Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, in conversation with Oprah Winfrey.Joe Pugliese/Harpo Productions via AP
The doing and grubbings of the British Royal Family are of little interest to me. One must acknowledge the public’s interest, however. Every few years, there’s another TV spectacle. Once upon a time it was Sarah, Duchess of York, spilling the beans to Oprah Winfrey and another time it was Princess Diana being terribly, terribly frank with the BBC’s Martin Bashir.
Among other things the Duchess of York said this: “I must explain that the British press at the moment is completely and utterly cruel and abusive and so invasive.” That was 24 years ago.
Yes, think about that as you contemplate Oprah with Meghan and Harry (Sunday, CBS, Global 8 p.m.), the much-hyped and teased TV special. Of course there’s an appetite for another explosive royal tell-all, but they can get a bit repetitive, can’t they? Meghan and Harry have long complained about the British tabloids’ treatment of Meghan. You could form the impression that these people read tabloids obsessively and you could ask “why bother?”
Binge-watching guide: More than 30 series and specials to help you get through winter
One supposes they bother because they see the tabloid treatment of Meghan, whose father is white and mother is African-American, as subtle racism, bullying and abusive. Thus we enter into the tangled area of class and race, an area that is Oprah’s specialty. Still, that raises another question – why put these toffs at the centre of the issue when there is so much about race and class in the United States that cries out for coverage?
This particular spectacle has its own ambience. Oprah and the couple are near-neighbours in that part of Southern California where the super-rich and famous live. It could be considered the couple’s coming-out event, entering American celebrity culture helped by a good friend and neighbour.
The gist – or what can be garnered from the segments released in advance – is that Meghan spills the beans about life inside the Royal Family and Harry again complains about the media to the media-Queen of the United States. Maybe Oprah will ask Meghan, as she did Sarah, “Did you get to keep the tiara?”
In the atmosphere surrounding the TV special there exist layers of meaning that are essentially meaningless. The anti-Harry and Meghan faction in Britain says Meghan bullied staff and The Times reports that Buckingham Palace is investigating. Feelings run high, with the drearily disagreeable Piers Morgan saying this: “Ms. Markle thinks she’s in a movie. This interview is going to be Oscar-winning deluded self-serving bilge.” Meanwhile, others take the view that while at least Harry and Meghan are game for interviews in the United States, Prince Andrew hasn’t been so forthcoming.
This isn’t an episode of The Crown. It’s about some people who are rich, famous and unhappy about something or other that may matter and might be piffle. Before you watch, ask if you might hate yourself later.
Also available this weekend
Creator Liam Williams defines 'laddishness' as 'male recklessness and fecklessness.'Courtesy of CBC Gem
Ladhood (streams on CBC Gem from Friday) is a recent BBC series that received high praise over there, even a comparison with Fleabag. That’s going too far but this series is unique and plays with the wall between the action and viewer with some good flourishes.
The creation of Liam Williams, a comic, actor and writer noted for his dry, caustic approach to stories from his own life, it puts the adult Williams inside his youth. That is, actors portray him, teenage friends and community while the real adult Williams hovers nearby, offering commentary on what’s happening and why the events shaped him. His theme is “laddishness”, what Williams defines as “male recklessness and fecklessness.” The impulse to fight other men, be dismissive of women’s emotions and in general drink and brawl even while defining yourself as a smart sensitive man. There’s wry, delicious humour. Highly unusual in style, definitely recommended.
You’ve rarely seen such charm as Year of the Goat.Courtesy of CBC Gem
Year of the Goat (Saturday, CBC, 8 p.m. on CBC Docs POV) is a repeat but a delight, in case you missed it last year. It’s summarized as this: “Five dairy goat breeder families juggle their farms, work and an intensive show season while caring for all of their two – and four-legged – kids.” In fact, it’s all so jolly, charming and beguiling that this one program could start a trend – people departing Toronto to take up goat-breeding in the bucolic rural terrain of Southern Ontario. Honestly, you’ve rarely seen such charm.
I May Destroy You stars Michaela Coel.LAURA RADFORD/HBO / Crave
Finally, note that a marathon of I May Destroy You begins Saturday (HBO Canada, 9 p.m.). One of the best series of 2020 is a spellbinding exploration of sexual-assault trauma that manages to be funny, nuanced and wise.
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