Queen ‘refused to approve’ Harry and Meghan Oprah interview statement

Pressure is growing on the royals to release a response to Meghan and Harry’s bombshell interview as commentators described their continued silence as “unsustainable”.

The Queen reportedly refused to sign off on the first draft of a statement following the Oprah Winfrey chat and has been now holding crisis talks.

But more than 30 hours after the CBS interview first aired and the morning after it was broadcast in the UK, Buckingham Palace needs to respond soon.

“It is becoming increasingly unsustainable for Buckingham Palace to say nothing at all,” said BBC royal correspondent Daniela Relph.

“In the past they’ve had the position ‘never complain, never explain’, but the response to this interview and the demand for some kind of statement from them is now very strong and I think perhaps today we will see some kind of response.”
 

RELATED: Follow live royal updates here

Relph said she was not sure the response would deal with the allegations — which include the claim that one royal made comments on how dark Archie’s skin would be — but expected a statement of compassion and support for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
 

“In the past they’ve had the position never complain, never explain”⁰
Royal correspondent Daniela Relph tells #BBCBreakfast we may see a response to the Meghan and Harry interview from Buckingham Palace today. https://t.co/NMG0Nk3phJ pic.twitter.com/9bYBWVp30m

— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) March 9, 2021

The royals also face claims that Archie was refused a title and the couple was not “protected” even as the institution lied to protect other family members.

Meghan told Oprah said was not allowed to seek support when she was dealing with suicidal thoughts, and that she barely left home in months as she was told to keep a low profile.

Harry said the family cut him off financially after the couple decided to step back as working royals, and he had to agree to Netflix and Spotify deals to pay for family’s security. He said he had what his mother Diana left him and “without that we would not have been able to do this [move to LA]”.

Relph said the royals “will not want to feel rushed into saying something”.

RELATED: ‘Palace investigating the wrong royal’

Australian Women’s Weekly editor Juliet Rieden said the royals needed to make a statement.

“I understand behind closed doors, there is fevered meetings going on while they decide what they are going to do,” she told 4BC radio.

“I think they have to put out a statement … either from Buckingham Palace or directly from Her Majesty or Prince Charles.

“There are lots of things in there that need discussing.”

The Times reports that the Queen refused to sign off on a prepared statement, instead wanting more time to consider what her response should be.

Other sources have noted there was a sense of “intense personal shock and sadness” – with the Palace said to be paralysed with “horror and dismay”.

Concerns have now been raised that this week, all senior members of the Royal Family are expected to carry out public engagements – where they could face questions about the Oprah interview.

Prince Charles is reportedly “in a state of despair” following the bombshell revelations from Harry and Meghan’s Oprah interview.

“Harry was emailing his father to justify why he and Meghan had done the interview,” royal author and Vanity Fair correspondent Katie Nicholl wrote. “Charles was said to be ‘in a state of despair’ according to a friend.”

“For Prince Harry to say that he felt let down by his father must have been a difficult thing to say and hard for Charles to hear,” royal author Sarah Gristwood also told the outlet.

Nicholl said the family will take their time “and choose their words carefully”.