@aftershocks the reason I asked you about Tumblr fanfic is that you're determined to write this narrative, based on nothing in particular, that there's this nefarious plan by Evil William to use his brother as a punching bag in order to cover up for his own Evil Misdeeds. There is absolutely no evidence for this. The evidence points towards something much more mundane -- that a brother gets married and the wife doesn't really get on with the in-laws. It happens every day, everywhere. It doesn't make anyone a bad person. People often just don't get on with their in-laws.
You also seem willing to ignore something that actually was a narrative -- the fact that while the Royal Rota and reliable news sources were covering Prince Andrew's misdeeds, the tabloids were inundating us with nonsense about feuds between Kate and Meghan. So MAYBE you could make the case that the royal family used Meghan as a shield to cover up much more embarrassing behavior from Andrew. But even as I said the royal rota was covering Andrew consistently. So much so that Andrew decided to take matters into his own hands with the disastrous BBC interview.
The Royal Rota was not and is not covering Andrew consistently. They aided and abetted in the sweeping of Andrew's Epstein-related transgressions under the rug over a number of years. Of course Andrew's people were part of leaking stories to the press about Meghan. I suspect Andrew's people were behind the week-late dredging up of the faux, non-story about Meghan's visit to Wimbledon last year because it was around the time that Epstein resurfaced in the news in the U.S.
Of course the Kate vs Meghan faux feud stories and the dragging of Meghan which began after the Sussexes' returned from their successful South Pacific tour were used to 'shield and cover-up more embarrassing' scuttlebutt about William's gossiped affair with Rose Hanbury and about Andrew's more serious Epstein problems. As well, the Kate vs. Meghan nonsense served to shield attention away from the real feuding between Harry & William, and the breakdown of their relationship. The fact that the brothers were sibling rivals since childhood and always got into arguments with each other and with their father was rarely talked about publicly because Camilla was formerly the tabloid media's go-to target in a bunch of questionable stories about how she dislikes Kate and they are always at loggerheads -- not true. The actual truth is that Kate and the York sisters have been frosty. That's why Bea and Eugenie wore those OTT hats to W&K's 2011 wedding, and because they were miffed about their mother not having been invited.
It is also true (as confirmed in part by the earlier documentary I linked) that the age-old portrayal of Harry as the wild, 'mentally unstable' spare & third wheel vs calm, supportive, level-headed William heir to the throne, is always used as the go-to fictional narrative. In reality, behind-the-scenes, everyone knows how difficult both brothers can be and have been. Neither one of them are angels. But at least Harry had to learn from his mistakes the hard way, and he finally grew up while serving in the military, and he began to come to some grips with his grief over his mother's death through creating Sentebale in Botswana with Prince Seeiso, and later founding the Invictus Games. And then voila! Harry had the good fortune to meet and fall in love with Meghan Markle. But life in the British royal family is not a fairy tale and once again, we are seeing that reality being played out. At least those of us who aren't drinking the kool-aid or being bamboozled by the tabloids and the 'gray men,' may have a better bead on what's been happening inside the gilded cage/ behind palace walls.
As opposed to Harry, William has never learned from his mistakes because he's never had to. That's the blessing and the curse of being heir to the British throne. A lot of the public surely find it difficult to believe ill of William and I can sympathize with that. I had a hard time believing ill of William too, until it became all too clear. OTOH, I wonder why it's easier for some people to think ill of Meghan, and by extension, of Harry? I always try to do my homework and read between the lines, and take my time before jumping to conclusions. At first, I didn't believe some of the stories about William. By now, it's obvious to me what has been happening, albeit still difficult for most people to believe, especially since it's crucial for the monarchy that the golden boy heir to the throne not have too much light shed on his shortcomings.
I read widely, and I've been closely following the royals since 2016. Before that I was a Diana fan, and a British royal aficionado dating back to the 1970s. I've read a number of biographies, watched documentaries, interviews, read books about British culture and the history of the British monarchy. I don't think I know everything, but I am able to put a lot of things into perspective, and also use common sense and navigate the mountain of crap and misdirected narratives.
Of course the dynamic changes when someone new marries into the family. But why is Meghan being so heavily scapegoated? The simple reality is that Meghan and Harry fell deeply in love and it's a rare love that incites jealousy. Plus, Meghan is unexpected and different, and thereby not fully accepted by some people. M&H nurtured their love and their bond grew, and Harry was determined to marry her and he was optimistic about them both being able to weather the serious problems that he knew existed behind palace walls. Harry's first-hand knowledge of the difficulties of being a Windsor is one reason why he wanted to step down from being a senior royal while in his 20s. He only remained back then out of love and respect for his grandmother. Marrying and having a son and being blessed to have the family he's always wanted has understandably shifted his priorities. But the scorched-earth slamming of his wife and the triggered memories of what happened to his mother, and especially the birth of Archie gave Harry the resolve to protect his marriage and his young family.
Initially, I don't think Harry fully anticipated his brother's and his sister-in-law's reactions to the over-attention he and Meghan have received in the media. Much less did Harry probably expect his wife to be targeted in the way she was from inside the palace. That's partly the reason they moved away from KP to Frogmore: it was the leaks which gave the press carte blanche against Meghan while she was pregnant! You don't have to believe why this happened against Meghan or even accept that it did happen (which is patently obvious if you read the British tabloid headlines from the fall of 2018 through to the present). Even going back to the fall of 2016, the tabloid media's attitude toward Meghan is obvious. Instead of the interest in M&H waning after their marriage, it only increased, which made them even more hot commodities and useful targets for the press and palace insiders.
There's a lot of jealousy, insecurity, and p.r. wrangling with the media going on as usual among the British royals. But way beyond the M&H saga is the simple fact that the British monarchy is going through a huge transition, which was happening well before Harry met Meghan. M&H coming together has only been the added spark that has brought enormous attention to the British royals, which has even further complicated the already complex relationship between the royals and the media. Bottom line: The Queen will not live forever, and the gray men and other palace staffers are fighting for their survival, just as the Windsors have been infighting, and just as the monarchy is always fighting for its continuation and popularity in the public imagination. A lot of courtiers and palace staffers will be without a job when the Queen dies, so the transitional infighting has been ensuing for awhile (e.g., between Charles & Andrew and their staffs, which culminated in the Queen's private secretary, Sir Christopher Geidt, stepping down in 2017, the same year that Prince Philip* retired from public duties). Meghan & Harry have simply served as convenient scapegoats amidst this current dramatic soap opera the royal family is experiencing.
*Another thing to keep in mind is that the Queen always left the family squabbles and family infighting to Prince Philip to sort out. Of course, Philip can't serve QE-II in sorting out family issues anymore. Obviously, Philip hasn't been the strong arm enforcer in the family arena for quite some time.
In the opening monologue by the Australian bottom-feeder host, how on earth can M&H stepping down from royal duties be "more gobsmacking" than Prince Andrew's association with Jeffrey Epstein? 
