Meghan wears Princess Diana’s Cartier watch in Misan Harriman portrait

Meghan Markle has launched a brand new photograph of herself carrying Princess Diana’s outdated watch to announce a podcast deal simply hours after the couple launched their new web site Sussex.com.

The Duchess of Sussex mentioned she was ‘overjoyed’ to make a ‘dynamic’ new collection after becoming a member of forces with female-founded US podcast community Lemonada Media, which goals to ‘make life suck much less’ with exhibits round intercourse, grief and LGBTQ points .

The transfer, which comes after the couple’s £18million Spotify contract ended early final 12 months, may even see Lemonada distribute Meghan’s earlier collection Archetypes.

She made the announcement on Sussex.com simply 24 hours after the web site was launched, alongside a brand new portrait photograph taken by her good friend Misan Harriman.

Meghan wore a £310 Totem gray gown and a gold Cartier watch price £17,800 which as soon as belonged to her husband Prince Harry‘s late mom Princess Diana.

She additionally had a £5,000 Cartier Love bracelet, which she has worn many occasions previously and is alleged to have been a present from Harry within the early days of their romance.

The Duchess had her darkish brown hair styled in massive curls, and beforehand sported the look and gown on the 2023 Invictus Games in Dusseldorf final September.

Hinting that different tasks could possibly be within the pipeline, Meghan mentioned the deal was a ‘implausible option to kick off 2024’ and he or she was ‘keen’ to share the brand new podcast. 

It comes as Harry and Meghan touched down in Vancouver yesterday to start a three-day go to to Canada from in the present day till Friday tied to subsequent 12 months’s Invictus Games.

Photographer Misan Harriman has tweeted the portrait {photograph} he took of Meghan Markle 

Work has already began on the brand new collection which Meghan will host. The quantity she has been paid has not been revealed – however on condition that Lemonada Media is a a lot smaller participant within the podcast market, it’s unlikely to be as large because the Spotify deal.

Lemonada Media was based in 2019 by Jessica Cordova Kramer, an government producer, and Stephanie Wittels Wachs, co-founder of a theatre firm.

Meghan mentioned in an announcement on Sussex.com: ‘I’m proud to now be capable of share that I’m becoming a member of the sensible crew at Lemonada to proceed my love of podcasting.

‘Being in a position to help a female-founded firm with a roster of thought-provoking and extremely entertaining podcasts is a implausible option to kick off 2024.

‘Our plan to rerelease Archetypes, in order that extra individuals can now have entry to it, in addition to launching a dynamic new podcast are nicely within the works. I’m so keen to have the ability to share it quickly, and am overjoyed to be becoming a member of the Lemonada household.’

The new deal comes after the Sussexes and Spotify ‘mutually agreed to half methods’ in June final 12 months, three years after the contract started in 2020.

The audio agency mentioned it might not renew Archetypes, which featured 12 episodes from August 2022, for a second collection.

Top Spotify podcast government Bill Simmons then known as Harry and Meghan ‘f***ing grifters’, including: ‘I’ve obtained to get drunk one evening and inform the story of the Zoom I had with Harry to attempt to assist him with a podcast thought. It’s considered one of my finest tales.’

Archetypes had round a million listens per episode and debuted as Spotify’s primary podcast in 47 international locations all over the world when it launched in 2022.

The collection explored the labels that attempt to maintain girls again and included company similar to Mariah Carey, Serena Williams, Jameela Jamil and Pamela Adlon.

The collection received a People’s Choice Award for The Pop Podcast of 2022 and Meghan received finest leisure podcast host on the Gracie Awards.

Under the brand new deal, Archetypes will now be rolled out to all audio platforms with Lemonada distributing.

Ms Kramer mentioned: ‘We are past honored that Meghan has trusted us to assist democratise entry to Archetypes, and that so many extra individuals all over the world can have entry to the collection quickly.

‘Meghan’s expertise as host, creator and conversationalist is unparalleled and we’re thrilled to co-create a brand new collection along with her that fosters her strategy to creating artwork that issues.’

And Ms Wittels Wachs added: ‘As we have began improvement with The Duchess of Sussex, we’re blown away by her collaborative spirit and clear imaginative and prescient, alongside along with her deep need to construct compassion and group by way of this work.

‘The Lemonada crew felt quick kinship with Meghan and the Archewell Productions crew, and we’re delighted to be working collectively.’

Lemonada produces exhibits round intercourse, grief and LGBTQ points to assist ‘make life suck much less’.

The firm was launched in 2019 by Ms Kramer and Ms Wittels Wachs who bonded after each dropping their brothers to overdoses.

In May 2016, Ms Wittels Wachs advised MailOnline of her horror at how information of her late brother Harris Wittels’s loss of life was leaked by TMZ earlier than her mom had been notified.

Mr Wittels, who was finest identified for his work on US comedy TV collection Parks and Recreation as a co-executive producer, died aged 30 of a heroin overdose in February 2015 after a two-year battle with drug habit.

Ms Wittels Wachs mentioned his loss of life ‘the worst day of my life’ however she additionally discovered it unusual to be ‘grieving privately and seeing all this public grief’ as a result of he was a trending subject.

