EXCLUSIVE: Radar Rounds Up the Most Savage Takedowns of Meghan Markle's 'Nausea-Inducing' Netflix Christmas Special — 'At Least We Are Safe Until Next Year'
Critics unleashed harsh reviews about Meghan Markle’s Netflix Christmas special.
Dec. 9 2025, Published 1:50 p.m. ET
Meghan Markle's Netflix Christmas special, With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration, has been slammed by reviewers as everything from "nausea-inducing" to "quite mad and a little bit sad," while being devoid of a shred of genuine festive cheer.
RadarOnline.com has trawled every review of the show – and collected the most vicious jibes against the duchess' latest streaming effort. Critics have also lambasted the 56-minute program for its overly curated holiday crafts, celebrity guests, and absence of Meghan's children, Archie, 6, and Lili, 4.
Joyless and Fake Hostess
Critics slammed Meghan Markle’s Netflix Christmas special as overly curated and joyless.
The special, released on the same day as the King and Queen hosted the German president and first lady at Windsor Castle, featured Markle demonstrating gift-wrapping, tree decorating, advent calendar assembly, and cracker-making – alongside celebrity guests including tennis player Naomi Osaka and restaurateur Tom Colicchio.
Columnist Allison Pearson led the charge, sneering: "Joyless and fake, what a strange person Meghan is. The uptight, Stepford hostess is the last person I'd want to spend Christmas with."
She also noted the absence of her children and how the cousins, George, Charlotte and Louis, have not met Archie and Lilibet, adding this "goes unacknowledged in this strenuously upbeat production."
Pearson added that words like "jollity" fall joylessly from her "perfect lips" and that she "fussing over the presentation of dishes without communicating any genuine enthusiasm for food."
The Anti-Salad Cameo
Anita Singh derided Harry’s anti-salad moment and called the segment bizarre.
Viewers also saw brief appearances by Markle's husband Prince Harry, 41, who joined her for a kitchen skit where he was fed gumbo so hot his wife warned it would make him sweat, and a salad full of ingredients he despises.
Telegraph arts and entertainment editor Anita Singh wrote about the segment: "He is appalled at the sight of a beetroot, pickled vegetable, black olive, anchovy and fennel salad ('Oh, wow, that's like the anti-salad,' he says) and who can blame him? Just give the poor man a sausage roll and let him have a happy Christmas."
Markle, who previously spent her first royal Christmas at Sandringham in 2017, wore festive pyjamas and an emerald green silk gown for various segments.
Harry's appearance was noted for being a stark contrast, with Pearson noting he "is warm where his wife is Frosty the Snow-woman. He has a naturalness and jokey ease that Meghan tries, and fails, to project."
Unfathomable and Insufferable
Anita Singh described Naomi Osaka’s appearance as painfully awkward.
Annabel Fenwick Elliott of the Daily Mail gave the show zero stars, saying: "It's the syrupy hypocrisy and our hostess's deep lack of self-awareness that continue to make her and this show so unlikeable."
The Times columnist Hilary Rose described the show as "unfathomable," citing its low points as "four pointless crafts, three random 'friends', two unseen kids, one English prince and a duchess in a pear tree, or at least making pear syrup."
The Telegraph's Anita Singh added it came across as "quite mad and a little bit sad," highlighting the appearance of Osaka as "the most awkward section" and noting the tennis star appeared to have "never met Meghan before and, judging by her expression, won't be meeting her again soon if she can help it."
Hannah Ewens, deputy culture and lifestyle editor at the Independent, called the episode "not fun, enjoyable or even aspirational" and a "predictably insipid festive special."
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Only Emily Ferguson offered praise as she highlighted Meghan’s wrapping tips and self-care message.
Lucy Mangan of The Guardian said she was tempted to give one star but added: "I feel both offended and harmed, but in the spirit of goodwill I will add a star to my rating in gratitude for the fact that at least we are safe now until next year."
Other critics, including India Block of the Standard and Daisy Jones of British Vogue, echoed Mangan's sentiments, describing the show as a string of "word salads of platitudes."
Only Emily Ferguson of the Express offered a rare positive note, praising "some handy tips on wrapping awkward items such as cuddly toys and wine bottles" and highlighting Meghan's sage advice: "Take care of yourself and you will be able to take care of everybody else."
