Megan Markle is no different than Sarah Ferguson. Both women can be definitely guilty of soulish cash grabs. And Megan Markle's appearance at the upcoming Besties Retreat where you can get in for the grand total of $2800 Australian dollars or 32 I believe hundred Australian dollars. If you want a table picture with Megan, yes, she is 100% doing the exact same thing basically that got the Yorks in massive trouble, which once again reveals why everything of Harry and Megan must be stripped when it comes to their connection to the British monarchy. But we definitely need to explore this besties event and how problematic it is when it comes to somebody who claims a royal title. If you are going to be a royal and be outside the royal family doing a job, hey, no issue with that. Actually, quite a few do. But you don't get to use your title with it. You get to just use your name. Let's just say Megan Sussex or the most more much more notable Megan Markle in this particular instance. Because by constantly calling yourself the Duchess of Sussex, what becomes increasingly apparent is that the only reason you're getting any of these gigs is because of that title and that title alone. Nothing to do with your own accomplishments and surely nothing to do with your multiple failing businesses. So guys, we are going to get into all this today, but if you haven't been to Royal News Network before, my name is Britney. I do provide compelling royal commentary, so please hit that subscribe button. I would love to have you back. And if you would like to go on a fun trip that yes, maybe costs about the same amount, but you get to go to a foreign country, get to do multiple tours around Slovenia, see the beautiful countryside, Lake Bled, go to Horsed Farm, we'll be checking out a cave, like so many cool things and hanging out with the most awesome crowd possible. People who love royals, want to talk about royals, feel free to check out the link down below and up above because in October we will be doing a trip to Slovenia, which I'm super duper excited about. Honestly, I did have, let's say, slight sadness that Slovenia and Slovakia I knew were different, but I was hoping there was something in Slovenia, but it's actually in Slovakia. And so that made me just a smidge sad. But other than that, just thinking about the time of year, it's going to be October. October is for, let's say, spooky things. And there's actually a very famous, you could say, royal connected to Slovakia who actually had a deep impact or let's say continues to have echoes from this tale of Dracula, not Vlad the Impaler, another one. If you can guess in the comments below, please let me know. But anyways guys, this is going to be an absolutely fun trip. We always have just an absolute fantastic time while we're there. We get a couple dinners. Always breakfast is served every day and just so many just amazing experiences and so many wonderful friendships are developed and you actually get to go to a place and do cool things and meet cool people rather than doing what Mega Merkel is going to do in Australia. There's going to be a meditation session, guys, in Australia. Gemma's going to lead it. It's going to be hardcore, but nothing like that here with RNN. It's just going to be good oldfashioned cultural and historical fun with royals thrown in. It's gonna be awesome. So, if you guys want to check that out, feel free. The links are up above and down below. But, let's go ahead get into this story. So, we always want to at RNN here try to cover more than just ragging on what I would argue a sort of vain and vapid girls trip where you pay an exorbitant fee to stay in your own country and go to a nice hotel that's $300 a night, but somehow you're spending double that to I think share rooms if I'm not mistaken. I think they're twin availabilities. And the biggest thing you get out of it is, let's remind ourselves here, a yoga session every day. A powerful women's session with renowned psychologist Justine Corey. Meditation and manifestation sessions with Gemma. An in-person dinner with Megan. A gala dinner, a relaxed time by the pool, a beautiful sound healing experience, dinner and disco celebration, but you have to pay just two nights. Twin shares. Again, our trip to Slovenia is a whole week. Just putting that out there at this hotel where you can spend just $600 and get your own hotel room for two nights. There's dinner and disco. You get alcohol, too, guys. Saturday lunch, breakfast both mornings. But yeah, the biggest draw for this event is obviously Megan Markle. And this is deeply, deeply problematic. Harry actually has his own similar speaking event. And if Harry wanted to avoid looking like his uncle, I would argue he is failing here. And so is Megan to not look like Sarah, the Duchess of York. People who are shamelessly trading off their royal titles to make money. And I wanted to offer first before we go into sort of the the Spotify bit where Gemma cuz I