Ms Kramer’s brother Stefano Cordova Jr died of a fentanyl overdose in October 2017, which she later described because the ‘worst f***ing factor that ever occurred’.

Ms Kramer first obtained in contact with Ms Wittels Wachs in April 2018 after listening to her speak about her brother’s loss of life in a podcast with humour, with the intention of reserving her on a present she was serving to to supply known as ‘Pod Save the People’.

The two bonded immediately, having attended New York University on the similar time and struggling comparable household tragedies – and shortly arrange a podcast known as Last Day.

This was a 25-part collection, throughout which Ms Kramer spoke in regards to the circumstances resulting in Mr Cordova’s loss of life.

Speaking in regards to the present to the Minneapolis Star Tribune in 2019, Ms Kramer mentioned: ‘Stefano could be just a little p***ed. He was a really personal individual. But the selection of telling his story creates house for different individuals to really feel much less disgrace and have fun the life he had. I believe he’d finally perceive.’

The pair now work with a bunch of celebrities from Sarah Silverman to Julia Louis-Dreyfus and have large backers together with Stephanie Hannon, who served as chief expertise officer for Hillary Clinton ‘s 2016 presidential marketing campaign.

Ms Hannon has joined Lemonada’s advisory council, which already consists of former US Representative Democrat Patrick J. Kennedy – the nephew of former President John F Kennedy – and activist DeRay Mckesson.

Ms Wittels Wachs mentioned in a interview in 2022 that they realised ‘individuals are struggling and feeling actually alone’, including: The mission for Lemonada was born. Our need to make the arduous issues simpler.’

One of Lemonada’s hottest exhibits is Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus, which spent 29 days in a row on the high of the Apple Podcast charts.

In the podcast she sits down with Jane Fonda, Carol Burnett, Amy Tan, Diane von Furstenberg, Isabel Allende and Fran Lebowitz ‘to get schooled in how one can reside a full and significant life’.

Another podcast, Being Trans, follows a bunch of transgender individuals navigating their every day lives and guarantees ‘over the season, you may get to expertise what it is like Being Trans.’

Also on Lemonada is Raised by Ricki which revisits the enduring 90s speak present, the Ricki Lake Show, hosted by Ricki herself.

Meanwhile Burnout, hosted by Connor Franta, appears at ‘how society reached a burning level and what we are able to do – actually, truly do – to interrupt the cycle.’

Ms Kramer and Ms Wittels Wachs have mentioned earlier than that they struggle to decide on troublesome subjects that impression lots of people and to supply options.

Before Lemonada, Ms Kramer labored as a Wall Street lawyer after which Teach For America, whereas Ms Wittels Wachs was working as a theatre director and author.

Within their firm, they deal with office tradition, saying in a 2022 interview: ‘We need to make life suck much less for our listeners but in addition for our employees. We lead with empathy.

‘We have a beneficiant PTO (paid break day) and paternal go away coverage together with bereavement go away.’

In 2021 the New York Times reported that ‘each manufacturing assembly begins with a round-robin psychological well being check-in.’

On Monday evening, Harry and Meghan launched a brand new web site – with their earlier web site, Archewell, now robotically redirecting to ‘Sussex.com’, which persistently refers back to the couple by their official royal titles.

An image of the couple dominates the principle internet web page, overlaid with the textual content: ‘The Office of Prince Harry & Meghan, The Duke & Duchess of Sussex’. It additionally options Meghan’s royal coat of arms.

In the ‘About’ part, the web site states: ‘The Office of Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex is shaping the long run by way of enterprise and philanthropy.

‘This consists of: The Archewell Foundation, Archewell Productions, patronages, ventures, and organisations which obtain the help of the couple, individually and/or collectively.’

In particular person biographies of the couple, Harry is highlighted as a ‘humanitarian, navy veteran, psychological well being advocate, and environmental campaigner’, whereas Meghan is described as a ‘feminist and champion of human rights and gender fairness’ who has been named ‘one of the vital influential girls on the earth’ throughout a collection of rankings.

Archewell had changed Harry and Meghan’s earlier Sussex Royal model after they give up royal duties.

The title was impressed by their son Archie – combining ‘arche’, the Greek phrase which means supply of motion, and ‘nicely’ as ‘a plentiful supply or provide; a spot we go to dig deep’.

The new web site hyperlinks to the couple’s non-profit organisation the Archewell Foundation and their manufacturing firm Archewell Productions.

The launch of the location comes because the King’s slimmed-down monarchy has been put beneath strain in a approach not seen earlier than throughout his reign, with Charles suspending all public-facing duties resulting from his most cancers analysis and the Princess of Wales out of motion for the quick future following belly surgical procedure.

Harry, who lives in California along with his spouse and their two youngsters – Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet – flew to the UK final week to satisfy with the King following his analysis.

He made the go to with out Meghan and their youngsters lower than 24 hours after the announcement about Charles’ well being was made to the nation by Buckingham Palace.

But there was no assembly along with his brother, the Prince of Wales, after Harry spent round 45 minutes at Clarence House seeing Charles.