London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Oct 22, 2025

You give me diva: Meghan Markle shies away from a word worth reclaiming

You give me diva: Meghan Markle shies away from a word worth reclaiming

‘Diva’ has good, neutral and bad connotations – but as singers from Maria Callas to Beyoncé have shown, it is a trait of sheer excellence

It was on the second episode of Meghan Markle’s podcast Archetype, in which she interviewed her girl crush or queen or whatevs, Mariah Carey, that the moment happened: Markle used the word “diva” of Carey, and Mariah replied that Meghan had her own diva moments. The two women moved past the awkwardness such that a regular listener might not even have logged it, had not Meghan extensively editorialised afterwards: “It stopped me in my tracks, when she called me a diva,” Markle said, with great urgency, you can almost hear her leaning forwards. “I started to sweat a little bit. I started squirming in my chair in this quiet revolt. Why would you say that? My mind was spinning with what nonsense had she read or clicked on that made her think that about me.” OK, so clearly Mariah Carey thinks of the word as positive or neutral, while Meghan Markle thinks it is pejorative.

Mariah Carey clearly mustn’t think the word ‘diva’ is pejorative.


The word does indeed have three meanings, good, neutral, evil, like in Dungeons and Dragons. That evolution is natural: “diva” is only used of women, and heavily skewed towards women of colour, to denote, per the editor Marna Nightingale: “Both stubborn and exacting professionally, sometimes dramatic about it, but, and this is important, they’re doing it because they know their stuff and they almost always turn out to be right.” It is rarely used of someone who isn’t creative and charismatic, so it contains an element of awe. This is good diva.

Neutral diva is just “she has huge hair and asks for her trailer to be filled with chablis and Maltesers”. Plainly if you don’t like women, particularly women of colour, to begin with, the last thing you want from them is self-assertion, and the very last thing you want is for them to be right. So it becomes freighted with other elements, spoiltness, narcissism, selfishness, delusion, and this is bad diva.

‘I’m not a blues singer, I’m a diva’: Nina Simone.


Carey, like Nina Simone before her (“I’m not a blues singer, I’m a diva”), is out to reclaim the word as to do so is to expressly repudiate the idea that a fierce or unyielding woman is matter out of place. Markle isn’t ready, probably because so many of the insinuations against her focus on those bad diva qualities, solipsism, brattishness and self-regard. She would just rather people didn’t say mean things about her that probably aren’t true, and I think we can see her point.

It is very often a whispering campaign that puts someone into “bad diva” category, with no reliable factchecking or double sourcing. A shadow of it hangs over Serena Williams, which you can never get to the bottom of: her crime seems to be that she thinks she’s good at tennis. But, guys, the data’s in, she really is.

The ‘magisterial’ Grace Jones.


The term is very occasionally handed down genetically (Judy Garland to Liza Minnelli), but generally the daughters of divas run a mile, to become bluestockings or wallflowers. You can be an actor-diva – Marlene Dietrich, Bette Davis, Katharine Hepburn – but it really belongs to the singer. It’s hard to really obliterate all other business unless you’re singing your goddam head off: from Maria Callas to Madonna, Shirley Bassey to Beyoncé, Aretha Franklin to Eartha Kitt, the strong through-line is the trait of sheer excellence, which is what makes the word worth retaking.

The ultimate diva for Brits is Grace Jones, for everything, but most of all for the magisterial way she dealt with Russell Harty when he turned his back on her during his show Grace Jones on Russell Harty Barmy diva throws legendary strop!!!!. I actually approached her for comment, but ha, can you imagine? A diva would never comment.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
×