Meghan Markle was photographed enjoying a day of shopping in California with a pal, a relief from the recent criticism she has received for her days as a Deal or No Deal model.
The Duchess of Sussex went shopping in Montecito, where she lives with Prince Harry and their children, on Friday.
The prince wore a black, sleeveless sweater with flat sandals, sunglasses, and a wide-brimmed hat. Additionally, she was seen with an olive sweater draped over her shoulders.
Meghan was carrying items from Wendy Foster, an upscale women’s sportswear business where outfits cost hundreds of dollars. The retailer’s website only sells $1,000-and-up gift cards for its shops.
The outing comes as the Duchess faces criticism for disparaging remarks she made about her employment as a ‘briefcase girl’ on Deal or No Deal, stating that the show’reduced her to a bimbo.’
Meghan was spotted having lunch in nearby Santa Barbara in conjunction with her visit to the Pierre La Fond outlet in Montecito.
The Duchess enjoyed the excursion with a companion wearing a green sweater, tattered pants, and a white cap.
Meghan used the outings to unwind after receiving criticism for statements she made regarding her job on Deal or No Deal on her podcast.
In the most recent episode of Archetypes, the woman formerly known as “Briefcase No. 24” reveals that when she worked on Season Two in 2006, she considered the show to be an exploitative bear pit of sexism and female objectification, until the humiliation of being treated like a bimbo became unbearable and she was forced to quit. She neglected to note that she had not yet appeared in 34 episodes.
She presented an all-too-familiar narrative of life in the pre-#MeToo era, when several women were frequently subjected to discrimination, misogyny, exploitation, and, in many instances, horrendous sexual abuse and harassment at the hands of co-stars and directors.
Meghan detested how ‘the girls’ on the show were required to prepare for each episode: ‘getting your lashes put on or your extensions put on, or the padding in your bra — we were even given spray-tan vouchers each week’
“There was a very predetermined notion of how we should look,” she continued. It was all about appearance and not necessarily intelligence.
She left the show, in which players try to identify which of 26 briefcases contain cash prizes totaling $1 million, because it made her feel ‘not smart’, adding: ‘I would leave with this pit in my stomach, knowing I was so much more than what was being objectified on this platform. I disliked being compelled to be superficial and devoid of substance.
And that is how it felt to me at the time – to be reduced to a particular stereotype.
Whoopi Goldberg, an actress and talk show host, stated that Meghan’s comments were foolish. That’s television, baby. But what did you believe you would be doing? She added, “You know that was the purpose of the show.” When you are a performer, you accept the engagement.
Meanwhile, women who were on the show at the same time as Meghan tell a quite different tale than the Duchess. They report that the environment was enjoyable as opposed to overbearing or unpleasant.
Lisa Gleave, a successful Australian model, TV presenter, and actress currently residing in Los Angeles, was one of Meghan’s briefcase ladies.
Similar to Meghan, she had to perfect the skill of walking down stairs in a tiny dress and five-inch heels while carrying a briefcase and remembering the cardinal rule: to act happy for the competitor if things go well and sad if things go poorly.