Meghan Markle Branded 'Boring' As Expert Savages Duchess's New Lifestyle Business

Meghan Markle's latest lifestyle push came under fresh fire this week after journalist Marina Hyde dismissed the Duchess of Sussex's new domestic brand as dull, saying nobody wanted to watch her make 'lavender biscuits' and arguing that both Meghan and Prince Harry had drifted out of fashion.

The criticism, aired in Britain and quickly picked up elsewhere, landed just as Meghan's brand As Ever moved into a new phase after confirming its separation from Netflix.

Meghan Markle, As Ever Under Fire And Spotify Fallout

Speaking on The Rest Is Entertainment podcast, which she co-hosts with writer and broadcaster Richard Osman, Marina Hyde gave a blunt assessment of the Duchess's latest reinvention.

'Nobody cares about watching her make lavender biscuits for her ex-hairdresser. This is b******t, and it's boring,' Hyde said.

She did not stop at the product. Hyde argued that Meghan and Prince Harry have failed to move beyond a single narrative in their public-facing work. 'They have this one story, which is "we were treated badly when we left the Royal Family",' she said.

Hyde went on to describe the Sussexes as 'out of fashion, not very talented and [with] an overstated idea of their cultural relevance', before adding, 'Hard relate.'

Hyde also laid into the couple over their collapsed Spotify deal. That earlier deal, reportedly worth $20 million (£15.02 million), produced just 12 episodes of Meghan's podcast Archetypes, which featured high-profile guests including Serena Williams, Mariah Carey and Trevor Noah. After the partnership ended, Spotify executive Bill Simmons used his own show, The Bill Simmons Podcast, to vent his frustration.

'I wish I had been involved in the "Meghan and Harry leave Spotify" negotiation. "The F*****g Grifters." That's the podcast we should have launched with them,' Simmons said in 2023.

Netflix Support And Meghan Markle's Next Move

Reports in recent weeks have claimed that Meghan's brand is 'in trouble', with suggestions of a collapsed jam distribution deal and 'millions worth of stock' allegedly lying unsold.

At the same time, royal watchers and Hollywood insiders quoted in other coverage have portrayed Harry and Meghan as 'really difficult to work with' and warned that 'reputation is everything' in the industry.

Yet Netflix, which helped bankroll As Ever's creation, has taken a notably different tone in public. In March, both As Ever and Netflix issued statements confirming that the brand would now move forward as a fully independent venture, rather than one linked directly to the streamer.

In its statement, Netflix said, 'Meghan's passion for elevating everyday moments in beautiful yet simple ways inspired the creation of the As Ever brand, and we are glad to have played a role in bringing that vision to life. As it was always intended, Meghan will continue growing the brand and take it into its next chapter independently.'

The state of the relationship between the two camps has been heavily debated of late.

However, a senior Netflix executive moved last weekend to clarify whether the streamer is truly "done" with Harry and Meghan.

Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria herself swatted down split rumours at the Next on Netflix event last weekend. 'We still have a relationship with them. We have movies in development with them. We have an amazing doc with them,' she said.

'Deals come and go all the time, and we don't renew so many deals, those just don't get as much press for obvious reasons. There's no juicy story there.' She urged fact-checking, 'Don't believe whatever you read. Maybe we should all do a little fact-checking.'​​