The courtiers want to ‘ban’ the Sussexes from filming anything at Frogmore Cottage

For a chunk of the weekend, one of the top royal stories on the Daily Mail was about how the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would stay at Frogmore Cottage during their visit to the UK for the Platinum Jubbly. Which isn’t really news, but here we are. Of course they will stay at Frogmore – they paid for the extensive renovations on that dilapidated shack and Harry renewed the lease on the cottage so that they could maintain some kind of residence in the UK. The Mail didn’t even mention the reporting on how Charles apparently “reached out” to Harry in December/January and offered the Sussex family a place to stay on their next visit.

Now, I imagine it will be cramped at Frogmore, with Princess Eugenie, Jack and baby August all living there, and here comes the Sussex family of four. They honestly should be staying at Windsor Castle, but that’s not what the Mail story was about at all. Anyway, given that Frogmore is going to be cramped with seven people there for a week, what are the chances that Harry and Meghan would ALSO bring a Netflix film crew? LMAO. But such is the concern from palace aides, who are terribly burdened with worry that Harry and Meghan could perhaps “film” something inside Frogmore Cottage.

Netflix bosses hope the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will film at their first family home during their upcoming Jubilee visit. It is understood Harry and Meghan and kids Archie, three, and Lilibet, 11 months, will stay at Windsor’s Frogmore Cottage for next month’s celebrations. But it is uncertain if Palace aides will attempt to block Netflix cameras from filming the Sussexes there. A royal expert said a ring of steel has been put around the Queen and advisers have warned Harry and Meghan against using her for a Netflix documentary.

A consultant for the streaming firm said pressure is growing on the couple for ­exclusive royal footage. Another possible glitch in filming at Frogmore Cottage is it would need ­approval from the current residents – the Queen’s granddaughter Princess Eugenie and husband Jack Brooksbank, who have 15-month-old child August Philip.

A US consultant for Netflix said: “The Jubilee is the biggest gathering of UK royals in years and means that Harry and Meghan will be around everyone. Away from the public presentation of unity between the brands, the chiefs want exclusive footage and their dream is to have insights in that royal world never seen before. What goes on at Frogmore Cottage is effectively private interactions between family. Frogmore is a grey area in terms of whether it comes under full-time ­jurisdiction of the courtiers. If everyone agrees to filming scenes there, that would be exclusive, unique material never seen before. The dynamics of that are still a tricky matter, especially with some courtiers pushing for the Duke and Duchess to not film at any royal residences.”

[From The Daily Mirror]

At this point, the courtiers are practically begging the Sussexes to please bring a Netflix crew in so they can say “film this and this but not this!!” Harry is coming to see his grandmother, Meghan is there to support her husband and the babies will get to meet their great-grandmother and grandfather. End of story. It has nothing to do with Netflix or Spotify or BetterUp or whatever else. If Harry and Meghan “film” anything at Frogmore, it will be on their iPhone, for personal use. Like maybe a private birthday party for Lili. Incidentally, I’m curious if the courtiers are equally upset at the idea that Harry and Meghan could conceivably record a podcast within Frogmore. OH THE HUMANITY!!

PS… The Mirror’s “US consultant for Netflix” is a British royal reporter.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.