Skavlan/SVT interview with Princess Madeleine and Chris O'Neill: December 11, 2015

[LadyFinn]

I don't think you've watched the Skavlan show

Skavlan was just a show with a lot of rehearsed, coached and trained talk. Actions in real life should speak louder than words at some celebrity TV-show. Probably Madeleine and Chris get some positive feedback now, but if Madeleine doesn't put her promises into action, the criticism towards her will grow again.

 

[Stefanie]

O.k. got caught - please give me the link or is it on youtube meanwhile? I only noticed so far that they didn´t seem to sit side by side. For the complete show....?

 

[miss whirley]

Chris came off really well. Funny and likable. His career talk seemed a little murky. I don't know if it's a good idea to compare your business aspirations to the Titanic.

You can tell Madeleine is inherently distrustful of the media. Like she was expecting to be led into a verbal bear-trap. She put on a cheery face for the audience, though.


Also, I did like that Chris brought up the Germanic tradition of celebrating on Christmas Eve. It reminded me of my mother's family of Austrian heritage, they always celebrated on the 24th too.

 

[royal rob]

I just watched it and I think it was a great interview for the life of me I can't see why people have a problem with them. They looked happy, relaxed and normal. Jamie Oliver on the other hand appeared to be half asleep or something

 

[Roslyn]

O.k. got caught - please give me the link or is it on youtube meanwhile? I only noticed so far that they didn´t seem to sit side by side. For the complete show....?

Here you go: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2U8UZuTHY0M&feature=youtu.be

I think that Chris is naturally reserved and his basic facial expression gives the impression he's aloof and cold, but once he started talking about a subject he opened up and was very likeable. I think Madeleine was very anxious, and she admitted she was apprehensive about media attention and interviews, but, that being so, I think she did a very good job and came across as sweet, and also intelligent and articulate.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

I disliked the long girlie hairdo and the maquillage was too shiny, it gave her a pageant queen appearance. At the Nobel Prize 2015 the Princess wore her hair 'up' and immediately she was no longer a Farrah Fawcett look-a-like but a Princess of Sweden. I am also amazed that royals appear in this sort of show, it looks too showy to me. The thin line between royalty and celebrity is already so blurred.

The participation in this sort of TV-shows only continues to blur the thin line between royalty and "ordinary celebs". What is next? The Duchess of Cambridge on the sofa with Graham Norton? Princess Mette-Marit chatting with Ellen DeGeneres? I feel there should be some distance. The Crown fares best in the shadow of the throne, not in the full TV floodlights. Keep it royal, keep it "exclusive". The interview with Prince Carl Philip before his wedding and the interview with the Prince of Orange before his Investiture had more "royal" grandeur.

When they really wanted to do an interview, just receive a TV-crew at Drottningholm, Solliden or in London and at the same time the audience has a nice (carefully composed) peek into the "private life". This really leads to nothing. A cook, a pop star and a Princess in a show. No wonder the Swedes are more and more filing their royals under the tab showbizz...

 

[Duke of Marmalade]

Here in the UK Adele said... so it wasn't even filmed in Sweden?
I find the fact they chose this type of interview for one of their most major / in depth interview. We have similar formats over here and they work for celebrities who are promoting their latest project, and of course they also talk about themselves and their lives but I don;t think its appropriate for a Royal to appear on it with no obvious project/cause to promote.
I know its annoying when people refer back to the British RF but they are the royals from my country and I'm just trying to imagine William and Kate or Harry appearing on Graham Norton's chat show, it would just seem odd for them to do so without having a really important charity event or cause to promote.

This came to my mind as well. Despite all the talk of Madeleine of promoting Sweden (what in fact she is doing little, even admitting that she could do a lot more but doesnt), when I look at her track record of what she has achieved on her own, there is not much, and it became very obvious with other guests like Adele, considering her achievements as an artist, and Jaime Oliver as a cook. Of the little she does anyway, Madeleine has nothing achieved on her own: she is piggybagging on her mother's charity and lives of the wealth of her father and husband. Therefore she has nothing more to say than homestory titbits from her kids. The private person Chris all the sudden talks about his work ... yeah, sure.
If this was about showing them as people and what they think the audience was very wrong, and I doubt that this interview will make the couple any more popular with Swedish people, what possibly is what they are aiming at.

