Aug. 31, 2026

Meghan Markle vs. Kim Kardashian? Inside the Sussexes’ New British Television Strategy

Show Notes
Transcript

Could Meghan Markle and Kim Kardashian be competing for a role in Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen? Is Meghan genuinely returning to acting—or are both sides using the media to influence negotiations as the Netflix series launches its second season?

Reports suggest Harry and Meghan may also be considering projects with the BBC and other British broadcasters. Could Prince Harry build his own television career? Richard Osman proposes putting him on The Wheel or creating a feel-good series called Harry’s Special Forces, pairing the Duke with military veterans on community projects.

Plus, does Gayle King know that Meghan’s return may be temporary? Can the “old Harry” win back the British public? Could he eventually become a wingman to King William? And how much will it cost the Sussexes to maintain homes in Montecito, Portugal and Britain while paying for security, staff, international travel and Harry’s legal obligations?

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/palace-intrigue-harry-meghan-the-crown-royal-family-news-and-gossip--4522904/support.

Palace Intrigue is a daily British royal family podcast covering King Charles, Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, Kate Middleton and the House of Windsor. New episodes every day. Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network.

WEBVTT

1
00:00:03.250 --> 00:00:11.990
Caloroga Shark Media. Hello and welcome to Palace Intrigue. I

2
00:00:12.029 --> 00:00:15.279
am your host, Mark Francis. We're not sure we believe

3
00:00:15.310 --> 00:00:18.460
this one, but Meghan Markle could possibly, perhaps, have some

4
00:00:18.539 --> 00:00:21.320
serious competition if she really is hoping to land a

5
00:00:21.359 --> 00:00:23.940
role in the third season of Guy Ritchie's The Gentleman.

6
00:00:24.480 --> 00:00:27.600
Rob Shooter's gossip site Naughty But Nice reports that Meghan

7
00:00:27.640 --> 00:00:31.429
is being considered for the but claims another very famous

8
00:00:31.489 --> 00:00:35.859
name is also in the conversation, Kim Kardashian. Shooter tends

9
00:00:35.920 --> 00:00:39.020
to use unnamed sources, and one of the unnamed sources

10
00:00:39.060 --> 00:00:43.000
told Shooter, Guy loves controversy, star power, and people who

11
00:00:43.159 --> 00:00:46.340
instantly get everyone talking, and Kim delivers on all three.

12
00:00:46.950 --> 00:00:49.829
Megan is absolutely in the conversation, but she's not the

13
00:00:49.890 --> 00:00:52.689
only one. If Guy could land Kim, she would be

14
00:00:52.729 --> 00:00:56.490
his first choice. Megan would create noise, Kim would create

15
00:00:56.570 --> 00:01:00.740
an earthquake. Guy understands that controversy can be incredibly valuable

16
00:01:00.780 --> 00:01:05.859
when you're trying to make television people cannot stop talking about. Coincidentally,

17
00:01:05.900 --> 00:01:09.299
this Kardashian story shows up just as season two of

18
00:01:09.340 --> 00:01:13.989
The Gentleman is about to premiere on September 3rd. The

19
00:01:14.030 --> 00:01:16.450
BBC believes that a broader return to acting is very

20
00:01:16.489 --> 00:01:19.530
much on Megan's agenda. There were hints of that last

21
00:01:19.569 --> 00:01:23.670
year when Megan spoke with entrepreneur Emma Greed about returning

22
00:01:23.709 --> 00:01:26.409
to a television set for With Love, Megan. Asked whether

23
00:01:26.430 --> 00:01:30.349
she missed acting, Megan replied, Sometimes being back on set

24
00:01:30.409 --> 00:01:33.010
with With Love Megan was great because I realized how

25
00:01:33.030 --> 00:01:35.189
much I miss my crew. I love being around a crew.

26
00:01:35.890 --> 00:01:39.250
Variety chief correspondent Marlo Stern says the discussions over a

27
00:01:39.269 --> 00:01:44.269
potential role may involve the fairly ordinary mechanics of television production.

28
00:01:44.650 --> 00:01:46.939
Stern said, A lot of it has to do with scheduling,

29
00:01:47.030 --> 00:01:49.719
to be honest. There may be also negotiating the size

30
00:01:49.730 --> 00:01:52.000
of the role and how many days she'll shoot, and

31
00:01:52.019 --> 00:01:54.840
also compensation for it. Both sides often play the medium.