guess apparently her her co-star in this Jackie is abandoning ship. Never a good sign. And I wanted to give you again a counter example to what a royal who runs an actual business looks like. And there I'm actually going to give you two here real quick because I want to give you a foundation for what a royal outside the royal sphere outside of being a working royal. What that looks like for them in a business setting versus what Megan Markle is doing. So the first is Princess Meline of Sweden. I mentioned her several times. She has a skin care line called Minlin. It's part of Welda. And she has a unique hook for her brand. So her brand is basically she recognized and this is 100% true that girls younger and younger are getting into skincare. So we're not just talking even pre-teen but even children because of what they see on Tik Tok and social media and being advertised and these sorts of things. And so her idea was well a lot of skin care is made for women who are older you know 20s30s 40s and up. And so she created a skincare line that can be used on babies to elderly people and can particularly target her particular target demographic is basically her daughter's age. Her oldest daughter I believe is 11 now, maybe 12. And her younger daughter just turned, I want to say seven or eight. Princess Adrienne just had a birthday. Princess Leonor, I want to say she's 12. I think she's two years younger than Estelle. And so these young ladies are the perfect age for her brand because what she wants to do as a mom is give them a skin care product that they can use that is appropriate for their skin so that they can feel like have that grown-up feeling but something that's particularly designed for sensitivity and being gentle on the skin and these sorts of things. And it's really a smart idea and she is going about this business as Meline Bernadot. She is Princess Meline. We can't avoid the reality that she's Princess Meline. That is how she was born. She was born the daughter of a king. So, she does so go by Meline. She does a great job like promoting her wares and these sorts of things on social media. And I can't wait to try it when I am in Sweden next month because I'm going for King Carl Gustaf's Golden Jubilees, guys. And one of my first stops is finding a welder, finding a shop, and buying every single one of the Midland products so I can give you guys a fantastic review. Can't wait. But that's how she does it. And I don't have any issue with that. She went through the whole palace system. I actually have a deep dive on a great video where she is discussing with her husband, Christopher O'Neal, how they came through this process and everything. And it's very much business-based. It is based on I saw a need in the market. This is what smart business people do, entrepreneurs. I saw a need in the market and I had an idea that could meet that need in the market. That that that vacuum, that empty space there in the market. And yes, it's small. It's not big. It's not selling really outside of Europe at this point. But hey, there might be a good future there. I think there is. Well, we shall see. And then the next we have is actually Marie Shantel, who I don't talk about too much, but she is the crown princess of Greece. She comes from the duty-free fortune. Her and her sisters all married wealthy men. So we have a von Fenberg. So like Diane von Fenberg. That's actually a royal title. Von Fenberg. So one of them married Diane von Fenberg's son. Another one married a Getty and Marie Chantel became the crown princess of Greece. So all the ladies married really well. Marie Chantel is the only one still married, but she has a children's luxury or I should say a luxury children's clothing line. So, particularly infants all the way up to sort of toddlers, young children is her her range. She's well known for this. It is a wellrespected children's brand. And as far as I'm aware, she doesn't really Let me look up the site here. She doesn't really trade off the fact that she is a princess to sell her wear. So, if you haven't seen Rental, apparently they are having a sale, guys. So, if you want to get the pointel crown crawler set in biscuit or in pink. Oh, no. The pink's not on sale. It's only the biscuit, guys. And she's sort of famous for putting the little wings on the back of the baby stuff. So, obviously, it's expensive, but this is what she's known for. This is definitely 150% her brand. So, I don't know if we have down here our story. Let's see. Marie Chantel of Greece. So, she just says Marie Chantel of Greece. So, she is sort of giving a nod to the royalty, but not being too, let's say, overt about it either way. And the products are good. She started this brand in 2000 and it's become very, very, very successful. And so I feel like she is not trading off her royalty. She's trading off her money. She's got a lot of money, but she's also had five children. So like the brand very much feels like it's appropriate for