Royal Family

Meghan Markle may be on the outs with Spotify, but she's supposedly about to be in with Dior -- that is, if you buy what a British columnist has to say about it.

Caroline Graham of the Daily Mail reported this weekend that the Duchess of Sussex might just be on the verge of signing a massive deal with the famed French couture house ... at least that's the buzz around Hollywood, as she cites her sources as saying in her piece.

Here's how one of the sources puts it ... "There have been rumors for weeks that she's about to sign a deal with Dior which has put the gossip mill into overdrive. If she pulls that off, then no one will remember that her silly little podcast got canceled after one season."

Not just that, but per the report ... MM's management team at WME has apparently been working overtime toward a major rebrand for their Royal client, with one source saying the Spotify news was a surprise to some ... but small potatoes to them based on what's coming.

As far as what sort of partnership this might be ... DM says sources are claiming Dior wants Meghan to be the "face" of the company -- similar to Charlize Theron and Jennifer Lawrence.

Of course, another recognizable face of Dior is none other than Johnny Depp -- but he's heading up the men's fragrance department ... so kinda at arm's length from anything Meg would presumably be involved in. No word on a dollar amount for this would-be signing ... but just for reference, JLaw's Dior deal is said to be around $15M, and JD's was $20M.

Considering how big a name Meghan is ... ya gotta figure hers would be well north of that.

While this news is unconfirmed, it is certainly interesting. The reason being ... Meg actually low-key wears Dior all the freakin' time -- or at the very least, a lot of the time. She's been pictured in Dior outfits several different times over the years ... as has Prince Harry.

The dude was actually rockin' Dior at King Charles' coronation last month -- so perhaps they've been telegraphing something this whole time. The brand makes sense for them.

Now, as far as podcast stuff ... DM also reports other platforms are blowing up Meg's people for a bite at the apple. And, of course, they still have their Netflix deal intact -- although, there've been rumblings that the streaming giant ain't quite happy with that either.

In any case, it sounds like Meg and Harry are far from strapped. They've cleaned up well since leaving the Royal family -- and while some deals are falling through, other doors seem to be opening at the exact same time. We'll see if this Dior thing comes to pass.

President Biden ended some remarks he gave this week on a strange note -- wishing health and prosperity on the Queen of England ... even though she's already kicked the bucket.

Joe was at the University of Hartford in Connecticut Friday, where he was giving a keynote speech for the National Safer Communities Summit ... where he was in front of a crowd featuring a ton of gun control activists. All was going well -- until the very end.

Watch ... JB starts to joke around with the crowd, and right before he leaves the podium -- he says, "Alright. God save the Queen, man." The crowd, weirdly enough, loved it.

Unclear why POTUS ended his speech this way -- for 2 reasons. One, he wasn't in England or across the pond, and definitely wasn't talking to a UK crowd. These were just regular old Americans. Of course, more importantly ... Queen Eliabeth II has been dead for months.

A lot of folks are circulating this clip/roasting Joe for it. On its face, it's just another gaffe.

While the Prez had kind words for the late monarch, her son probably would've appreciated Joe's well-wishes ... especially heading into the weekend, where he celebrated his first Trooping the Colour parade -- which is a celebration of his first year as the new King.

Charles was out there in his red military uniform, and even rode on horseback with one of those tall funny hats that cover your eyes. Indeed, he looked very Royal and prestigious.

The people of London packed the streets to see their new King, but in the end ... the spotlight wasn't totally on him the whole time -- thanks in large part to his grandson, Prince Louis. The kid goes viral from time to time for silly poses he does on the balcony.

As the people of Great Britain came to see on Saturday, he was at it again ... soaking in the glory. The little guy was having the time of his life -- and striking a lot of different poses.

Bill Simmons called Meghan Markle and Prince Harry de facto charlatans amid their Spotify exit -- and he clearly believes they brought little to nothing to the table there.

The longtime sports media personality and Ringer founder -- who made a boatload of cash in a mega-sale to Spotify a few years back, and who oversees a sea of podcasts under The Ringer brand there at Spotify as well -- trashed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in one of his latest podcast episodes ... where he did not mince words on how he felt about 'em.

BS launched into a quick and mini tirade about the Royal couple ... jokingly saying he wished he was part of their deal to leave Spotify, and then proceeded to call them "grifters."

Check it out yourself ... not only does Bill call them virtual phonies in the podcast game, but he actually drops what sounds like an F-bomb too. Adding insult to injury, he teases a story he says he has about trying to pitch PH a podcast idea over Zoom once upon a time.

