The Duchess of Sussex, always in the spotlight for her relationships with her employees, gave personalized gifts to screenwriters, sound technicians, and cameramen.
Meghan Markle is in the news for the Netflix premiere of her lifestyle, cooking, and gardening series, Love, Meghan. This audiovisual work shows her most intimate and personal side and teaches viewers how to be the perfect hostess. In this production, the Duchess of Sussex shows us some of her closest friends and favorite chefs, while also giving insights into her childhood, her children, and her husband, Prince Harry.
But what has also caught our attention is how Meghan breaks the so-called fourth wall and involves members of the Netflix team in her episodes. The director, cameramen, and sound technicians are shown tasting Meghan's food in an attempt to show the making of the series, to make it more relatable, and to change her image as a boss, which was so talked about when she was in the United Kingdom and part of the Royal Family.
Meghan Markle prepared a wide variety of drinks and snacks on set because, according to People, she envisioned this audiovisual experience as a "communal" experience, where the crew was not only behind the camera but also part of the action. "She would prepare a recipe and say, 'Try this.'" Michael Steed, director of Love, Meghan, who previously worked on Anthony Bourdain's Emmy-winning series, Parts Unknown, told the American magazine about her role, "It was unexpected, but I embraced it... It was a lot of fun. She was always going to be the topic of conversation, so she had someone to talk to at all times, and it made everything more comfortable." But it certainly evolved to the point where the cameras were on me too.”
Steed also spoke about his boss's culinary skills (Meghan Markle is an executive producer): “Her cooking is pretty perfect. She's not a chef, and she definitely doesn't intend to make it seem like one, but there's a love for cooking that's palpable.” The director also explains that perfection wasn't the goal in this documentary. “For me, imperfection is a wonderful thing. It was fun watching her try to get used to the kitchen, because it's not her place, so we didn't hide that.” I really wanted to celebrate all the mistakes and the messiness, and all of those things are good.” As for Meghan’s presence on set, the director describes her as “friendly” and approachable, creating a “comfortable environment” for everyone involved. “Meghan, as a person, is totally Los Angeles, California, through and through,” he adds.
He also adds that Meghan was incredibly “warm,” “approachable,” and “genuine.” “She made sure everyone felt included, from the Netflix executives to our director to all the production assistants on set. No one was left out.” During a break in filming, Meghan asked everyone what their favorite cocktails were. “I told them I stopped drinking when I became a father, so I've been sober for almost 14 years,” the filmmaker added.
The hospitality Meghan exudes in her documentary also extended to the film crew, surprising them with something every week. “Whether it was a coffee cart in the morning or a day when it was going to be really hot, she had an ice truck for us at lunchtime. One day she brought a cart of homemade ice cream and another with acai. She did something like that for us every week, it was really lovely.”
The gift she gave the crew at the end of the series
As we said, Meghan always made sure everyone tried what she made. “She's a great hostess.” Between takes, if something was ready to eat, he would cut it into bite-sized pieces and serve it to us.” A kindness that can be extrapolated to Prince Harry. “Whenever he visited the set, he was very kind and polite, but it was clear he wanted this to be Meghan's moment to shine.” The Duchess was also especially “attentive and caring” when her children, Archie and Lilibet, were watching. “We left them headphones so they could listen to the audio.”
At the end of filming, Meghan gave her crew a gift. “She gave us an Our Place sauté pan and a spoon with her personal monogram that said ‘Thank you, team.’ These pans are priced at around €115.” The show will have a second season, as Meghan Markle announced on her social media.