32
00:01:55.310 --> 00:01:57.170
to try and push things along, and we could be

33
00:01:57.250 --> 00:02:01.209
seeing that. Cynical observers point out that moving from California

34
00:02:01.230 --> 00:02:03.530
to the UK seems to be in the opposite direction

35
00:02:03.569 --> 00:02:08.379
of making it in Hollywood. Radar Online quotes someone they

36
00:02:08.419 --> 00:02:12.740
described as a well-placed senior British television industry source who says,

37
00:02:13.319 --> 00:02:16.340
Harry and Meghan aren't abandoning America, but being based in

38
00:02:16.460 --> 00:02:20.560
Britain again opens an entirely different marketplace. There are conversations

39
00:02:20.599 --> 00:02:23.409
to be had with British broadcasters, including the BBC and

40
00:02:23.509 --> 00:02:28.340
major commercial networks, About documentaries, factual programming and projects with

41
00:02:28.400 --> 00:02:31.960
their names can still command significant attention. Meghan and Harry

42
00:02:31.979 --> 00:02:35.199
are especially eyeing the BBC as a potential source of

43
00:02:35.240 --> 00:02:37.680
a new cash flow when they move back to Britain.

44
00:02:38.960 --> 00:02:41.479
In the iNews, Emily Baker says Meghan should never return

45
00:02:41.520 --> 00:02:44.139
to acting. She writes, The best actors in the world

46
00:02:44.199 --> 00:02:46.840
are able to sink into a role, embody an entirely

47
00:02:46.930 --> 00:02:49.830
new person, no matter how famous they are away from

48
00:02:49.849 --> 00:02:53.750
the set. But with greatest respect, Megan is not Olivia Colman.

49
00:02:54.090 --> 00:02:57.710
As ambitious, smart lawyer Rachel Zane ensues, she was good,

50
00:02:57.830 --> 00:03:00.030
at times even great, but it was hardly the most

51
00:03:00.150 --> 00:03:04.229
demanding emotion-led role. In other words, there's not some alternate

52
00:03:04.330 --> 00:03:06.590
universe in which Megan didn't marry Harry and become an

53
00:03:06.689 --> 00:03:11.300
Oscar-winning Hollywood doyen. But it's down to more than just

54
00:03:11.340 --> 00:03:14.120
her acting ability. She is far too famous and frankly

55
00:03:14.139 --> 00:03:16.740
far too divisive to ever return to her old life.

56
00:03:17.400 --> 00:03:19.300
She has spent the past five years playing the part

57
00:03:19.340 --> 00:03:23.419
of Megan, Wife, mother, homemaker, jam seller. The jump back

58
00:03:23.439 --> 00:03:25.500
to actor is just too much of a stretch after

59
00:03:25.520 --> 00:03:27.759
all the work she's done to turn herself into a brand.

60
00:03:28.939 --> 00:03:31.840
The integrity of any character, storyline, film or series would

61
00:03:31.879 --> 00:03:35.400
be immediately undermined by her presence. All we'd see is

62
00:03:35.439 --> 00:03:38.539
the Duchess of Sussex pretending to be someone else. It's

63
00:03:38.580 --> 00:03:40.580
sad that Megan won't ever be able to return to

64
00:03:40.639 --> 00:03:43.009
her old career. I presume she wanted to become an

65
00:03:43.090 --> 00:03:45.379
actor for the love of the craft. Rather than the

66
00:03:45.430 --> 00:03:47.889
off chance it might mean she'll marry a prince one day.

67
00:03:48.419 --> 00:03:50.539
And if not acting, what else should she do? I'm

68
00:03:50.599 --> 00:03:55.610
sure she's asking herself that very same question. Richard Osman

69
00:03:55.650 --> 00:03:58.550
has come up with an unexpected career suggestion for Prince Harry.

70
00:03:58.849 --> 00:04:01.789
Speaking on The Rest Is Entertainment, Osman said, Harry's recent

71
00:04:01.810 --> 00:04:04.569
appearance on the Joe Marla Will See You Now podcast

72
00:04:05.090 --> 00:04:07.610
showed he could potentially carve out a role for himself

73
00:04:07.689 --> 00:04:11.129
on British television. Osman said, I saw him on the

74
00:04:11.169 --> 00:04:13.669
Joe Marla podcast. He's very good on things like that.

75
00:04:13.969 --> 00:04:15.740
And I think you could build a fairly nice media

76
00:04:15.780 --> 00:04:18.389
career for Harry. where he just appears on television every

77
00:04:18.449 --> 00:04:21.209
now and again. If I was his advisor and I

78
00:04:21.250 --> 00:04:24.949
can exclusively reveal that I'm not, I'd have him meeting people.

79
00:04:26.009 --> 00:04:29.920
Osman even suggested a specific show for Harry, Michael McIntyre's

80
00:04:30.100 --> 00:04:32.259
The Wheel. He said, I'd put him on The Wheel

81
00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:35.019
tomorrow with Michael McIntyre. He'd be great on The Wheel.

