Prince William Told King Charles They Needed a ‘Clear Strategy’ to Deal With ‘Renegade’ Harry and Meghan After Oprah Interview — Book
A new book details the aftermath of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s 2021 Oprah interview. Specifically how Prince William and King Charles III dealt with the “renegade” couple from then on. The Prince of Wales’ conversation with his father regarding “strategy,” plus how the royal family responded.
Author claims King Charles and Prince William decided they wouldn’t treat Prince Harry as a ‘trusted’ royal
Royal author Robert Jobson claims in his forthcoming book, Our King, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Oprah interview marked a “chilling new low” in Harry’s relationship with his father and brother.
In a Mail Online excerpt, Jobson claims William and King Charles agreed to treat Harry differently from that point on.
“In the aftermath, William went to his father and told him that the royal family needed a clear strategy in dealing with the renegade royals,” Jobson wrote before noting “Charles agreed.”
The author continued. “From then on, Harry’s father and brother decided, they would no longer treat him as a trusted — if often infuriating — member of the family. In short, they would never again meet Harry alone. There would always have to be another person in the room.”
Prince Harry’s ‘arrogance’ in the Oprah interview left William and King Charles ‘extremely upset’
Elsewhere in the Our King excerpt, Jobson shared how William and King Charles reacted to the Oprah interview.
“Not only had Harry heavily implied to Oprah that a member of the family was racist, but he’d had the gall to claim that his father and brother knew they were ‘trapped’ in their royal roles — ‘and I have huge compassion for that,’ he had added, twisting the knife,” Jobson said.
The king and William, he continued, were “extremely upset by Harry’s arrogance.” Not only that but the author also claimed they were “aghast at his [Harry’s] lack of discretion.
Furthermore, King Charles and the now 40-year-old Prince of Wales were “furious that he’d had the audacity to speak about their supposed feelings.”
Jobson also quoted a “senior source in the Royal Household,” who put it like this: “They were both deeply disappointed in him. He had no right or authority to speak on their behalf.”
At the time of the interview, it had been nearly a year since Harry and Meghan made their final public appearances as working royals.
Buckingham Palace released a statement 2 days after the interview’s U.S. broadcast
Privately Queen Elizabeth II supposedly referred to Harry and Meghan’s Oprah interview as “television nonsense.” Publicly, however, she waited to respond until March 9, 2021, two days after the interview’s U.S. broadcast.
Hours before the interview aired in the U.K., Buckingham Palace released a statement from the queen. She began by saying the “whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan.”
“The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning,” the statement continued. “While some recollections may vary,” they were being “taken very seriously” and “will be addressed by the family privately.”
Queen Elizabeth concluded the statement by saying Harry, Meghan, and their now-3-year-old son, Prince Archie, “will always be much loved family members.”
Meanwhile, in what some have referred to as a “major blunder,” William responded publicly on March 11, 2021, denying any allegations of racism in the royal family.
Since the Emmy-nominated interview, Harry and Meghan have continued to speak out on royal life. In December 2022, they appeared in a six-part Netflix docuseries that charted their romance and royal exit. Most recently, in January 2023, Harry told his story in his record-breaking Spare memoir.
Jobson’s Our King hits shelves on April 13.
