Are we sure Prince Harry is the Duke of Sussex and not the Duke of Bad Timing? Months after his latest TV production was announced, and years after the last product of his partnership with Netflix came out, the estranged royal’s next streaming series has finally offered a first look… and it could not have been more poorly timed.
This Monday saw the Royal-watching world gushing with sympathy for Kate Middleton after the Princess of Wales released a poignant video message announcing that she had completed her chemotherapy treatment after being diagnosed with cancer at the beginning of the year. Just hours later, Netflix merrily announced Prince Harry’s new show.
Even though this was likely nothing to do with the prince and all to do with the streamer’s PR team, it’s not exactly helping Harry beat the accusations that he likes to hog the limelight.
Prince Harry’s new Netflix show offers first look… just hours after Kate Middleton’s emotional cancer update
Those eager for more scandalous revelations about the Royal family have already been let down by Harry when it was announced the paperback release of his memoir Spare won’t include any fresh material upon hitting shelves in October. Likewise, anyone hoping for a second season of Harry and Meghan Markle’s tell-all docuseries from 2021 may feel a tad underwhelmed by this long-awaited new show from the duke. Horse lovers, though, this one’s for you.
Titled POLO, Harry’s new series is dedicated to his favorite sport — the prince has remained an active member of the polo scene even after his Royal split. As per the official Netflix logline for the show, which was first announced in April, “POLO is a new documentary series that follows elite global players and offers an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at the fast-paced world of the sport. From Archewell Productions and Boardwalk Pictures, premiering this December only on Netflix.”
As the four first-look images don’t feature Harry at all, it would be easy to miss that this production even comes from the prince (and, yes, he will appear in it). Those who know their stuff, however, will recognize that Archewell Productions is Harry and Meghan’s production company. Meghan herself has her own Netflix series on the way, a cozy lifestyle and cooking show, tying into her new American Riviera Orchard brand. As has been noted before, it seems like the Sussexes are keen to keep any bad blood between themselves and the Royals at a minimum right now.
That’s why it’s awkward that Netflix chose to unveil POLO to the world on the very same day as Kate’s own announcement. Especially as it comes hot on the heels of the Spare paperback coming out right when King Charles has perhaps his biggest moment as monarch yet. With POLO confirmed to release in December, at this point it’s bound to drop on the same day Prince William appears on the cover of GQ – and if you don’t know what that’s about then clearly you missed the whole “Will-Yum” development.
