According to Bower, Meghan initially approached a wealthy individual at a gathering, expressing interest in spending time together and acquiring their contact information.
The following day, Harry made a call to this person, asking if they could borrow their beach house, to which they agreed.
However, it was observed that Meghan had initiated the contact, and Harry was subsequently tasked with making subsequent calls for favors.
On another occasion, Harry reached out to the same person, this time inquiring about the possibility of using their private jet to travel to the aforementioned borrowed beach house. Unfortunately for the couple, their request was denied.
Bower suggests that this pattern of behavior might have extended to their interactions with other well-known individuals such as George Clooney, Tyler Perry, and Elton John. In his memoir, Harry's former butler also claimed that both Netflix and Spotify had grown weary of the incessant requests and favors they had to endure from the couple.
Additionally, in the book titled "The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor, the Truth, and the Turmoil," Tina Brown recounts Meghan's pursuit of a leading lady status within the UK. Brown reveals that Meghan's blog, "The Tig," played a role in acquiring luxury freebies. According to the book, Meghan developed a reputation among luxury brand marketers for actively seeking free designer items. Allegedly, this behavior persisted even after Meghan officially became a member of the Royal Family.
According to an alleged message from Megan's team, she expressed a desire to continue receiving freebies from a particular publicist, indicating that she was always appreciative of such gestures. The issue of accepting presents while being a working member of the Royal Family had previously raised questions.
Royal expert Camilla Tominey, writing in The Telegraph, highlighted an instance where Meghan expected to keep some of the dresses she had been loaned, which was against royal protocol regarding gifts from commercial organizations.
According to royal rules, gifts offered by businesses in the UK should generally be declined, unless they are intended as souvenirs of an official visit or to mark a royal marriage or personal occasion. Consent from the royal family members to accept gifts should depend on the business not exploiting them for commercial purposes.
Gifts, if accepted, should be returned unless the cost makes it unjustified. If not returned, they are treated as official gifts, which are not the private property of the royal recipient, but received on behalf of the monarch and should be traceable.
Royal author Valentin Lowe highlighted clashes between Meghan and her assistant Melissa Toubati, centered around three gifts sent by certain companies. Toubati adhered strictly to the household rule prohibiting royal family members from accepting freebies from commercial organizations. This approach did not sit well with Meghan, who had to be informed that keeping clothes sent by fashion labels was against royal protocol.
Sources from the palace reportedly mentioned the conflict between Meghan's previous experience as an actress, where receiving freebies from fashion chains and designer labels was acceptable, and the expectations as a member of the Royal Family, where such practices were discouraged.