her and it worked for her. And she doesn't have an official working royal role because the Greek monarchy is defunct, but she still technically has the title. And I think she's going about this rather well. It's a very successful, obviously, if you've been around for 26 years, it's a successful business at this point. It's a very successful business, especially in something as competitive as the children's market, but she sort of has sort of the luxury aspect of the children's market pretty cornered. So, she's done a really good job. Maline's business is still new, still up and coming, but Marie Chantel very well established. And then we have Megan Merkel. And so, what is this woman really accomplished? I would argue nothing. Her business is failing. Their production projects have largely failed and flopped. She she doesn't have a lot of success to her name. And what's really bad is that everything is attached to Duchess of Sussex. Everything has to say Megan Duchess of Sussex. It's not Megan Sussex or Megan Markle or anything like that. It's Megan Duchess of Sussex. And that's a big problem because well, it's a royal title and royal titles should only be used within royal contexts. And the royals who have been the most egregious at abusing their titles to make money, of course, are the Yorks. And so again, the echoes between Harry and Megan and Andrew and Sarah are just right there. Like they're there in plain sight 150%. And we know now how bad that has all gone. So again, Charles, just just putting it out there. Maybe this is a good time to address this issue because royalty should be constrained within the bounds that it operates in, which is the royal sphere. If somebody has a royal title, that's fine. But there needs to be an agreement that if you leave, if you're no longer a working royal and Harry and Megan, because they were working royals, again, they are blending this boundary, it is deeply problematic to the future of the institution and especially given what this event is going to be. So, let's go ahead. H this is going to be this is going to be rough. So, this is Jenna or Gemma cuz apparently Jackie, who was part of this, is officially bowed out. I guess she's no longer part of this whole Besties thing or her Best Life podcast. I think I think I I skipped over that part in the intro because I didn't want to spend too long on this video. We're just going to go over mostly the mid bits talking about how this whole thing came about. And Megan or Gemma sort of claims Megan's not making much money from this. Don't really think that's true. I think she's getting something out of this. Of course, she's getting some sort of financial compensation. But is it her usual fee? No. But can she even get her usual fee? I would honestly argue that Harry and Megan are probably struggling to make any money from these sort of speaking things. But it reveals just the overall problem. This is a as somebody put it like an influencer style like camp over the weekend. This is just a shallow vain and vapid event in my opinion. And Megan Merkel going here, lending again her royal title to this vacuous nonsense is again reflects poorly on the entire institution of the monarchy and I would argue reminds us again of that lovely spare connection between the Yorks and the Sussexes. They are two peas in a pod. Are Megan will hate that which is why I'll go with that. So let's go ahead and take a listen here. And just as a reminder, I usually pause about every 15 seconds for copyright reasons. Complain if you want to, but this is just the reality of how this has to go because copyright strikes, guys, are no joke. If you're not on the YouTube side, trust me, they can really be debilitating to a channel. So, I pause about every 15 seconds. Cry if you must, but here we go. And so one of the speakers that will be joining us in person on the weekend I am like beside myself about because I have admired this woman and what she has endured. So she says I have admired this woman and what she has endured. Okay. She got a $30 million wedding. The wedding of her dreams you could say. She married a prince in the presence of a queen. She got driven around in a carriage. Oprah Winfrey was there, her new best friend. We also have getting houses standing on the balcony of Buckingham Palace. I'm sorry, but what has this woman endured that is all that impressive? And again, it goes to show, I think, and reflect how vacuous most of Megan's fans are. There is nothing Megan has had to endure that is any different than what most royal women have had to endure. And people mention the race side of it. I I have been watched British news for a really long time and everything that was so minor like if you even asked somebody, hey, what were like all the racism you saw against Mega Merkel? people would struggle to actually articulate it other than to say, "Well, people were just mean." That's that's not racism. That's just just saying specifically that's