 

[royal rob]

The participation in this sort of TV-shows only continues to blur the thin line between royalty and "ordinary celebs". What is next? The Duchess of Cambridge on the sofa with Graham Norton? I feel there should be some distance. The Crown fares best in the shadow of the throne, not in the full TV floodlights.

When they really wanted to do an interview, just receive a TV-crew at Drottningholm, Solliden or in London and at the same time the audience has a nice (carefully composed) peek into the "private life". This really leads to nothing. A cook, a pop star and a Princess in a show. No wonder the Swedes are more and more filing their royals under the tab showbizz...

As the song goes. The times they are a changing. The days of royal mystery have long gone and as in all change adapt and change or disappear


Sent from my iPhone using The Royals Community

 

[Roslyn]

I may be wrong, but I think the venue and informality was intentional. I think they wanted to be seen as human beings, interacting with other human beings and not just some pet interviewer, and showing bits of their own personalities. I don't think the idea was to do a completely controlled interview like the ones done at Royal premises.

Chris is not a Royal, and Madeleine has a foot in both camps. In that way they are in an elite group and of particular interest because of their situation.

 

[Dman]

Just watched the interview, and I must say, I loved it. I really enjoyed getting to know Madeleine and Chris. They were open, honest and very lovely. They came across as a beautiful young couple that you wouldn't mind hanging out with. I really enjoyed the whole show and interviews. Well done!

 

[hernameispekka]

Skavlan is trending on twitter and alot of positive comments about the pair. Someone even calling them "folkkära" (Loved by the people) and alot of positive feelings, especially around Chris. So I think it worked. It's not something they should do all the time. But this is a medium that reaches people that dont go looking for interviews with royals

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

As the song goes. The times they are a changing. The days of royal mystery have long gone and as in all change adapt and change or disappear


Sent from my iPhone using The Royals Community

I disagree that "royal mystery" has long gone. It is still there and we are still intrigued by it, as is the public, seeing the overwhelming interest into everything royal. It verges a careful handling and a continue walking on a thin rope to avoid the monarchy becoming a TV-show and that it does not matter whether you are a celebbie because you puked Vodka in public during an episode of The Geordie Shore or that you are a member of the royal family. Some distance, please.

 

[hernameispekka]

I disagree that "royal mystery" has long gone. It is still there and we are still intrigued by it, as is the public, seeing the overwhelming interest into everything royal. It verges a careful handling and a continue walking on a thin rope to avoid the monarchy becoming a TV-show and that it does not matter whether you are a celebbie because you puked Vodka in public during an episode of The Geordie Shore or that you are a member of the royal family. Some distance, please.

But in todays context they ARE mystical and such. They are following slowly behind the moving line of how personal you should be. They are still guarded, mysterious and regal in the context of 2015 where the general standards have changed. The royals don't live in a vaccuum.

 

[Marengo]

I agree completely with you on that Duc. The line is already thin enough as it is.

And yet... despite my dislike for the format I did find the interview of the princess & husband charming. I suppose effective from a PR point of view as there will be a lot more viewers. Even in the Dutch press we have been seeing several articles about the princess these last days, something that would never happen with a more formal one as most people would find it too 'boring'. I suppose if they do not show up in tv-shows each week it is still fine.

Also: the style of the Swedish court is more 'chit-chatty' in general, the spokespeople of the palace commenting on each and every wild rumour in the press and the press asking all kinds of gossipy questions to the royals that no journalist here would ever dare to do.

 

[Mbruno]

Here you go: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2U8UZuTHY0M&feature=youtu.be

I think that Chris is naturally reserved and his basic facial expression gives the impression he's aloof and cold, but once he started talking about a subject he opened up and was very likeable. I think Madeleine was very anxious, and she admitted she was apprehensive about media attention and interviews, but, that being so, I think she did a very good job and came across as sweet, and also intelligent and articulate.