Doesn't sound like that went well ... 'cause Bill obviously isn't a fan of them or their content.

Speaking of that content, reports have suggested that Meg and co. simply weren't cranking out enough of it to meet their end of the $20 million bargain. As such, some media outlets are saying they won't get paid out in full on their contract -- which is ... not great.

BTW, Harry and Meghan aren't the only people at Spotify getting kicked to the curb. It appears there's a lot of fat-trimming going on for pods that aren't producing -- Jemele Hill's losing her Spotify deal, and the Obamas lost theirs as well in the not-too-distant past.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are calling it quits on their deal with Spotify to produce their "Archetypes" podcast after one season.

In a joint statement ... the Duke and Duchess of Sussex (citing their production company, Archewell Audio) and Spotify -- a music/podcast digital service -- said they have "mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we made together."

The New York Post reported Meghan/Harry failed to generate enough content for Spotify to payout their $20 million contract in full.

But WME, the talent agency that reps Meghan, told the Wall Street Journal ... the Duchess is continuing to crank out more podcasts for her "Archetypes" fans on a different platform. No word though on where and when we can listen to the new episodes.

King Charles will celebrate his 75th birthday this year, which, if you're in the Royal Family, calls for a massive parade ... but it's the guards dressed in uniform that are paying the price for the bash.

Rehearsals were underway Saturday for Charles' Bday bash -- complete with a massive band who was forced to perform in sweltering temps of around 86°F ... about 20 degrees warmer than usual for this time of year across the pond.

It wasn't long before band members started dropping like flies, passing out from the heat ... and forcing medics to carry them off on stretchers like in a war zone.

At one point, a trombonist, dressed head to toe in a wool uniform went down, attempting to get back up and play before he was whisked away by medical reps.

Prince William, obviously aware to what had happened, tweeted out a thank you to all involved and noted the crazy temps for the area.

If you're familiar, you might know Charles' actual birthday isn't until November, but Palace officials decided it would be too cold to celebrate with a parade during that time of year.

Obviously, that decision makes Saturday's disastrous rehearsal that much more cringe ... but other than the few fainting episodes, everything else seemed to go off without issue.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shunning the royal family isn't stopping their firstborn from getting a little royal treatment -- turns out Prince Archie's got a sweet gift for his 4th birthday, simply because of his bloodline.

Archie's big surprise arrived on the doorstep of his parents' Montecito home ... a brand-spanking new bike complete with training wheels.

The little prince's birthday was May 6, and he loved the bicycle so much, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex decided to send thanks to the Montecito shop that sent it to him.

Their assistant, Harrison Colcord, typed a letter on behalf of Harry and Meghan and mailed it to the owners of Mad Dogs & Englishmen Bike Shop. If the name doesn't make it obvious ... yes, the owners are British.

It read, "On behalf of Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke, and Duchess of Sussex, please accept their sincere thanks for the thoughtful gift you sent to Prince Archie for his fourth birthday. The bike has brought much joy and is most appreciated by the family."

Archie's 4th birthday was not without drama. You might recall, Harry was treated like less-than-royalty when he attended last month's coronation of King Charles and Queen Camilla in London amid his ongoing feud with the Royal Family. Harry hightailed out of town to get back to California for Archie's birthday.

According to People ... the bike shop owner told Harry and Meghan's security he's "just a British business in town that wanted to give Archie a gift."

Things are really heating up for Prince Harry on the stand in his tabloid privacy case, getting grilled by the opposing attorney for failing to show actual proof of his claims.

The Duke of Sussex's cross-examination continued Wednesday ... where his lengthy witness statement was picked apart -- namely, pointing to the fact the guy hasn't brought any actual evidence of phone hacking, including alleged data Harry has cited.

Harry's explanation for this, so far, has been his suspicion that the Daily Mirror journos he alleges were spying on him/hacking his phone were probably using burners to cover their tracks ... plus the fact all this stuff happened so long ago, well over a decade at this point.

Then, some nitty gritty ... the opposing attorney, Andrew Green, went through several different stories that are at the center of the case -- and he broke down, one by one, why Harry thought phone hacking and/or spying was at the center of these gossipy pieces.

For example, a few articles were brought up from the mid-2000s referencing his relationship with his ex-GF Chelsy Davy -- details of which the Mirror reported on back then, including break-ups/ ups and down they'd gone through, which PH believes were reported on via illegal news-gathering tactics.