82
00:04:35.480 --> 00:04:37.480
Michael would look after him. He'd look good if he

83
00:04:37.500 --> 00:04:39.959
got something right. I wouldn't put him on The Traitors

84
00:04:40.019 --> 00:04:42.629
or I'm a Celebrity or something like that. But Osman

85
00:04:42.649 --> 00:04:45.339
did not stop there. He also pitched an entirely new

86
00:04:45.379 --> 00:04:49.240
television format built around Harry's military background and his longstanding

87
00:04:49.279 --> 00:04:51.699
work with veterans. He said, I've got a show called

88
00:04:51.740 --> 00:04:56.439
Harry's Special Forces. It's like DIY SOS meets Challenge Anika.

89
00:04:56.860 --> 00:04:59.399
It is exactly that thing of a house needs rebuilding,

90
00:04:59.439 --> 00:05:02.370
a community center needs rebuilding. But he does it with

91
00:05:02.410 --> 00:05:04.670
a bunch of army veterans, people who have been injured

92
00:05:04.689 --> 00:05:07.110
in the line of conflict, and they build something and

93
00:05:07.230 --> 00:05:09.610
put something together. At the same time, he's showing these

94
00:05:09.670 --> 00:05:12.910
veterans they're putting their skills out there for employers. It's

95
00:05:13.069 --> 00:05:20.519
feel good. More Palace in just a moment. A conspiracy

96
00:05:20.560 --> 00:05:23.279
theory observes that when Gayle King covered the move back

97
00:05:23.339 --> 00:05:26.600
to the UK, she only mentioned Prince Harry and not Meghan.

98
00:05:26.939 --> 00:05:29.540
The theory is that Gayle knows something and that Meghan

99
00:05:29.560 --> 00:05:32.839
is not permanently moving back and that Gayle's mind slipped

100
00:05:32.899 --> 00:05:37.269
us the truth. Time will tell. Lady Colin Campbell is

101
00:05:37.290 --> 00:05:40.129
dismissing one of the explanations surrounding the return, calling it

102
00:05:40.250 --> 00:05:43.750
utter rubbish. Speaking with Maureen Callaghan on the nerve, Lady

103
00:05:43.769 --> 00:05:46.410
Colin said, Harry knew because they were looking at schools

104
00:05:46.449 --> 00:05:48.829
while they were here. There was also the cock and

105
00:05:48.850 --> 00:05:51.350
bull story that's been making the rounds that they couldn't

106
00:05:51.389 --> 00:05:53.509
tell the king until the school had confirmed that they

107
00:05:53.529 --> 00:05:56.910
were going to accept the children. It's utter rubbish. Anybody

108
00:05:56.949 --> 00:05:59.269
that I have ever known in any country I have

109
00:05:59.350 --> 00:06:02.649
lived in who had any status whatsoever, you pitch up

110
00:06:02.689 --> 00:06:04.389
at a prep school that you want your children to

111
00:06:04.430 --> 00:06:06.329
go and it's obvious that your children are going to

112
00:06:06.350 --> 00:06:09.870
be accepted. Our writer John McDermott was asked by the

113
00:06:09.910 --> 00:06:12.370
Express for some insight from his side of the Atlantic.

114
00:06:12.750 --> 00:06:15.620
McDermott said... My sense is that Harry is still loved

115
00:06:15.670 --> 00:06:18.589
in the UK. People may be frustrated with him, but

116
00:06:18.629 --> 00:06:21.750
if the old Harry is out and about, the funny, relaxed,

117
00:06:21.810 --> 00:06:24.910
very natural public figure people remember, I think he'll be

118
00:06:24.990 --> 00:06:28.189
welcomed back. And over time, perhaps we could even see

119
00:06:28.230 --> 00:06:30.420
some version of Harry as the wingman to King William,

120
00:06:30.800 --> 00:06:32.959
although obviously there's a lot that would have to happen

121
00:06:33.439 --> 00:06:37.000
between the brothers first. Meghan is different. I'd say she's

122
00:06:37.019 --> 00:06:39.319
more popular in the United States than she is in Britain,

123
00:06:39.680 --> 00:06:42.259
and returning to the UK presents a much tougher challenge

124
00:06:42.310 --> 00:06:44.300
for her. She's going to have to turn on the

125
00:06:44.379 --> 00:06:48.439
charm while inevitably being compared with Princess Catherine, the future queen.

126
00:06:49.000 --> 00:06:53.220
That's a very difficult shadow for anyone to live in. Thanks, John.

