Which makes the show sound interesting, when in reality, it is so scrubbed of any conflict or tension that even a badly assembled Christmas cracker is presented as a symbol of “the perfect imperfection that comes from human connection,” as one guest star, the restaurateur Will Guidara, puts it—and to which Markle replies with an almost slack-jawed, “Yes!” I loved every second of these revelations: when she says that “a tradition has to have a beginning”, or that “a tree is part of my memory and love of the holiday season.” There’s a pleasing, narcoticizing effect to the whole thing, not unlike slipping into The Row’s Bowie cashmere sweater in the shade “Natural”—which Markle does, to teach us how to assemble a crudité wreath (i.e. putting bits of tenderstem broccoli into a circle shape on a plate).
