Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, vent their grievances against the British monarchy in the second half of their Netflix documentary series released Thursday, which includes Harry describing how his older brother shouted at him during a meeting and Meghan talking about wanting to end her life as she struggled to cope with toxic press coverage.
The couple have detailed their experiences leading to their decision to step away from royal duties and make a new start in the United States in B次元官网网址淗arry & Meghan,B次元官网网址 a six-part series. The first three installments, released last week, focused on the British mediaB次元官网网址檚 coverage of the couple and the way it was influenced by racism.
The final three episodes see Harry, 38, directing more of his ire at Prince William, now heir to the throne, and speaking in more detail about how his relationship with the royal household broke down.
He recounted how William lashed out at him during a royal summit at Sandringham Castle in January 2020 to talk about Harry and MeghanB次元官网网址檚 plan to step down as senior royals and move away.
B次元官网网址淚t was terrifying to have my brother scream and shout at me and my father say things that just simply werenB次元官网网址檛 true, and my grandmother quietly sit there and sort of take it all in,B次元官网网址 Harry said.
The royal said he and MeghanB次元官网网址檚 plan to stay B次元官网网址渉alf in, half outB次元官网网址 of royal life was swiftly rejected.
Elsewhere in the series, Meghan, 41, says she thought about killing herself before she and Harry decided to move to America. B次元官网网址淚t was like B次元官网网址楢ll of this will stop if I am not here,B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址 she said.
Harry added that he believed the Mail on SundayB次元官网网址檚 publication of a letter Meghan wrote her estranged father, Thomas Markle, contributed to her having a miscarriage. Meghan later sued the MailB次元官网网址檚 publisher and won.
B次元官网网址淚 believe my wife suffered a miscarriage because of what the Mail did,B次元官网网址 Harry said. B次元官网网址淏earing in mind the stress that caused, the lack of sleep and the timing of the pregnancy B次元官网网址 that miscarriage was created by what they were trying to do to her.B次元官网网址
Harry stressed it was ultimately his decision, not MeghanB次元官网网址檚, to leave the U.K. B次元官网网址淚 said that we need to get out of here,B次元官网网址 he said.
Palace officials have not commented on the series.
The production is Harry and MeghanB次元官网网址檚 latest effort to tell their own story after the couple stepped back from royal life in early 2020 and moved to the wealthy Southern California enclave of Montecito. Lucrative contracts with Netflix and Spotify have helped finance their life on an estate overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
The Netflix series has come out at a crucial moment for BritainB次元官网网址檚 monarchy. King Charles III, HarryB次元官网网址檚 father, is trying to show that the institution remains relevant after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, whose personal popularity damped criticism of the crown during her 70-year reign.
HarryB次元官网网址檚 2018 marriage to the former Meghan Markle, a biracial American actress, was once seen as a public relations coup for the royal family, boosting the monarchyB次元官网网址檚 effort to move into the 21st century by making it more representative of a multicultural nation.
But the fairytale, punctuated with a horse-drawn carriage ride and lavish wedding at Windsor Castle, soon unraveled amid relentless media attention, including allegations that Meghan was self-centered and bullied her staff.
A look at some other allegations Harry and Meghan make in the second half of their series:
ON THE ROYAL PRESS MACHINE:
Describing royal press operations as a B次元官网网址渄irty game,B次元官网网址 Harry said there was B次元官网网址渓eakingB次元官网网址 and B次元官网网址減lanting of stories,B次元官网网址 and that the palace B次元官网网址渃omms teamB次元官网网址 would seek to deflect negative coverage of one royal by issuing a story about another royal.
He talks about being sidelined, citing the example of a joint statement palace officials issued on behalf of him and William to B次元官网网址渟quashB次元官网网址 a story about William bullying the couple out of the family. He said it was issued without his consent.
B次元官网网址淚 couldnB次元官网网址檛 believe it. No one had asked me permission to put my name to a statement like that,B次元官网网址 Harry said. B次元官网网址淭hey were happy to lie to protect my brother and yet for three years, they were never willing to tell the truth to protect us.B次元官网网址
B次元官网网址淚 mean, the saddest part of it was this wedge created between me and my brother so that heB次元官网网址檚 now on the institutionB次元官网网址檚 side,B次元官网网址 he added.
MeghanB次元官网网址檚 lawyer, Jenny Afia, claimed in the series that she saw evidence of B次元官网网址渘egative briefing from the palaceB次元官网网址 against the couple B次元官网网址渢o suit other peopleB次元官网网址檚 agendas.B次元官网网址 She did not elaborate on the evidence.
ON BEING BLOCKED FROM SEEING THE QUEEN:
The couple said they planned to see HarryB次元官网网址檚 grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, during a visit to the U.K. in early 2020, but palace officials blocked it.
Meghan said Harry received an urgent message saying, B次元官网网址淵ou are not allowed to go and see Her Majesty.B次元官网网址 Harry said he rang the queen, who told him that B次元官网网址淚 didnB次元官网网址檛 know that I was busy. IB次元官网网址檝e now been told IB次元官网网址檓 busy all week.B次元官网网址
B次元官网网址淭his is when a family and a family business are in direct conflict because theyB次元官网网址檙e blocking you from seeing the queen, but what theyB次元官网网址檙e really doing is blocking a grandson from seeing his grandmother,B次元官网网址 Meghan told the documentary makers.
B次元官网网址擲ylvia Hui And Danica Kirka, The Associated Press