The Duchess of Sussex has returned to Netflix screens with a festive edition of her lifestyle series, offering viewers a glimpse into her Californian Christmas preparations alongside Prince Harry. 'With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration' launched on the streaming platform, marking her first major project under the couple's revised, scaled-back deal with Netflix.
Harry's Lengthy Cameo and Playful Banter
In a notable departure from previous episodes, Prince Harry features prominently, appearing for roughly two minutes during a cooking segment. The Duke joins Meghan and Top Chef judge Tom Colicchio as they prepare a Christmas Eve salad, a tradition from his own family.
The moment is filled with affectionate and candid exchanges. After Meghan reveals the salad contains beetroot, black olives, and fennel—ingredients she loves but Harry dislikes—he quips, "Oh wow, that's like the anti-salad." The couple share a kiss, and Harry jokes, "You must have known I was coming."
The scene also features Meghan preparing a gumbo, another holiday tradition from her mother, Doria. Harry admits his preference for the version without fish, telling his wife, "I can feel it puncturing through the top of my head right now." He then playfully stirs the pot by suggesting Meghan's gumbo is "certainly close" to being as good as her mother's, prompting a mock-outraged "What!" from the Duchess.
Crafting Controversy and Royal Reflections
Earlier in the special, Meghan is joined by tennis champion Naomi Osaka for a Christmas crafting session. The pair decorate plates for their children to leave out for Santa. Both women laugh about their limited artistic skills, with Meghan abandoning a holly drawing because it looked like bats.
She then resorts to her signature calligraphy, a move Osaka teasingly calls "kind of like cheating." Meghan defends her choice with the retort, "You've got to stick to what you know."
The show also touches on Meghan's past Christmases within the Royal Family. While making personalised Christmas crackers with restaurateur Will Guidara, she reflects on her two festive seasons at Sandringham in 2017 and 2018. She explains the UK tradition of pulling crackers at the dinner table, describing the typical contents as a "fortune cookie-size joke or riddle. And something sweet."
Glimpses of Sussex Family Life
Viewers are offered rare insights into the lives of Archie and Lilibet. While crafting the crackers, Meghan makes special ones for her children, filling them with personalised gifts.
For Lilibet, she includes a mini lavender rollerball perfume, explaining, "Lili really likes trying to be a grown-up lady at the moment." For Archie, she selects a toy burger and a red car, representing his two great loves.
The hour-long special also features Meghan's close friends, Lindsay Roth and Kelly McKee Zajfen. In a relaxed segment, Meghan cooks brunch while wearing bright red pyjamas to honour her friend Lindsay's family tradition of matching holiday sleepwear. The special arrives following the announcement of a new, less expansive deal between the Sussexes and Netflix, a contrast to their original $100 million (£74 million) agreement signed five years ago.