However, when pressed on why he thought that, he revealed that the unnamed "palace" sources cited in the stories couldn't have known about those things ... because he says he never discussed those things with any palace officials. There are also details from phone calls the two had that were reported on -- which cited friends as the source -- and Harry said he thought those were hacked from his voice mails.

What Green pointed out, however, is that a lot of these stories the Mirror did were actually out in other outlets too -- and sometimes even originated from other outlets, including American gossip mags -- and that they often cited anonymous sources who claimed to be in the know. What Green was getting at ... perhaps people in Harry's inner circle and/or people who worked for or with the palace provided the info, without any hacking whatsoever.

Essentially, Green was making the point that it's quite commonplace for outlets to get what some might consider inside info from well-placed sources ... and that citing anonymous sources is, oftentimes, exactly how a tabloid publication may have gotten the scoop.

Harry pushed back though ... insisting much of the content reported on by DM could've only been obtained by accessing his private records/correspondence. Green said Harry was "living in a land of total speculation" about where the info might've actually come from -- and Harry said he disagreed. They also butted heads at other points in the cross ... at one point, Green interrupted Harry (who kept turning to the judge) to say -- "Could I ask the questions?"

Long story short ... Green was making the case that a lot of what Harry's griping about had either already been out and reported on, usually citing anonymous sources, or that the Daily Mirror's stories were reported on with info that was easily accessible to the public. Harry called BS on that -- but when pressed on deets, he didn't seem to have any smoking gun. Just a lot of conviction and firm belief -- which Green consistently questioned and doubted.

Prince Harry didn't hold back during his first day of testimony in London's High Court, where he trashed the British press as he made his case over years-long alleged privacy breaches.

The Duke of Sussex was on hand, in the flesh, Tuesday ... where he hit the witness box early and reportedly read from a witness statement he'd prepared to discuss the allegations he's levied against the Daily Mirror -- the first tabloid case of his being heard.

His statement was reportedly 55 pages long, touching on everything from former associates/employees of Princess Diana -- including her ex-butler, Paul Burrell, whom he called a "two-faced s***" -- to voice mails of his that he claimed were accessed before he could ever hear them.

There's one compelling line about how he felt during the mid-2000s through the early 2010s ... the period of time at issue in the alleged phone hacking/spying case. Harry said, "Despite the common misconception, I was no more than 5% funded by the taxpayer while I was a working Royal in the UK, yet it felt as though the tabloid press thought that they owned me absolutely, and deserved to know everything there is to know about me, my life, my movements and the lives of those people who came into my orbit."

As for why he felt his phone was being hacked ... he described getting notifications for new voice mails on his phone back then -- but then seeing the notification disappear before he could even hear the audio. He says this happened often.

There's more ... Harry said stories that ran during this time about him possibly having been fathered by James Hewitt were incredibly hurtful to him, and harmed his mental health -- sparking fears he'd be ousted from the Royal Family amid speculation.

And lastly, he took direct shots at Piers Morgan ... whom he alleged was the one signing off on the alleged spying/hacking, as the guy was top dog at Daily Mirror at the time. He also alleges Piers is behind recent Mirror attacks against him and his wife, Meghan Markle.

One final telling quote from Harry ... "How much more blood will stain their typing fingers before someone can put a stop to this madness?" When cross-examined on that remark, PH responded ... "Some of the editors and journalists that are responsible for causing a lot of pain, upset and in some cases, speaking personally, death."

There was further cross-examination, in which attorneys for the Mirror asserted the articles he's suing over had actually already been written by other outlets -- and that the Mirror was simply riding the news cycle at the time with their own versions.

Prince Harry skipped the opening day of a huge trial he's at the center of -- surrounding alleged privacy breaches via UK tabloids -- and, according to the judge, it's not a good look.

The Duke of Sussex was nowhere to be found Monday as day 1 of a trial in London kicked off, where he's the key plaintiff. Remember, this is the case pertaining to the Daily Mirror -- just one of several publications Harry is suing after years of what he claims were illegal tactics used to spy on him as a youth for consistent story fodder.

While Harry was officially expected to take the stand Tuesday, the magistrate in this case -- Judge Timothy Fancourt -- had actually instructed PH to be there from the jump ... just in case they got through opening statements quickly and could get to his testimony sooner than later. Fancourt reportedly said he was quite surprised by the Prince's absence.

As for why Harry bailed, his attorney told the court his travel arrangements were hindered by security requirements ... not to mention his daughter's bday party. Lilibet turned 2 over the weekend, and Harry is said to have hopped on a plane to London right after that.

