Oprah sets off a royal ruckus
Talk-show hostess Oprah Winfrey landed the interview of a lifetime as she speaks to Harry and Meghan. But many feel the royal couple is milking the publicity around their situation, and some consider boycotting the show for its content and timing
In CBS’s Oprah with Meghan and Harry: A Primetime Special, the veteran talk-show hostess promises a ‘shocking’ interview, which is already scandalising many a sympathiser of the British royal family who consider the interview’s timing ‘horrendous’. The 99-year-old Prince Philip, who has been battling heart problems is in hospital!
ITV has bought the rights to broadcast the interview in the UK at 8 pm on Monday, 8 March, a day after CBS carries it in the US.
THE SIT-DOWN
In the potentially bombshell interview, Prince Harry reveals that his ‘biggest fear was history repeating itself’ after his mother Diana’s death. At one point in the interview, Meghan even suggests that royal life was ‘un-survivable’.
In a teaser of the show, Oprah is seen asking a rather collected Meghan, “Were you silent or silenced?” Then, the talk-show veteran goes on to tell the audiences, “I just want to make it clear to everybody that there’s no subject that’s off limits.”
Sometime later, when Harry his wife the show, he speaks, comparing their situation to that of his late mum, Princess Diana. “For me, I’m just happy and relieved to be sitting here, talking to you, with my wife by my side,” he says as Meghan looks on. “Because I can’t begin to imagine what it must have been like for her, going through this process by herself all those years ago because it has been unbelievably tough for the two of us but at least we had each other.”
joins
THE ROYAL CONCERN
Experts warn that Harry and Meghan’s ‘explosive’ interview might deteriorate 99-year-old Prince Philip, who has been battling heart problems and has been hospitalised since 16 February 2021 after he complained of feeling ‘unwell’. Philip, who’s the Duke of Edinburgh and husband of Queen Elizabeth II, was first admitted at King Edward VII’s hospital in London as a ‘precautionary measure’. Buckingham Palace revealed recently that he was moved to a specialist hospital for further treatment.
Given the fragile state of the duke’s health, royal family sympathisers hope that the interview is put off home.
until
THE ITV DEAL
he’s recovered and back
According to sources, Oprah’s interview was extended from 90 minutes to
120 minutes apparently to allow CBS, the US channel partners, to rake in the advertising money. The show has up to
24 minutes of advertising time available and a 30-second slot is reported to cost
$200,000 (around £144,000).
However, according to www.daiymail.co.uk, ITV’s decision to buy the rights to broadcast the interview in the UK has been considered deplorable by many and experts wonder if ITV will make money from the deal. They believe businesses might not want to advertise during the show. The public, experts assume, have more affection for Prince Phillip than they do for Meghan and Harry.
WRONG TIME, LOVELIES
PR experts royal commentators such as Richard Fitzwilliams, the editor of The International Who’s Who for 25 years, believe that ITV made the wrong decision. They think ITV should await events before deciding when to screen the interview in the UK. However, PR honchos believe that as Harry and Meghan have signed up with the commercial broadcaster, they might not be able to influence the screening. PR biggie Mark Borkowski says, “I think brands have to take a considered view about whether they want their advertising anywhere near this.” However, according to Daily Mail, there are others, such as Prince Charles’ biographer Tom Bower, who hope the telecast goes ahead. “I think ITV was right to buy the interview. We want to see how Harry and Meghan have sold their souls and are willfully destroy- ing themselves,” he said.
Prince
Harry reveals that his ‘biggest fear was history repeating itself’ after his mother Diana’s death. At one point in the interview, Meghan even suggests that royal life was ‘unsurvivable’