127
00:06:54.639 --> 00:06:56.399
It isn't easy being rich. Harry and Meghan may be

128
00:06:56.439 --> 00:06:59.699
keeping their Montecito mansion while establishing a new base in Britain,

129
00:06:59.990 --> 00:07:02.110
and GB News has been doing the math on what

130
00:07:02.129 --> 00:07:05.810
maintaining that California home could cost them. The Sussexes bought

131
00:07:05.829 --> 00:07:08.009
the property in 2020 for a reported $ 14. 65 million through

132
00:07:08.029 --> 00:07:15.430
their company Rockbridge LLC. According to figures cited by GB News,

133
00:07:15.589 --> 00:07:19.610
they financed the purchase with a $ 9. 52 million mortgage from

134
00:07:20.370 --> 00:07:23.740
City National Bank. The report estimates that if the original

135
00:07:23.779 --> 00:07:26.300
loan were being repaid over 30 years at the reported

136
00:07:26.360 --> 00:07:28.100
initial rate of 2.49%, the payments would work out to

137
00:07:28.120 --> 00:07:29.959
roughly $ 37, 500 a month, or about $ 450, 000 a year. There

138
00:07:29.980 --> 00:07:39.459
is an important caveat to that calculation. The mortgage was

139
00:07:39.519 --> 00:07:42.199
reportedly an adjustable-rate loan, and we do not know the

140
00:07:42.240 --> 00:07:45.819
Sussexes' current interest rate, whether they have refinanced, or how

141
00:07:45.839 --> 00:07:49.439
much principal they have subsequently paid down. So that figure

142
00:07:49.459 --> 00:07:52.060
could be regarded as an estimate based on the original

143
00:07:52.120 --> 00:07:56.459
financing rather than their known current mortgage bill. Then there

144
00:07:56.480 --> 00:07:59.350
are the property taxes. The New York Post previously reported

145
00:07:59.389 --> 00:08:02.910
a tax bill of nearly $ 150, 000 for the property. Put

146
00:08:02.949 --> 00:08:05.509
that together with the estimated mortgage payments, and GB News

147
00:08:05.550 --> 00:08:12.220
arrives at approximately... $ 600, 000 a year before you start adding insurance, utilities, maintenance, landscaping,

148
00:08:12.279 --> 00:08:17.430
security and staff. And of course, chicken maintenance. The Sussexes

149
00:08:17.500 --> 00:08:20.439
are expected to establish a residence in the Cotswolds. GB

150
00:08:20.490 --> 00:08:22.550
News says they may be looking at properties costing around

151
00:08:22.550 --> 00:08:26.750
Â£ 8 million. They also reportedly own property in Portugal, which

152
00:08:26.829 --> 00:08:31.970
GB News says was purchased for approximately Â£ 6. 3 million. There

153
00:08:32.009 --> 00:08:35.769
is also another potentially significant financial issue hanging over Harry.

154
00:08:36.090 --> 00:08:38.000
He was among the claimants recently ordered to make an

155
00:08:38.049 --> 00:08:42.370
initial payment toward Associated Newspaper Limited's legal costs following the

156
00:08:42.429 --> 00:08:47.470
High Court privacy case. GB News says the initial Â£ 9. 5

157
00:08:46.629 --> 00:08:51.149
million payment is shared among Harry, Sir Elton John, David Furnish,

158
00:08:51.269 --> 00:08:55.269
Elizabeth Hurley, Sir Simon Hughes, Sadie Frost and Baroness Doreen

159
00:08:55.350 --> 00:08:58.730
Lawrence rather than being Harry's individual bill. What the numbers

160
00:08:58.769 --> 00:09:01.389
do illustrate is the extraordinary cost of the lifestyle they

161
00:09:01.409 --> 00:09:05.350
were apparently trying to maintain. A major California estate, a

162
00:09:05.370 --> 00:09:09.350
reported Portuguese property, potentially another multi-million pound home in Britain,

163
00:09:09.789 --> 00:09:14.269
international travel, private security and the infrastructure necessary to keep

164
00:09:14.370 --> 00:09:17.649
all of it running. Megxit was originally presented as a

165
00:09:17.690 --> 00:09:22.029
move toward financial independence. Six years later, independence appears to

166
00:09:22.070 --> 00:09:25.409
require quite a lot of money. And there you have it.

167
00:09:26.029 --> 00:09:28.509
If you'd like to email us, our address is thepalaceintrigue

168
00:09:28.549 --> 00:09:32.820
at gmail.com. If you're listening on Spotify, leave us a comment.

169
00:09:32.860 --> 00:09:34.460
If you're listening on Apple, hit that button up there

170
00:09:34.500 --> 00:09:36.720
that says listen uninterrupted and get the show commercial free

171
00:09:36.740 --> 00:09:40.379
for five bucks a month. A bargain. And we appreciate

172
00:09:40.399 --> 00:09:43.129
the support. I'm Mark Francis. My thanks to John McDermott.

173
00:09:43.169 --> 00:09:45.529
This is Palace Intrigue. Good times.

Meghan Markle vs. Kim Kardashian? Inside the Sussexes’ New British Television Strategy

Listen On

Recent Episodes