Wow. The double standards - and in some cases the same 'commentators' - are incredible.

It's not a crime but it is a stupid thing for most people to do since it's voting to put the interests of a small group of people ahead of those of most people. For what do people think the likes of Boris Johnson and JRM are more deserving than they are themselves?

Maybe it is but it's something William and Kate do too so surely it's been tacky, but unnoticed, since they started doing it. That's the point about press bias; tacky for one couple, enterprising for another.

Apparently here in the UK that's a racist remark...

Apparently here in the UK Upperty is a racist remark!!!

That is why I am more than happy for them to cut their ties with the UK but as long as they are not supported money wise by anyone but themselves and not allowed to use royal titles etc and hopefully not be able to swan back here like royalty lol when it suits them and pick and choose which royal events they grace their presence with.

What people are forgetting though, is that Kate got just as much grief from the press in the early days. She was ripped to pieces back then, as were her family. The difference is that she just put her head down, got on with the job and earned the respect she has now. The press seem to think she can do no wrong now, but it took years for that to happen and I bet if you compared the newspaper headlines for her in the early years they wouldn't be different.

Yes, of course.

Oh come on, she was sneered at for being new money and for her family's god awful taste in décor but not for such a wide range of alleged faux pas as the current victim. She has not earned the respect of the gutter press, they just have an easier target right now. It's a vicious and unpleasant society the UK but I suppose one can argue that the female royals are a legitimate target of the press, due to their privilege, unlike say Cher Lloyd or Katie Price who get similar treatment despite being in trade.

Interesting isn't it, that the press trash the female royals but, if you're a royal and have a penis, you can stick it in children like you're a priest and generate just a little tutting?

I think the Sarah Vines of this world are just jealous that Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle have managed to get themselves Princes for husbands. Gone from trade to Duchesses, just because of their man. Must be doubly hard when she remembers who her own husband is.

She was sneered at for a lot more than that. For being 'Waity Katy', for wearing inappropriate clothes, for doing her own make up, for crossing her legs, for wearing a hat, for not wearing a hat etc etc - take your pick. I'm not saying it's right, but there's no difference in the way Meghan has been treated in the press to how a host of other new royal brides or brides to be have been treated.

What do you make of jings' link to articles on similar topics? What is the key difference between the brides' avocado usage?

As above, time. Kate seems able to do no wrong with the British press now, but I wouldn't be surprised if she'd also been criticised for daring to eat an avocado a decade ago. Her every move back then resulted in derision.

The press certainly fixates on a person for a while and then moves on to another so, to some extent, there's the option to ride it out. A difference may be that Kate has nowhere to go, a product of middle England, being minor royalty is a pinnacle for her and, no doubt, being related to her is the apex of life for her family. Meghan has had a job, lived in different countries, has a broader scope and so may look at the situation from a perspective of "I don't have to put up with this shit". If that's her view, then, as an emigrant, I'm obliged to agree.

Hugh Grant seems a reliable guide to the right way to deal with the British press : https://www.theguardian.com/film/202...stormzy-meghan

To be fair these are all recent articles about Kate, go back 10 years and she suffered a lot worse from the press than Meghan ever has. They followed her everywhere, made up derogatory names for her, they even published naked photos of her on her honeymoon. Meghan’s treatment has been a walk in the park by comparison with a lot of criticism being brought upon herself. Kate has paid her dues and earned their respect, Meghan has demanded respect from day 1. Yeah the whole thing is not nice but it’s par of the course of being in the spotlight. Diana, Fergie, and Camilla all suffered it too, race has nothing to do with it.