It is interesting how Chris sounds very British while Madeleine has more of a North American accent when speaking English. Other Scandinavian royals like the Danes tend to have a British accent in English. Madeleine also has less of a foreign accent than Victoria and Carl Philip.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

I agree with you, Marengo. I saw the Swedish newspapers at the international desk in my company's coffee corner and I found them so "shouting", even the (in)famous Bild Zeitung in Germany could learn a thing or two from Aftonbladet and Expressen. Wow, what a cheap looking trash these two newspapers are!

Even the renowned Svenska Dagbladet, Dagens Nyheter and Göteborg Posten give the impression of superficiality by the dominance of celebbies, footballers' wives and ice-hockeyers on the front page... The Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf looks like a choirboy compared with these quite intrusive newspapers.

 

[Sunnystar]

It's interesting how most of the Americans commenting on the interview thought it was very charming and a good appearance from both of them, but especially Chris. And, I'm right there with the rest of my fellow Yanks in that assessment. Chris was charming and quite affable. I appreciated that Adele chimed in a defense of Madeleine's choice to focus on being a mother, to two very young children, at this moment.

I'll be interested in seeing what the Swedes here thought of the interview - and they're really the only opinions that matter in the court of public opinion since Madeleine and Leonore are their princesses and Nicolas is their prince.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

Skavlan is trending on twitter and alot of positive comments about the pair. [...]

It only needs a fart or a nipple slip to become a "trending topic" on Twitter. I don't believe we whould take that road... Donald Trump praises Katie Hopkins as a 'respected columnist' and Twitter goes into meltdown.

Tweety tweet tweet: Trender Sverige ‏@trendinaliaSE 27 jun. 2014 Sundsvall, Sverige
@Expressen the 1st mention of 'Sofia Hellqvist' appears on your TL. Now is Trending Topic in Sweden! #trndnl


I also saw a Tweet: "Carl Philip/David Hellenius vs Madeleine/Skavlan = 10-0 !" No idea what is meant with that.

 

[Mbruno]

I agree completely with you on that Duc. The line is already thin enough as it is.

And yet... despite my dislike for the format I did find the interview of the princess & husband charming. I suppose effective from a PR point of view as there will be a lot more viewers. Even in the Dutch press we have been seeing several articles about the princess these last days, something that would never happen with a more formal one as most people would find it too 'boring'. I suppose if they do not show up in tv-shows each week it is still fine.

Also: the style of the Swedish court is more 'chit-chatty' in general, the spokespeople of the palace commenting on each and every wild rumour in the press and the press asking all kinds of gossipy questions to the royals that no journalist here would ever dare to do.

To me, the two most relevant parts of the interview were Chris mentioning that Leonore is currently being pre-registered or put in waitlists for schools in England six years from now, and when he said that being married to Madeleine forced him to move to a different job as his clients were unease about his public exposure (I don't quite see why that would be the case, but that's what he said anyway).

The first admission seems to suggest that Leonore and, presumably also Nicholas, will most likely not be raised in Sweden when they reach school age and, therefore, will be excluded from the line of succession according to Swedish law. The second statement, on the other hand, may be a serious focus of tension in the marriage. Chris seems like a person who puts a lot of emphasis on his business career and, if being married to Madeleine somehow places restrictions on the type of business he can engage in, that might be a serious personal problem for him.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

[...] Chris seems like a person who puts a lot of emphasis on his business career and, if being married to Madeleine somehow places restrictions on the type of business he can engage in, that might be a serious personal problem for him.

It is all pretty new, people with "a normal job" so close to royals but foreign situations show that it soon will become normal and out of the limelight. Over a decade or so and especially when her sister becomes Queen and the focus will be on the core royal family, Princess Madeleine will find herself on the periphery of the royal spectrum. In Norway the husband of Princess Ragnhild became a multi-millionaire in business. In the Netherlands the second son of Princess Margriet (an aunt of the King) became a self-made multi-millionaire as well. Having a connection with the royal family seems not to harm business prospects. On the contrary, I would say. Being a son-in-law to His Majesty The King of Sweden gives Mr O'Neill an aura of credibility and solvability. Of course he is restricted because I don't believe the King would appreciate it having a son-in-law trading in arms with IS or investing in fracking (a technique to win natural gaz at the cost of nature), for the rest: the opportunities are endless.

