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15 March 2019

Inside the acrimonious battle lines of the royal family fandom

The fandom conflict is wrapped up in identity politics, nostalgia, and the search for belonging in a fragile monarchy.

By Eleanor Peake

A few months ago, 17-year-old Martina received a direct message on Tumblr. It said the world would be better off without not only Meghan Markle, but also her fans. “I would kill you”, it read. Martina did what she does with almost all the abusive messages she receives online; she deleted it.

The troll doesn’t bother Martina, a Meghan stan from Argentina, because she’s used to the rival battle lines of the royal family fan groups. She has followed royal fan sites on Tumblr since she was nine and, like many of her online friends, is fully entrenched in the community’s daily life. Although she only founded her Meghan Instagram account in late January (combatively titled “defendMM”) it has already gained 3,482 followers.

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