Despite apparently being in town, Harry's lawyer says he wasn't able to appear in court -- something that the attorneys for the Daily Mirror scoffed at ... as they were prepared to grill him about the articles he claims they ran that allegedly stemmed from dirty journalism.

Prince Harry's legal war with the British press over alleged phone hacking is coming to a head this week when a trial is set to start ... and where he might even take the stand early.

The Duke of Sussex is reportedly expected to appear in a London court this upcoming week, and the word is ... he might even testify as early as Tuesday. The case being heard stems from a lawsuit he and others have filed against the parent company of the Daily Mirror.

This is just of a handful of publications he's suing ... all of which revolved around allegations of phone hacking, invasion of privacy and, effectively, spying on him and other members of the Royal Family dating back several years -- something PH is trying to rectify now.

The Daily Mirror case is going to be hashed out in court first, and Harry's likely testimony could actually be historic -- as he'll be the first senior Royal (or ex, rather) to testify in court as a witness offering evidence like this in a long time.

The last time it happened was way back in 1891, when King Edward VII (before he was actually king) testified in a slander case.

What Harry's suing over, in this particular case, is 33 of 150 stories about himself that the Daily Mirror published between 1995 and 2011 -- a period of time from which he claims these stories were produced via illegal tactics in Britain ... like alleged phone hacking, etc.

The Mirror has actually conceded in court docs that Harry and co. have a point about some unethical tactics they've employed over time, but they haven't fessed up on these specific stories he's citing. As such, he's dragging them into court to have it heard before a judge.

You'll recall ... Harry showed up across the pond back in March for another case he's pursuing against yet another tabloid parent company -- namely, Associated Newspapers, which publishes and distributes the Daily Mail, among other publications.

In that case, Elton John is a plaintiff as well ... as are other celebrities taking up Harry's cause in solidarity.

Like we said, he's suing a bunch of them -- and seems determined to take them all down ... one by one. If he's testifying for the Daily Mirror case, presumably he'll testify in others.

All eyes on Harold. 👀

Prince Harry's team fought like hell overseas to get police protection when he and his family are in England, but the court shot them down ... a rejection that comes amid Harry and Meghan Markle's controversial NYC "chase."

For those unaware, Harry and Meghan had their UK taxpayer-funded protection revoked in 2020 after moving away, and stepping down as working senior royals. His legal team was in court last week trying to get back that protection, but London's High Court said no way.

During the one-day hearing, Harry's attorneys claimed the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures -- which ordered the removal of his protection -- had no right to reject his bid to pay police for some security detail.

Lawyers on the other side argued allowing him the privilege would open up similar situations for wealthy people ... something they saw as dangerous, and the High Court agreed.

The hearing happened one day before the NYC "chase," -- something Harry and Meghan's camp called "near catastrophic" ... although NYPD, and others, said that account was an exaggeration.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are trying to put the squeeze on a photo agency that claimed their freelance paparazzi who followed the couple Tuesday night were not, as M&H claimed, "highly aggressive" and didn't cause a near-collision.

Harry and Meghan's legal team fired off a letter to the Backgrid photo agency, claiming in part they need the agency's footage of the "chase" to shore up their own security, adding ... "We hereby demand that Backgrid immediately provide us with copies of all photos, videos, and/or films taken last night by the freelance photographers after the couple left their event and over the next several hours."

Backgrid's lawyer has rejected the Sussex's demand, saying in a letter ... "In America, as I'm sure you know, property belongs to the owner of it: Third parties cannot just demand it be given to them, as perhaps Kings can do. Perhaps you should sit down with your client and advise them that his English rules of royal prerogative to demand that the citizenry hand over their property to the Crown were rejected by this country long ago. We stand by our founding fathers."

Backgrid says they had 4 photogs, 3 in cars and one on a bike, adding they "had no intention of causing any distress or harm, as their only tool was their cameras."

There's no legal basis for Backgrid to turn over its footage -- no lawsuit has been filed that would require the agency to turn over documents. Nevertheless, the demand was made.

As we reported, Harry and Meghan's team called their encounter with paps "near catastrophic," but NYPD sources say that's way overblown.

NYC Mayor Eric Adams is calling out the paparazzi for tailing Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in a "near catastrophic" high-speed chase ... saying the whole thing is irresponsible and dangerous.