not racism. And actually, that's what this woman kind of goes on about a bit, Gemma, is about well, people they were just so negative. You know, there's a reason why things turn negative. It's not something that just spouts out of nowhere. It's usually a cause and effect dynamic that what you put out in the world often comes back to you. And I would again argue I have known and I will say this. I actually interviewed women who have been the victims of sexual violence were basically slaves in the modern slave trade. Interviewed them in Africa after they had been returned after usually being taken to Asia or the Middle East. Those women have endured things. Those women have endured real things. Women of color by the way. real hardship, terror, torture. One of them for sure I remember had HIV. I can't remember the other HIV statuses of the women. Actually have a basket downstairs woven by one of them that I will keep forever. It was hard, difficult interviews. Usually after they were done, it was very emotionally raw and I was usually asked to kind of ask a bit more about the NGO I was working for. And I would always personally feel no, they I would have wish I would have had two days because telling the story was so emotional. I didn't feel comfortable pushing beyond that and usually I only had to ask them one or two questions and then they would share with me their entire stories. They have endured things. Megan Merkel has lived the absolute fairy tale fantasy. To say otherwise is delusional. It's absolute delusional. It's hogwash. It portrays again a woman in my opinion who is part of this podcast who is vain, vapid, and shallow and vacuous as Megan Merkel herself is. Cuz Megan Merkel her in the things she's had to endure are minor at best. I would argue are minor things that could have easily been overcome with somebody with a modicum of selfawareness and perseverance and humility. aspects of Megan that do not exist. >> How she's risen above it uh and how she has demonstrated how a woman can be pushed down and she can still rise and that >> Megan was not pushed down and this whole thing that she rose above like but she she wasn't pushed down below. She was called out on her BS. That's that's what happened. She was being strange. constantly clutching her baby bump, constantly clutching her husband. What people were reacting to was the strangeness in her behavior. She's a strange person. And people reacted to that because Catherine, William and Catherine hold hands in private, but they understand that there's a difference between being public and private. And so they do private things in private time and public things in public time. There's a difference. Harry and Megan just never really did that. And the clutching of the bump was excessive. It was weird. It was like she constantly had to even in Australia when she basically looked like she had a big breakfast burrito for lunch. Constantly had to cup literally her like little like the nothing of her stomach. She was constantly cupping it as if it was there. And I'm like, Megan, we get it. It's you're just being weird. And that reflected so much of Megan's life. If you want to call that being pushed down by calling being called out for your strange behavior, I guess. But again, she lives in a freaking $16 million mansion. Got a $100 million deal from Netflix, $20 million deal from Spotify. This woman has never ever been held back except from, I would argue, her own craziness getting in her own way. Person is Megan, Duchess of Sussex. And I can't believe I'm even saying those words. There's no one more shocked than me because I know what you're all thinking cuz I >> So, I really love this bit. This is honestly one of my favorite and most telling bits here of the lengths of which Megan Markle has fallen and continues to fall. >> I'm thinking the same thing, which is how has Megan, Duchess of Sussex, this incredible woman, gone from Oprah to talking uh on stage with just little old me, Gemma, and Sydney. >> Yes, that is a great question. Gemma from Cindy. How did Megan Markle come to do this? Because it is weird. And it's it's not a good reflection on Megan. It's a really bad reflection on Megan that she's gone from the couch of for Winfrey to hanging out with no name you. It's not really impressive in the slightest. And again, I think Biza Harry and Megan are starting to get a bit desperate, especially Megan. And this is probably like she was knowing, Megan knew that Netflix had stepped away and at some point that news would come out. And Megan was just kind of there going, "Okay, well, let's see what can we do to distract. What can I do to look good? Oh, this this will be awesome." How this came about is just really odd, though. So, let's keep going. this has come about because I think it's really important that you guys understand how this opportunity has come for our community, our community. Oh my gosh. You know, you get to hear a woman live in a $60 milli

