Anatomy of a Sussex Drama
What Happened was Catastrophic... for Harry and Meghan's Credibility
It’s been a bizarre 24 hours, which is often the case after Harry and Meghan release something.
This time, it was a completely unexpected, incredibly dramatic announcement. A Twitter friend of mine (who happens to be in NY) was the first to message me:
What??!! Sounds incredibly serious, doesn’t it? (Not to mention the obvious comparisons to Diana…) We had just seen photos of Harry and Meghan looking happy and well at an awards event in NY. What on earth had happened next?
The first official word we had was from a Sussex spokesperson, four brief but sensational paragraphs:
But it didn’t stop there… Someone from Team Sussex then briefed Omid Scobie (who is in no way, shape, or form, a Sussex mouthpiece) and he tweeted an even more inflammatory version of events. Claiming that it was “terrifying” as the “ring of highly aggressive paparazzi” were in “six blacked out vehicles”, it “could have been fatal” (!!) and even the great NYPD couldn’t stop them!
New York press in particular scrambled to clarify and get details from NYC police. After all, that statement seems to indicate a terrifying ordeal that “resulted in multiple near collisions” involving “pedestrians and two NYPD officers.” Serious claims.
At first, the NYPD said they had lots of phone calls, but no details, telling Christine Hauser at the New York Times:
“The New York Police Department said it did not have a report of a car chase involving the prince and Meghan in the area, and there were no reports of any injuries or a crash. There were no immediate details about the incident.”
The questions began everywhere, instantly:
How could anyone give chase for two hours in the city?
How was this kept quiet until the next day?
Why had no one in the press reported on the apparent chaos?
No one caught this on their phone?
It didn’t take long for those involved to start talking…
It was very clear that New Yorkers didn’t appreciate allegations that their city was a chaotic nightmare, and even though it’s home to numerous celebrities, that Harry and Meghan weren’t safe there.
We had comments from the NYC Mayor, NYC police, the photo agency which hired several of the freelance photographers, the cabbie, one of the photographers spoke out themselves, as did one of the security detail, and there are probably others I’m forgetting…!
Today, even People magazine and ABC’s Good Morning America (normally very sympathetic to the Sussexes) were pointing out the inconsistencies in their story, People even noting it had “seen footage” of the incident which seemed to contradict the Sussex version.
NBC was one of the first to get a timeline from a police source, which instantly changed the narrative.
Seems the Sussexes - and their security - were making strange decisions from the start.
In fact, far from a “Chase” - this night seems to have been a “Choice”
The first rule in any true emergency or situation is to get to a secure location.
But, despite having an official police escort (which has been confirmed) the Sussexes and their team chose to drive around Manhattan instead of going home, reportedly so photographers wouldn’t see where they were staying.
A bizarre choice really, as one publicist told a NY paper:
“What they did was not reasonable. We know where Beyoncé lives. We know where Taylor Swift is staying. It’s New York City. If there were any real concerns over their safety, they could’ve just pulled over.”
As for those “six blacked out vehicles” - the photo agency, BACKGRID (known for its photos of Meghan in particular) said their photographers were in cars and… wait for it… a bicycle.
The cabbie corroborated that, saying he only saw two cars, one of which was a rather normal looking Honda Accord.
It now seems probable that the SUVs causing the problems - actually belonged to Sussex security.
The Sussexes had FOUR large SUVs with them for the night. (four!!??)
"The photographers report that one of the four SUVs from Prince Harry's security escort was driving in a manner that could be perceived as reckless. The vehicle was seen blocking off streets, and in one video, it is shown being pulled over by the police."
A witness also told the paper (see Times link) that Sussex security were taunting the paps:
“With good security — which this should be — you expect them to be similar to Secret Service. These security egged on the paps.”
Then at one point, their ‘elite’ security actually chose to put them in a NY taxicab to finish the journey (!) which the cabbie said took all of 10 minutes.
Why a professional security team would hand their principals over to a random and rather surprised cabbie, is a complete mystery…
The only person corroborating the Sussex version of events is in fact a member of the security detail, not surprising given they have a reputation and business to protect, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they are sacked in short order to take the fall for this disaster.
What do we know for sure?
Harry and Meghan left their event in NY, and clearly there was a crush of professional and even amateur paparazzi.
They got into a large SUV with an accompanying private security convoy AND a police escort of at least one official car, with lights and sirens.
They bizarrely chose to drive around the city instead of going home/hotel, and then chose to stop their journey and switch to a taxicab.
Once they switched, they were home, without incident, in about ten minutes. Which makes you wonder why that wasn’t done from start?
NY police are also now briefing that their involvement actually only lasted… 20 minutes.
No one’s disputing that there were photographers, but how intense or serious it was, is another matter.
Clearly, there was a moment that was triggering for Harry, which led to the over-the-top statement of condemnation the next day. After all, it was very similar to the statements he’s released about the press and Meghan in past.
Harry also appears to have been filming on his phone, I fully expect that to be released given the news focus on their contradictions.
But if people want to make Diana comparisons, note that no one in the cab was wearing a seatbelt (seen in the photos) which is law in NY, and also would have saved Diana’s life, and their security team seems to have made a series of terrible decisions, including taunting paparazzi. Anyone else reminded of Henri Paul’s reported, "you can't catch me!" ?
In 2010 there was a very serious security incident involving King Charles and Queen Camilla. I mentioned it on Twitter because it illustrates something important. Once police are involved and on-scene, disruptions are shut down and emergencies contained quickly. It’s not just for the safety of the principals, but for the general public and bystanders.
To think that that the NYPD were unable to contain a few photographers, was unbelievable from the start, and clearly rankled the department.
We also have to remember, no one would have even known about this, if the Sussexes hadn’t announced it themselves.
Why not stick to the facts? Why release such an over-the-top statement, and then brief even more inflammatory details to certain reporters?
A cynic might point out Harry’s court case trying to get official Royal security reinstated in the UK…
One thing’s clear: It’s an absolute PR disaster for the couple.
It seems clear they exaggerated and embellished, someone actually lied to Scobie about “six blacked out vehicles” and police failing to contain photographers.
It seems their own security may actually have been part of the problem.
It means their remaining credibility is evaporating in real time.
The pool of supporters willing to give them the benefit of the doubt may also shrinking.
Most importantly - it may give pause to companies considering partnering with them.
It’s a maddening trait the Sussexes seem to have that I’ve written about before, that may prove quite costly.
Just as they’re riding a high of goodwill or positive press, they torpedo it. Meghan’s positive event has been completely overshadowed. From South Africa to this, Harry and Meghan keep ruining their own momentum.
It turns out there was actually a catastrophic event in NY… a catastrophic, self-inflicted blow to Harry and Meghan’s reputations and credibility.
A choice, not a chase.
You nailed it.
A saying is that no publicity is bad publicity, and that may explain this whole‘incident.’ These two just can’t get over themselves, and this is the perfect example of the world revolving around them. I wonder how welcome they’ll be in NYC after making such a circus out of receipt of a minor award no one had heard of?