Netflix needs to make Heart of Invictus appear to be a success in order to justify paying the Harkles millions, but does that include manipulating the reviews? Was the release date planned to coincide with the anniversary of the death of Diana for maximum press coverage again? The documentary was released on 30 August, the day befor, so that reviews of the documentary series would be published on the date of the anniversary of her death (31 August). Again, is this Harkle PR manipulation and why Harold decided to mention the trauma of his mother’s death in a documentary that isn’t about him but wounded veterans?
Not everyone has Netflix, and not everyone is interested in the Invictus Games even if they support veterans. Even veterans have been put off watching or supporting Invictus due to Harold’s involvement. There have been criticisms as to why Harold needed to tell his story (again), as his ‘trauma’ is incomparable to the wounded veterans who live each day with their physical and mental scars. Did the world need to be reminded of the Diana death card again? Was it appropriate for a documentary on veterans?
Others claim that the criticisms hone in on minor issues, but who are they to decide what is minor? Was Harold trying to say he is a wounded veteran because that’s what it appeared to look like when he claimed he had no support when he returned from his tours in Afghanistan, yet we know that he did have support from his friends, his then girlfriend and family as well as professional help. It is a case of seeking help when you are ready too, but it seems that all of this need for help arose when he met TW, and when she does go, he will be in serious need of intensive therapy.
The media also took exception to Harold’s claim that no one took notice of the veterans or supported them, and the newspaper headlines refuted this claim, where even one of Harold’s veteran pals came out and said he was wrong.
We also had Colonel Richard Kemp (previously in charge of operations in Afghanistan) state that it was wrong for Harold to compare his trauma to others, and that there is support for wounded veterans but not enough. He also stated that he supported the Invictus Games so long as Harold was promoting it for the veterans and not for other personal purposes (which he is as he is making money from this, uses it as a pitch to gain donations for Archewell, and to boost his personal profile).
Kemp, unlike the other commentators has valid opinions based on his experience and even he states that ‘Meghan Murkle’ has no place in giving a closing speech to wounded veterans, and like all of us, doesn’t understand why she is being flown over for it and why she is part of the closing ceremony. She is the wife of a veteran, but was never a military wife and has no idea of the lifestyle many on military bases go through, but we all know it’s for some essential PR that the Harkles need for their brand. As for the other two commentators, I have no idea why either are relevant except to offer their opinion as neither appear to be from a military background. You may as well have grabbed a couple of people off the street instead. Myskow, (didn’t know she was still around) used to work for the News of the World, somehow looks younger than she did 30 years ago, and has always been loud mouthed and obnoxious and that hasn’t changed. Somehow, most of the cult supporters appear to shouty and obnoxious…
I, like many, read IMDB reviews and take them with a pinch of salt as they are subjective, yet at least you usually get a balanced view from those who liked it versus those who found it intolerable. Recently, I watched ‘Annika’ which on IMDB has mixed reviews, both 10 stars and 1 stars, and that’s fair because people had expectations that weren’t met based on the actress (Nicola Walker of Unforgotten), because the series is written differently and filmed using a different technique. Most people expected critical reviews of ‘Heart of Invictus’ and there were plenty, yet suddenly they disappeared and all you could see was 10 star ratings. Each time one lower than 10 appeared it vanished within 24 hours, and one can only suspect that Netflix/Invictus Games/Harkle PR are complicit in some kind of manipulation, where all low star reviews are reported and removed.
It appears that Netflix are determined to make the series appear successful, yet even the sugary media outlet Newsweek said it was a flop. When you have a Sussex biased outlet reporting a failure, then it makes you wonder whether their payments failed to clear or not! Early on when I began documenting the Harkle saga, I realised that stories that didn’t flatter them were quickly removed, and even if you saved the link it would return as a broken link and 404 page error. People would post a link only to find it had gone, and so one became accustomed to taking screenshots of stories that the Harkle PR objected to and wanted buried.
Were cult members paid to post positive reviews and were they asked to report and flag critical reviews by the Harkle PR team?
As it happens, I by chance took screenshots of most of the 1 star reviews for the ‘court of public opinion’ piece I was writing, because it is essential that free speech and opinions are permitted so long as they are not offensive. Some reviews are still online, while others appeared to have been removed, and in the interests of recording historical data should they disappear, here are some that I have captured (even the 5 star reviews have been removed).
All this artificial interference appears to try and portray the project as successful, but by deleting critical reviews doesn’t make it successful. No one should forget how expensive this project was and Netflix will never reveal if they broke even or made a profit (highly doubtful) given that camera crews followed them to The Hague, paid for the Harkle expenses there (and got in the way), and also the gala with the inappropriate red dress that they probably paid for too. The project has taken nearly 3 years but at what cost?
The PR doesn’t stop, nor does ‘The Claw’ when some orchestrated poses were caught on camera at a Beyonce concert. TW is seen twerking, the Mulroney is still persona non grata, with old pal Abigail saying yes to a free concert instead, and if this is Harold living his best life, then he really does need better therapy than what he’s getting at BetterUp. Could Harold look more disengaged, bored and uninterested at the concert?
Despite the forced hug shot, The Claw was out to keep the puppet in check, but where are all the faux famous friends? Did Tyler Perry join his best buds in their box? He was seen in the front row instead it seems. What about other alleged famous friends such as Ellen and Oprah? They all seem to have disappeared. Harold will have to face arriving back to the UK alone in a few days time, and WellChild will shower him with affection, but the public continue to criticise WellChild for retaining him as their patron. The question is how much longer can they carry on the charade and censor criticism that they don’t want to hear?