A new Australian lifestyle gathering featuring Meghan Markle has become the latest moment in the ongoing discussion about how former members of the British royal family manage commercial activity while retaining royal titles.

The event, widely promoted as a “Besties Retreat,” is scheduled to take place as a wellness-focused weekend program including meditation sessions, group discussions, networking opportunities, and a gala dinner. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, is expected to appear as a featured speaker during the gathering, with tickets reportedly ranging into the thousands of Australian dollars depending on the experience package offered to attendees.

While celebrity-driven retreats and curated lifestyle eventshave become increasingly common in the influencer and wellness industries, Meghan’s participation has attracted particular attention because of her royal title. For supporters, the event is simply another example of the Duchess building a public career after leaving royal duties. For critics, it raises familiar questions about whether royal titles should remain connected to commercial ventures once an individual is no longer representing the monarchy in an official capacity.

Those debates have followed the Sussexes since January 2020, when Prince Harry and Meghan announced that they would step back as senior working royals. Their departure ended formal public funding and official royal engagements while allowing them to pursue independent careers in media, philanthropy, and business.

Since relocating to the United States, the couple have explored a variety of projects aimed at building a new professional identity. These efforts have included documentary production, podcasting, philanthropic initiatives through the Archewell Foundation, and speaking engagements focused on social impact and personal development.

Meghan’s participation in lifestyle-oriented events reflects a broader trend among public figures who blend storytelling, community gatherings, and entrepreneurial messaging into branded experiences. These programs typically combine motivational discussions, wellness sessions, networking opportunities, and curated social experiences that allow audiences to engage directly with high-profile speakers.

For Meghan, the strategy also connects with elements of her pre-royal career. Before marrying Prince Harry, she ran a lifestyle website called *The Tig*, which focused on travel, food, and personal inspiration. Many observers view her recent activities as a return to that earlier style of storytelling and lifestyle branding.

However, the use of royal titles in such contexts remains sensitive within royal commentary circles. Historically, members of royal families across Europe have navigated similar questions when pursuing private business ventures. Some choose to emphasize personal branding separate from their titles, while others continue to use formal titles alongside their commercial work.

Examples can be found in several European royal houses where individuals with titles run fashion labels, wellness brands, or philanthropic enterprises while maintaining varying degrees of connection to their royal heritage. In these cases, the success or criticism of such ventures often depends on how clearly the boundary between institutional duty and private enterprise is communicated.

The British royal family has traditionally taken a stricter approach, emphasizing that official royal titles are closely tied to public service roles performed on behalf of the Crown. That distinction became central during the negotiations surrounding Harry and Meghan’s departure from working royal life, when Buckingham Palace clarified that they would no longer represent the monarch in official duties.

Even so, the couple retained their titles as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, a fact that continues to shape public perception of their activities. For supporters, the titles reflect a permanent part of their identity and family history. For critics, they remain symbols associated with an institution whose responsibilities they no longer carry.

Events like the Besties Retreat illustrate how that unresolved tension continues to surface. Meghan’s participation fits comfortably within modern celebrity entrepreneurship, yet the royal dimension ensures that the conversation rarely stays within the boundaries of business alone.

In the years since their departure, Prince Harry and Meghan have often said they are focused on building a life centered on independence, philanthropy, and creative storytelling. Whether through documentaries, advocacy initiatives, or lifestyle appearances, their work reflects an effort to redefine public roles outside the traditional royal structure.

The debate surrounding this latest event shows that the transition remains a work in progress. Even as the Sussexes continue developing their post-royal careers, the legacy of their titles—and the expectations attached to them—ensures that each new venture becomes part of a larger conversation about modern royalty, celebrity influence, and the evolving meaning of public service.