“Harry and Meghan haven’t found their freedom – they’re more trapped than ever”

After facing huge amounts of criticism, royal expert Duncan Larcombe believes Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have made a rod for their own backs by going it alone

They announced they were stepping back from the Royal family last year, and moved across the Atlantic in a bid to do things their way.

But as of late, things don’t seem to be going well for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

Last week, former GMB presenter Piers Morgan was cleared by Ofcom after Meghan complained over his comments about not believing her claims during the infamous interview with Oprah Winfrey. During the interview, she accused an unnamed royal of being racist and said her cries for mental health help went unanswered.

BACKLASH

Meghan – who hinted to Oprah that she had been “silenced” by the royals and also defended her right to speak freely against her in-laws – received a huge backlash and was branded a hypocrite, with Piers gloating, “A resounding victory for free speech and a resounding defeat for Princess Pinocchios.”

Harry faced criticism last week too. Speaking to the crowd at the GQ awards via videolink, he called out the media and social media users for spreading “misinformation” about Covid vaccines. Meanwhile, his brother Prince William earned praise by stepping in to help an Afghan officer he knew from Sandhurst get himself and his family to safety. Critics were quick to point out that Harry – who served in the military for 10 years and spent time in Afghanistan – had simply issued a joint statement with his wife to say they were “speechless” over the crisis.

One commenter wrote, “William actually helping a cadet he met at Sandhurst get out of Afghanistan. Harry in black tie lecturing Brits about vaccination sharing and still whinging about the press.”

CONSTRAINED

Last year, Harry and Meghan’s biography Finding Freedom detailed how the pair had felt liberated after moving to the States and leaving royalty behind them, while new chapters released last month told how they considered naming the “royal racist”.

But as their popularity seems to dwindle – and their ambitions to “do good” have seemingly backfired – royal biographer Duncan Larcombe says recent events show the couple are now more constrained than ever in their new life.

Duncan says, “If freedom is being able to say what you want, when you want, to whoever you choose to speak to, then Harry has found a degree of freedom. But if freedom is having good will behind you to live in peace, being able to live life as you want it or being at peace with the people you’ve rowed with, then freedom has not been achieved.

“It’s backfired. Harry and Meghan seem to have totally isolated themselves – they’re more trapped than ever in this new life they’ve created.”

Now Closer looks at how freedom is still out of the Sussexes’ grasp…

MEGHAN WAS WELCOMED IN THE BEGINNING BUT NOW THE UK HAS LOST TRUST IN HER