In the second season of her Netflix series With Love, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, reflects on a particularly difficult period—being separated from her children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. Reportedly, she stayed away from her children for three weeks. While she doesn’t mention the event explicitly, the timing suggests she’s referring to Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.
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The moment offers a rare insight into how hard that time was for Meghan, and also echoes Prince Harry’s words in his memoir Spare. Here’s everything we know!
Meghan opens up about missing her children on her Netflix show
In a heartfelt exchange with Queer Eye star Tan France during episode three of With Love, Meghan, season two, Meghan opened up about the challenges of being away from her children.
France, discussing his own attachment to his two sons, confessed:
I might die without my kids. I need my boys. If I don’t see them for a couple of days, I feel like my heart is broken.
Meghan responded with her own experience and said:
Oh I know. The longest I went without being around our kids was almost three weeks. I was...not well.
Although she doesn’t name the event, the timeline of Meghan’s absence from Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet corresponds with the couple’s 2022 trip to the U.K., which was unexpectedly extended following the death of Queen Elizabeth II. The Duke and Duchess had travelled to Europe for charitable engagements but remained for the funeral ceremonies, spending 17 days away from their children.
Prince Harry later addressed this separation in his 2023 memoir Spare, he wrote:
Our quick trip would now be an odyssey. Another ten days, at least. Difficult days at that.
Adding:
More, we'd have to be away from the children for longer than we'd planned, longer than we'd ever been.
Their shared reflections give insight into how profoundly the time apart affected both Meghan and Harry as parents, adding an emotional layer to the public period of mourning.
Critics slam season two of With Love, Meghan
While the Duchess’s emotional candidness has drawn attention, the series itself has not fared well with critics. The second season of With Love, Meghan dropped on Netflix earlier this week, five months after its debut season, and reactions have been swift and unkind.
In a two-star review, The Guardian’s Lucy Mangan described the show as 'so painfully contrived that it’s genuinely fascinating,' and ultimately, 'boring.' The Timescritic Hilary Rose was more scathing, writing that it 'occupies the sweet spot where irrelevant meets intolerable.'
The Telegraph’s Anita Singh gave another two-star rating, criticising the show’s 'tone-deafness' and calling Meghan a 'Montecito Marie Antoinette.' Meanwhile, The Independent was even harsher, offering a one-star review and likening the viewing experience to being 'gaslit by a multimillionaire.'
Despite the critical drubbing, Netflix has signed a new deal with Archewell Productions, albeit reportedly for a lower amount and with less commitment than their initial $100 million agreement. The platform will continue with a holiday episode of With Love, Meghan and a film adaptation of Meet Me at the Lake.
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Sources used:
People: Meghan Markle Breaks Her Silence on Being Away from Archie and Lilibet During Queen Elizabeth’s Funeral: 'I Was Not Well'
Forbes: Meghan Markle’s ‘With Love, Meghan’ Drops Second Season And Gets Torched By Critics—Again