 

[Muhler]

I watched the interview and I was pleasantly surprised, it was fairly serious.

The impression I'm left with is that this was very much Chris O'Neil's night!
He rocked!
Had he shown that side of him earlier, he would have been a lot more popular in Sweden IMO.
I understand from what he say that he was reserved initially but that seems to have changed. He was much more comfortable in this conversation setting. - Perhaps the previous interviews have been too "official", too much "your Highness" about it for him to relax. Or perhaps he has realized that like it or not he is a kind of celebrity and more importantly has accepted that fact.
I begin to understand what Madeleine saw in him, especially after the huge breach of trust with her former fiancee, Chris seem confident, mature and first and foremost reassuring - and add to that, he's protective as he puts it himself.

Madeleine was more out of her depth here. This kind of interview being new to her no doubt combined with what is probably a natural shyness. Some will see this insecurity as very charming - others won't see anything charming in it at all! I think there are few in between.

The setting puzzle me, but hearing them say that they do read the crap written about them in the Swedish press (it's my clear impression that's what they meant!) I can't help wondering whether this was a deliberate counteroffensive very much aimed at the Swedish press. I.e. they chose the ground and the settings and the rules - and this is what the Swedish press could have had "if you were more serious about us".

It was however a little odd interview in my eyes. The interview nailed it if this was Chris O'Neil and Mrs. O'Neil, who used to be Princess of Sweden.
But I still can't figure out who Madeleine is. Princess Madeleine or Mrs. O'Neil.
The reply Madeleine gave to the interviewer about considering giving up her titles was pretty meek IMO.

- So to conclude: If the public perception of M&C is to change in Sweden, it will very much be up to Chris. Continuing like this and he might very well endear himself to the Sweden.

 

[tommy100]

I've watched the interview through twice now. I think most people who have seen it would see a different side of Chris and Madeleine, that is inevitable as we actually rarely hear them speak for more than a 'soundbite' sentence to a reporter or two. In that sense any interview was probably going to achieve this as often, once you hear someone talk a little bit openly you warm to them more than you did when you only read about them. Whilst completely different and I'm not comparing them they are a bit in the same situation as Camilla Parker Bowles/ Duchess of Cornwall in the UK, before she married the heir no one had really even heard her voice and not seen her personality other than in pictures and through media reports, now people see and hear her they have warmed to her (and 'm not going into a debate over the issues around that but its a fact more people in the UK like her now than before she married).
The format of the show worked well for the couple as it was a bit more relaxed and the pressure and focus wasn't on just Chris and Madeleine and Adele and Jamie Oliver were able to ask questions, make comments etc at times as well. That being said I though it was noticeable that Madeleine was at her best when talking about 'Childhood', she was able to quote statistics and seemed actually passionate about doing something about the issue which is endearing. However, she seemed less knowledgable on UK/Swedish relations etc and appeared, to me, to only mention them to try to justify staying in the UK and if I remember correctly even said, she knew she should/could do more. If she had been using this interview to promote Childhood or UK/Sweden relations I would understand it more but instead it was just them talking about themselves, which though needed I feel, personally, did more damage for the RF and monarchy using this format than it did good for Chris and Madeleine.

 

[LadyFinn]

The setting puzzle me, but hearing them say that they do read the crap written about them in the Swedish press (it's my clear impression that's what they meant!) I can't help wondering whether this was a deliberate counteroffensive very much aimed at the Swedish press. I.e. they chose the ground and the settings and the rules - and this is what the Swedish press could have had "if you were more serious about us".