Mayor Adams weighed in on the incident Wednesday morning during a public safety announcement about retail theft ... calling the whole thing especially reckless in NYC because of the dense population and traffic. Adams was especially pissed that two NYPD officers could have been injured -- not to mention Harry, Meghan, and innocent bystanders.

The mayor added, "It's clear that the press, paparazzi, they want to get the right shot, they want to get the right story, but public safety must always be at the forefront."

As we reported, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were involved in a dangerous high-speed chase Tuesday night. The chase lasted about two hours and, according to H&M's reps, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians, and officers. Markle's mom was also in the SUV with them before they all jumped into a taxi to get away.

Adams emphasized, "I don't think there's many of us who don't recall how his mom died" -- obviously referring to Harry's mom Princess Diana, who was killed in a '97 crash after paps chased her car in Paris.

The mayor noted that it's hard to believe paps were chasing them around at full speed for the full two hours, but regardless he says even 10 minutes is too long.

Prince Harry must have had a bone-chilling case of deja vu Tuesday night after he and Meghan Markle were followed by paparazzi in what his people are calling a "near catastrophic" car chase.

As we reported, Meghan received an award at a ceremony earlier in the evening that Harry and Meghan's mom attended, after which they left and got into an SUV followed by police. Apparently, that's when the chase was on.

A spokesperson for Harry and Meghan said, "This relentless pursuit, lasting over 2 hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and 2 NYPD officers."

At some point during the chase, the SUV pulled over and the trio jumped in a New York taxi and beat a hasty retreat. It looks like the cops tried to outwit the paps by driving in a different direction than the cab.

Sources say the paparazzi were in a half-dozen blacked-out vehicles, claiming the traffic violations included driving on the sidewalk, running red lights and driving the wrong way on a one-way street.

This obviously brings back tragic memories of Harry's mom, Princess Diana, who was killed in a 1997 crash where paparazzi chased her car in Paris.

One of the searing images from the tragedy ... 12-year-old Harry and his brother, 15-year-old Prince William silently walking behind her casket.

Originally Published -- 7:37 AM PT

A scary situation for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, as a man was arrested at the couple's home for stalking ... TMZ has learned.

A rep for the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office tells us they got a call Monday morning, around 2 AM, from security staffers at Harry and Meghan's Montecito mansion for a man near the property.

We're told 29-year-old Kevin Garcia Valdovinos was placed under citizen's arrest by Harry and Meghan's security at the entrance to the property. Once cops arrived, they took him into custody and booked him for misdemeanor stalking. Valdovinos was later released on $2,500 bail.

The law under which Valdovinos was arrested indicates whatever he did, he's done before ... which makes sense because he never actually made it on the property. We know he told security something that triggered this arrest, though the sheriff is not saying what that was ... it's now up to prosecutors to decide the next steps.

It's unclear if Harry and Meghan were home at the time of the incident, but it's not the first time an intruder has been arrested at or near their home.

TMZ broke the story ... back on Christmas Eve 2020, a man named Nickolas Brooks, who apparently drove all the way from Ohio, was dinged for trespassing on the property -- but he was let off with a warning. However, cops say Brooks returned yet again on December 26, 2020, and was arrested for trespassing.

We've reached out to Harry and Meghan's reps ... so far, no word back.

Meghan Markle received her own coronation of sorts Tuesday night in NYC.

The Duchess of Sussex and hubby Prince Harry flew to the Big Apple to attend a fancy-schmancy gala honoring Meghan with a Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Award from her friend and political activist Gloria Steinem.

It was Meghan's first public appearance since she skipped the coronation of her father-in-law, King Charles, and his wife, Queen Camilla, earlier this month in London.

As you know, Harry went solo to the coronation and had an awkward time with his royal family given all of their drama. Since then, Harry and Meghan have kept a low profile only being seen -- briefly we might add -- leaving a sushi restaurant in Montecito.

But now they've come out of their shell. Check out video of Meghan and Harry arriving in an SUV to the awards ceremony at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in Manhattan. As shutterbugs snapped photos, Harry jumped out of the backseat followed by Meghan, who looked stunning in a Johanna Ortiz gold dress. Meghan's mom, Doria, also tagged along.

After the three went inside, Meghan hit the stage and accepted the award from Steinem for her advocacy work to empower women. She delivered a speech, giving a shout-out to her mom and thanking Steinem for being a mentor. She also talked about the impact "Ms." magazine had on her life growing up.

Harry and Meghan then left exactly how they came in -- surrounded by paparazzi and flashing cameras. The couple jumped into the back of an SUV, which then drove off.