Queen Elizabeth II has finally broken her silence over Prince Harry and Meghan’s tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey, revealing the royal family “is saddened to learn the full extent” of the challenges faced by the couple.
Harry and Meghan didn’t hold back during the 90-minute interview, which aired in the US on Sunday night, with talk of jealousy, a lack of support from the royal family, and even relationship breakdowns. However, one of the most shocking revelations concerned the couple’s son Archie and his mixed race. Meghan said there were palace “concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born”.
In a brief statement, released by Buckingham Palace on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen, the 94-year-old monarch said the issues raised by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would be dealt with privately. However, the Queen made a point to note in her statement that recollections of what transpired “may vary”.
“The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan,” she said in a statement.
“The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.”
“Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much-loved family members.”
The statement comes just a day after Oprah revealed that Harry told her it was neither the Queen nor Prince Philip who asked the questions about Archie’s skin colour.
“[Harry] did not share the identity with me but he wanted to make sure that I knew and if I had an opportunity to share it that it was not his grandmother nor his grandfather who were a part of those conversations,” Oprah said on CBS This Morning Monday morning (local time).
On the other side of the world, the UK is up in arms over the explosive chat, with the majority of British tabloids hammering the former royals. The Daily Mail clearly didn’t want to miss anything, opting for the super-long headline: “Meghan claims she was suicidal when she was five months pregnant, Kate made HER cry and Royals refused to make Archie a prince because they were worried how ‘dark’ he would be, as Harry reveals their new baby will be a GIRL”. The Sun went with “Meg: I felt suicidal”, and created the new nickname “Megxile”. (When the couple first announced they were stepping down as senior members of the royal family last year, British tabloids labelled the pair’s decision “Megxit”.)
Read a recap of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s interview with Oprah here.