And how the press could be more serious about Madeleine and Chris? They don't give the press any possibilities to that. Madeleine comes to Sweden only to big gala events and family celebrations. Those are about clothes and jewellery only to the press. Madeleine doesn't do solo work events where the press could interview her about her work. She has no work she could tell about to the press in royal context. She can't show her work in Childhood because "those children are vulnerable and they can't be shown", or something like that. When Chris is in Sweden, the only causes for the press to write about him is that he often goes to restaurants for a lunch or to a dinner. Or is seen smoking somewhere.

Besides, this interview yesterday is something the swedish people could well live without it. There wasn't nothing important and no news how their princess is going to work for the swedish people.

 

[Duke of Marmalade]

I also saw a Tweet: "Carl Philip/David Hellenius vs Madeleine/Skavlan = 10-0 !" No idea what is meant with that.

It refers to the interview that CP did last October
Swedish prince angry over press 'bullying' - The Local

The feedback in Sweden and the Swedish press was very good at the time. The setting was different, it was 1:1 in a royal context after the engangement. CP talked about personal issues such as dyslexia (he had been mocked for a speaking blunder by the press earlier) that he also tackles in his royal work. I can imagine that people can better indentify with CP and the way he did it than Madeleine.

IMO she made the mistake in the very beginning from the engagement time by rejecting the press being private about everything and not properly introducing Chris in Sweden. She got bad press for this and for not working for Sweden and this interview can be seen as trying to smooth things over with the Swedish people, but as another poster said before, actions speek louder than words and this is always the problem with Madeleine.

I also wonder if Madeleines statement that she wants to be with her children all the time will impress the average swedish woman in her agegroup.

 

[Dman]

The kind of interview I wish Mr. and Mrs. Cambridge would do. I was left with very positive feelings after watching Madeleine and Chris give this interview.

 

[Sunnystar]

To me, the two most relevant parts of the interview were Chris mentioning that Leonore is currently being pre-registered or put in waitlists for schools in England six years from now, and when he said that being married to Madeleine forced him to move to a different job as his clients were unease about his public exposure (I don't quite see why that would be the case, but that's what he said anyway).

The first admission seems to suggest that Leonore and, presumably also Nicholas, will most likely not be raised in Sweden when they reach school age and, therefore, will be excluded from the line of succession according to Swedish law. The second statement, on the other hand, may be a serious focus of tension in the marriage. Chris seems like a person who puts a lot of emphasis on his business career and, if being married to Madeleine somehow places restrictions on the type of business he can engage in, that might be a serious personal problem for him.

But that's not what he said. He said they are considering all the possible scenarios and registering both of the kids for schools in several places. At least, that's the impression I was left with. He tried to stress that, at least twice, but maybe some viewers missed that because Adele interrupted to comment on her own experience, and they were laughing/joking about some schools in the UK are so competitive/selective that you need to register your children while still in utero.

I don't know that they've made any determination yet about where they will be living in four years when Leonore is ready for school. It sounds like they are just taking things as they come and seeing what shakes out. Heck, at this point, we know that there will be at least two more kids in front of Madeleine's children in the line of succession, and there very possibly could be more than that. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if CP/Sofia have another child, possibly more, in that time frame. If that's the situation, then I assume Madeleine & Chris will be under far less pressure to move to Stockholm, or the Swedish public might find it acceptable for Madeleine's children to attend a Swedish school in London while remaining in the line of succession since the chances of them ascending the throne are so small.

 

[Mbruno]

And how the press could be more serious about Madeleine and Chris? They don't give the press any possibilities to that. Madeleine comes to Sweden only to big gala events and family celebrations. Those are about clothes and jewellery only to the press. Madeleine doesn't do solo work events where the press could interview her about her work. She has no work she could tell about to the press in royal context. She can't show her work in Childhood because "those children are vulnerable and they can't be shown", or something like that. When Chris is in Sweden, the only causes for the press to write about him is that he often goes to restaurants for a lunch or to a dinner. Or is seen smoking somewhere.

Besides, this interview yesterday is something the swedish people could well live without it. There wasn't nothing important and no news how their princess is going to work for the swedish people.

