Why did Harry and Meghan’s $20m podcast deal collapse? Over to our anonymous experts … | Arwa Mahdawi

Spotify’s Bill Simmons has described his former colleagues as a pair of ‘grifters’. Other, unnamed commenters have been less kind

Well, that’s a wrap, then. Or is that the wrong terminology to use when talking about podcasts, rather than movies? I’m afraid I’m not an expert on podcasting. Neither, it seems, are Harry and Meghan. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, as the pair still insist on being called, have parted ways with Spotify in questionable circumstances.

A quick recap: in 2020, Archewell Audio, the Sussexes’ podcast production company, signed an exclusive, $20m deal with Spotify to produce “uplifting” audio projects. Spotify made a lot of noise at the time about how proud it was to partner with the pair and how wonderful and inspiring they were.