Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
I’m worried this is going to affect the health of our dad.. and of Prince Philip
part-way down the aisle. She has never spoken publicly.
Last month, Meghan won a privacy battle against the Mail on Sunday for publishing extracts from a letter to her father. In a High Court judgement, Mr Justice Warby said they showed “her feelings of anguish about her father’s behaviour” and called them “inherently private and personal matters.”
Samantha said: “The way Meghan has treated my father is horrifying. He’s been on the phone to me in tears. He couldn’t understand it. Some people have accused my dad of spoiling her growing up. When she was young I made excuses for her and thought ‘she needs to feel special’. But I didn’t see what effect it was having.
“She’d throw hissy fits when she didn’t get her own way so a lot of people, including me and my dad, said ‘oh, don’t upset her’. It became her way of dealing with people. She was everyone’s joy, I loved that little girl but it’s not the same person she is today. He’s now come to terms with what she is. My poor dad is coming to terms with the fact he can’t take this personally. I don’t know how you recover from something like this.”
Wheelchair-user Samantha, who has multiple sclerosis, says her health has suffered due to being targeted by fans of Meghan, including one who was handed a twoyear restraining injunction. She added: “This interview will go down as one of the worst things the royal family has had to deal with. Harry is enabling and rationalising her behaviour
on television. To turn on his own family reminds me of kidnap victims defending their captors. He’d never have treated his family like this before he met Meghan.”
Samantha, who has published her own book The Diary of Princess Pushy’s Sister, also criticised Oprah, saying: “She’s wrong to do this interview
knowing the effect it can have on others. She shouldn’t be showing it while Prince Philip is in hospital. If she had any decency as a human she would wait until things stabilise. I don’t feel Oprah is a neutral unbiased interviewer. She runs in the same circles as Meghan.
“I don’t expect it to happen, but the best thing Meghan could do is apologise for her past behaviour and maybe Oprah could offer her counselling.”