As I wrote before, I think there were two relevant pieces of new information in the interview: first, that Chris is planning to send Leonore to school in England, which has legal implications to her position in the line of succession, and, second, that being married to Madeleine impacted O'Neill's business and even forced him to change jobs, which may have a long-term impact on his marriage (if he sees the marriage as a liability to his professional career).

Also, I find it odd that the " press intrusion" on Chris' private life with Madeleine would be a problem for his clients. Do they have something to hide which they fear would be exposed by his lack of privacy ? That sounded very shady to me.

 

[Mbruno]

But that's not what he said. He said they are considering all the possible scenarios and registering both of the kids for schools in several places. At least, that's the impression I was left with. He tried to stress that, at least twice, but maybe some viewers missed that because Adele interrupted to comment on her own experience, and they were laughing/joking about some schools in the UK are so competitive/selective that you need to register your children while still in utero.

I don't know that they've made any determination yet about where they will be living in four years when Leonore is ready for school. It sounds like they are just taking things as they come and seeing what shakes out. Heck, at this point, we know that there will be at least two more kids in front of Madeleine's children in the line of succession, and there very possibly could be more than that. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if CP/Sofia have another child, possibly more, in that time frame. If that's the situation, then I assume Madeleine & Chris will be under far less pressure to move to Stockholm, or the Swedish public might find it acceptable for Madeleine's children to attend a Swedish school in London while remaining in the line of succession since the chances of them ascending the throne are so small.

He didn't say it explicitly, but it was quite clear to me that long waitlists and the need to pre-register the kids years in advance applied to "schools in this country", i.e. England, and not in Sweden. I doubt he is looking for schools in Sweden and pre-registering Leonore there.

Madeleine tried to be more cautious and said that, in the end, they would look for what was best for the kids. Apparently, Chris may be not fully aware of the legal implications of his children not being raised in Sweden. The interviewer was trying to raise that issue, expecting a reaction from Chris, but he didn't quite get the interviewer's point. Adele, who of course knows nothing about the Swedish monarchy or Swedish law, was even more clueless.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=2U8UZuTHY0M#t=1691

 

[Sunnystar]

He didn't say it explicitly, but it was quite clear to me that long waitlists and the need to pre-register the kids years in advance applied to "schools in this country", i.e. England, and not in Sweden. I doubt he is looking for schools in Sweden and pre-registering Leonore there.

Madeleine tried to be more cautious and said that, in the end, they would look for what was best for the kids. Apparently, Chris may be not fully aware of the legal implications of his children not being raised in Sweden. The interviewer was trying to raise that issue, expecting a reaction from Chris, but he didn't quite get the interviewer's point. Adele, who of course knows nothing about the Swedish monarchy or Swedish law, was even more clueless.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=2U8UZuTHY0M#t=1691

I can't speak to the necessity of pre-registering kids at exclusive schools in Sweden because I'm not Swedish and I've never lived there. The UK is hardly the only country where that is a necessity though, so it's not beyond the realm of possibility that they would need to pre-register both of their children for a place in the school of their choice in Stockholm. There is also the possibility that they will wind up back in the US, and pre-registering kids at some of the more exclusive schools in NYC is quite common. He did not state WHERE they are pre-registering the children, only that they are preparing for all options. Interpret his comment as you please but don't put words in his mouth.

 

[Mbruno]

I can't speak to the necessity of pre-registering kids at exclusive schools in Sweden because I'm not Swedish and I've never lived there. The UK is hardly the only country where that is a necessity though, so it's not beyond the realm of possibility that they would need to pre-register both of their children for a place in the school of their choice in Stockholm. There is also the possibility that they will wind up back in the US, and pre-registering kids at some of the more exclusive schools in NYC is quite common. He did not state WHERE they are pre-registering the children, only that they are preparing for all options. Interpret his comment as you please but don't put words in his mouth.

Click on the link I posted where he starts mentioning the way things work "in this country" before he is interrupted by Adele, who agrees with him about the waitlists in English schools. And, again, I'n pretty sure he didn't understand the interviewer was trying to raise the succession issue and hinting at the legal requirement that his children be raised in Sweden.