Suicidal thoughts, racism… Meghan and Harry's confidences to Oprah Winfrey
The Duchess has notably revealed that members of the royal family were concerned about the skin color of her son Archie before he was born.
Long awaited, especially in the United Kingdom, the interview granted by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Harry and Meghan, to Oprah Winfrey, on CBS, Sunday March 7, will have the effect of a bomb. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are expecting a girl, they revealed, their second child after Archie was born a boy in May 2019. “To have a boy, then a girl, what more can you ask for? »Rejoiced Prince Harry, who married Meghan Markle in 2018.
Prince Harry's wife Meghan Markle, who is mixed race, has raised 'concerns' within the British royal family over her son Archie's skin color when she was pregnant, in an explosive interview broadcast Sunday night on CBS in the United States. The Duchess of Sussex told Oprah Winfrey that these words had been reported to her by her husband, without wanting to give the identity of the person or people who had this exchange with Harry because "it would be very harmful for them". Prince Harry was told "of concerns and conversations [...] about how dark his skin [would] be when he [was born]," she told Oprah Winfrey of her son.
The Duchess of Sussex also said Buckingham Palace has refused to grant protection to the child, despite this being the tradition. Meghan Markle also revealed that she had suicidal thoughts during this time. “I didn't want to be alive anymore,” she told presenter Oprah Winfrey with tears in her eyes.
Meghan Markle accused of harassment
If the 39-year-old American denounced a "real smear campaign" on the part of the royal institution and said she did not feel protected by the royal family, the former actress was careful not to attack personally members of the crown. She simply claimed that, contrary to what had been reported by the British press, it was not her who made Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, cry, but that the opposite happened during an incident that took place. before her marriage to Prince Harry in 2018. She said Kate apologized shortly after.
On Tuesday, the British daily The Times published testimonies accusing the Duchess of Sussex of harassment when she was still living with the royal family. Buckingham Palace, "very concerned", immediately announced the opening of an investigation, an unusual decision for the institution little accustomed to settling its disputes in public. The couple have often justified their departure from England by the desire to escape the British press, but they also publicly let their discomfort within the institution filter out.
Elizabeth II will not watch the interview
For its part, the British monarchy has decided to face the threat of this shock interview, offering a few hours before the Sussex intervention the image of a united family during the annual celebrations of the Commonwealth. In a pre-recorded televised speech, the Queen underlined the importance of the "selfless dedication and sense of duty" shown by caregivers during the pandemic, a sign that some are sure to interpret as a criticism of the princely couple. .
According to a source close to the queen quoted by the Sunday Times, Elizabeth II will not watch the interview with her grandson and will be more present in the media next week to show that the monarchy "focuses on important issues". The newspaper also indicates that members of the court, who did not hesitate to call the interview a “circus”, are preparing to retaliate “with new revelations” on the behavior of the couple if the monarchy was attacked.
The Duke and Duchess have lost their last official titles
"My biggest worry was to see history repeat itself," said the 36-year-old prince, in another excerpt from the CBS special, a reference to the tragic fate of his mother Diana, who died in 1997. in a road accident in Paris as his driver tried to escape the paparazzi. After confirming to the Queen their final withdrawal from the royal family, after a period of observation, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, married since May 2018, lost their last official titles in February.
Prince Harry also claimed that his father, Prince Charles, and his brother, Prince William, were "prisoners" of the system as members of the royal family, a situation which he said inspires him. “A lot of compassion”. “My father and my brother are prisoners” of the system, he said. "They cannot leave him," as he did after realizing that he himself was "a prisoner", he said. Prince Harry said he felt "really disappointed" by his father, Prince Charles, believing that he had not supported him during the ordeal he went through. “I'm really disappointed,” the Duke of Sussex explained, “because he's been through something similar. He knows what pain is, ”he said during his interview, saying that Prince Charles had even refused, for a time, to take his calls on the phone. Harry made it clear, however, that he was talking to his father again.
"We did everything possible to make it work"
Prince Harry also assured that he and his wife had done "everything possible" to stay with the royal family. “I'm sad that what happened has happened, but I know […] that we have done everything possible to make it work,” he said. “Oh, my God, we just did everything we could to protect them,” added Meghan Markle, alongside him. The couple announced in January 2020 that they were stepping down from their role with the British royal family.
Prince and Meghan Markle were secretly married three days before the grandiose official ceremony attended by millions around the world in 2018, she revealed. “Three days before our wedding, we got married,” said the Duchess of Sussex, saying they said yes in front of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, before high mass on May 19, 2018. “ Nobody knows. But we called the Archbishop, and we just said, 'Look, this show is for the world, but we want our union to be between us,' ”she told Oprah Winfrey.
Installed in Canada, then in California, in Montecito, since March, the duo have already resolutely taken the tangent and capitalized on their image of modern couple, mixed, turned towards the humanitarian, in a country where the opinion is much more to them. favorable than in England.
A life "better than all fairy tales"
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle have lifted a corner of the veil on their new life in California, "better than any fairy tale you've read," according to the Duchess of Sussex. During the interview, the couple justified their withdrawal from the royal family and their departure from the United Kingdom by constant pressure from the British media and the lack of support from the Windsors. Meghan Markle is enthusiastic about the idea of "being able to live in an authentic way", with children, dogs and chickens, far from the pomp and protocol of Buckingham Palace.
Since their move, the couple have created their foundation, Archewell, and have notably committed to producing programs for Netflix, for $ 100 million, according to several American media, and podcasts for Spotify. Added to this is an announced partnership with the Apple TV + platform, in collaboration with American presenter Oprah Winfrey, who conducted Sunday's interview. The couple are worth gold and "Oprah" sold, according to the Wall Street Journal, this interview between 7 and 9 million dollars to CBS, while retaining the international rights, source of juicy income, because a good part of the planet was waiting for this television event.
