Meghan Markle’s career move defended by close friend following ‘tumultuous criticism’

Hundreds of fans were left bemused with both series of With Love, Meghan, but one of the Duchess of Sussex’s close friends was able to defend her

Meghan Markle in a blue and white striped shirt, looks ahead with a serious expression.

eghan Markle earned plenty of criticism when With Love, Meghan aired on Netflix last year, with the lifestyle show being described at one point as “an utterly deranged bizarro world voyage into the centre of nothing”.

However, appearing on Vanessa on Wednesday, the show was defended by one of the Duchess of Sussex’s friends, Queer Eye star and fashion designer Tan France, who previously appeared in an episode of the show.

During the segment, host Vanessa Feltz brought up how Meghan had come in for “tumultuous criticism” when the show aired, highlighting a segment where the mother-of-two poured pretzels into a bag before tying it with a ribbon.

Addressing this, Tan said: “Being from the UK, but living in the US, I think I understand both equally well. It was never going to be for the Brits. The Brits are too cynical, they don’t care about the whimsy, they’re too busy getting on with real life.”

He continued: “Life’s hard in England, they haven’t got time to make a charcuterie board pretty. There’s no reason.”

The fashion designer was also asked whether he considered giving Meghan fashion advice, to which he responded: “Do you know what? She dresses wicked. She doesn’t need my advice. She’s a really chic dresser. I like the way she dresses a lot.

Tan France in a black suit with white lace shirt stands in an empty theater.© Dave Benett/Getty Images
Tan defended his friend

“I won’t give advice unless somebody asks, but even if she asks, there’s nothing I could say. She usually looks fab.”

Meghan’s lifestyle show

The programme, which aired two seasons and a holiday special, saw the Duchess cook and do crafts, featuring her own at-home recipes and chatting with celebrity guests. The lifestyle programme in many ways paid homage to Meghan’s roots, as she ran a blog called The Tig before she married Prince Harry in 2018.

However, the show failed to crack the top 1,000 most-watched programmes on the platform. The second season of With Love, Meghan was the 1,124th most-watched show between July and December 2025, with two million views, according to data released by the platform.

Meghan Markle polka dot skirt on With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration© Netflix
Meghan had her own Netflix show

This meant it came below Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug & Cat Noir: Season 2: Part 2 in the rankings, and below programmes including Downton Abbey, Superstore and Franklin & Bash, which are all several years old.

Despite reports that the show had been axed by the streaming service, it has been confirmed that additional holiday specials are in the works.

CRE: https://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/905290/meghan-markle-with-love-meghan-defended-tan-france/