’ from another.
That last ‘ask’ can only realistically have come from the Sussexes. A source has confirmed to the New York Post that Harry and Meghan did ask Kris and Kim to remove Instagram pictures that showed them at the bash. The source added: ‘They [Harry and Meghan] don’t want to p*** off the Royal Family while they are trying to reconcile.’
Multiple theories are swirling – including that Meghan has made a powerful Hollywood enemy in the shapely form of Kim Kardashian, pictured, as a result of allegedly asking for the pictures to be taken down
What both sides do agree on is that there’s no question of the episode having damaged Meghan’s friendship with Kris.
They met through mutual friend Ellen DeGeneres at a party around three years ago, and hit it off. If anyone could help Meghan navigate the nuclear blast of global media attention, it’s the woman who built multi-billion-dollar brands on the back of her own daughter’s leaked sex tape almost 20 years ago. As to the question of pictures of Harry and Meghan enjoying a party in Beverly Hills causing annoyance to the Royal Family – well, in the context of other attacks it seems unlikely to move the dial much.
The situation seems to be nothing more than a minor embarrassment for the Sussexes.
What, though, of the poppy question? There has been criticism in some quarters over the Sussexes going to the party on November 8, the eve of Remembrance Sunday.
Pictures of Prince Harry (wearing a poppy) and Meghan (not wearing one) circulating with the A-listers such as Adele, Beyonce, Mariah Carey and Oprah ended up being released uncomfortably close to contrasting images of the Royal Family carrying out solemn duties at the Cenotaph on Remembrance Sunday.
This criticism is angrily rejected by sources close to the Sussexes. They contend that it is understandable that the duchess was not wearing a poppy to a James Bond-themed birthday party in California on a day that is neither Remembrance Sunday nor Armistice Day.
One Meghan ally tells me she cares ‘deeply’ about the military community and is of course married to Harry, who served two tours in Afghanistan. The same source adds that Meghan supports the work of his Invictus charity, which works with injured servicemen and women.
A spokesman for the Royal British Legion says: ‘The decision to wear a poppy must be a matter of personal choice. If the poppy became compulsory, it would lose its meaning and significance . . . [and] would be contrary to the spirit of remembrance.’
Nevertheless, some believe that Prince Harry is being forced into the embrace of Hollywood by his ambitious wife, who only last week staged a surprise return to acting in the form of a cameo role in an upcoming romcom, Close Personal Friends.
Author Tom Bower said: ‘It’s noticeable that Harry is unable to stage the rictus smile which actress Meghan always displays for the cameras. He looks fed up being paraded, one day at a sports match and on another day at a celeb party.
‘Clearly, he is now worried what revenge his brother might one day carry out against himself and his ambitious wife. The duchess has become not so much a guest-for-hire but a guest searching for publicity, and this time she has landed a major party trophy. For the first time, she is mixing with A-list celebs. That’s a great coup for a duchess searching for security and approval.’
We are now entering the campaigning period in the run-up to the Oscars in March. On current form, no one would bet against Meghan attending one of the big Oscars-night parties, with Prince Harry as her plus-one.
Let’s hope everyone involved agrees in advance whether they can, or cannot, post pictures of this oh so publicity-shy couple.
