The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Queen ‘sad’ to hear of Sussexes’ ‘challenges’
The Queen is “saddened” to hear the full extent of the challenges faced by the Sussexes and the issues raised around race are “concerning”, Buckingham Palace has said in response to the shocking Oprah interview.
The Palace said while “some recollections may vary”, they are taken “very seriously” but would be addressed by the family privately.
Harry, Meghan and Archie will “always be much loved family members”, the statement said.
The monarchy was left in crisis after Harry and Meghan delivered their dramatic revelations on primetime television.
The Sussexes laid bare their brief lives as a working royal couple, alleging a member of the family – not the Queen or Duke of Edinburgh – made a racist comment about their son, and how the duchess had suicidal thoughts but her approaches to the monarchy for help were turned down.
The statement on behalf of the Queen said: “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.
“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.”
Pressure had been mounting on the Palace to respond to accusations of racism in the royal family following the explosive interview.
The statement came a day and a half after the two-hour conversation was aired in the US.
Earlier yesterday, the Prince of Wales chuckled nervously when he was asked if he had seen the interview with Oprah Winfrey.
Charles was questioned by the media at the end of a visit to an NHS pop-up vaccine clinic in a northwest London church, popular with London’s black community.
A member of the press asked: “Sir, what did you think of the interview?”
Clearly taken aback, Charles turned to look at the reporter as he left the building and said “oh” and gave a nervous chuckle and carried on walking.
Meanwhile, more than one million people in Scotland watched the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s interview with Oprah Winfrey on Monday evening, according to overnight figures.
STV’s audience peaked at 1.1 million during the programme and across the broadcast, which aired between 9pm and 10.50pm, an average audience of 984,000 viewers tuned in to listen to the couple share their story.
The interview was aired on Sunday night to US audiences, before being shown in the UK on Monday evening.
STV said that in terms of audience share, Oprah with Meghan and Harry attracted more interest in Scotland than elsewhere in the UK, with 58% of TV viewers in Scotland watching it (four share points higher than the ITV network).
The broadcaster said: “STV’s audience peaked at 1.1m during the programme, and the interview has so far reached a total of 1.3m viewers.
“That figure is expected to rise once ratings are consolidated in seven days, capturing catch-up data including viewing from STV Player.”
Across the UK the interview peaked at 12.4m viewers, and reached 17.1m American viewers when it was first shown on CBS on Sunday.