Why Harry and Meghan should be stripped of Royal title after Oprah interview – GP Taylor

She herself is only a queen by accident. After all, if King Edward had not run off with an American divorcee then things would have been significantly different. It was only abdication that thrust her into the Royal line.

Being ‘Royal’ must be one of the hardest lifestyles on earth. Every aspect of your life is open to scrutiny and there will always be someone ready and willing to criticise. We are all familiar with the final years of Diana, Princess of Wales, and the comparisons with her youngest son, and his wife, are now there for all to see.

There are eerie similarities with both the Edward, Mrs Simpson and Diana sagas and all that has played out on television over the last few days. Again, we have an American divorcee married to a member of the British Royal Family.

It was obvious from the outset that it would all end in tears and I firmly believe that Harry and Meghan the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, will come to regret their interview with Oprah Winfrey and its underlying tone.

All of their problems could have been solved if they had just stuck to the first rule of ‘The Firm’ – never comment and keep smiling. In other words, carry on and say nothing. When the Queen offers advice about being a Royal, any wise person would accept it and not complain.

What Meghan doesn’t seem to understand is that with great privilege comes great responsibility. It would seem that the House of Sussex is hell bent on throwing it all away. The backlash to the interview with Oprah is so significant that I believe their royal status could – and should – be taken away.

Perhaps, that is a good thing.

After all, they left the Royal Family because they wanted a quiet life. Perhaps, ‘Mr and Mrs Wales’ will finally get what they wanted and, just like Edward and Wallis, vanish from public view completely.

Sadly, as the very one-sided interview clearly showed, Meghan is as press hungry as any other Hollywood starlet or reality show contestant. She has achieved much in such a short period of time going from a B-movie actress to the wife of one of the most famous people in the world.

I cannot believe that she was so blinded by fame that she did not understand what would have been required from her when she became a part of such a pivotal family in the English way of life.

I cannot believe that there were no questions on her broken relationships with members of her own family. Meghan was very quick to dish the dirt on Kate and others but no there was no mention of the hurt she has caused to her father. She looked like a teary-eyed, smiling assassin.

I can hardly believe that there would be concerns as to the colour of their child or that they were left penniless. Harry was given millions by his mother, more money than most normal people would see in a lifetime.

It is churlish of them to complain of the constraints placed upon them by a royal way of life. Being a Duke and Duchess is ring-fenced by a thousand years of tradition. It is not the place to spout off your personal ‘woke’ agenda whenever you want. Meghan should have known this from the start, but perhaps the idea of marrying a wealthy prince blinded her from reality. Marry in haste, repent at leisure.

The interview with Oprah Winfrey was possibly the biggest mistake made by a Royal since Diana’s ill-fated meeting with Martin Bashir – and, more recently, the Duke of York’s interview with Newsnight’s Emily Maitlis. It was sad to see that both Harry and Meghan had adopted the stance of victimhood.

They showed no responsibility for their part in the Megxit fiasco and I seriously doubt that blaming the Royal Family for their departure will wash 
with the British public. After all, they know full well that the Queen cannot respond in public.

The Oprah interview and the fall-out from it has done very little for the Royal Family. In fact, it has done much to undo the many good things that have been achieved by them through the pandemic. It has fed a worldwide media circus with personal opinions dressed up as facts where nothing said can really be trusted.

The accusations are astounding, damaging and totally misjudged. If the interview was meant to make the world feel sad for Harry and Meghan, then it has had the opposite effect. It was all like watching a very bad and tacky episode of Made in Chelsea.

GP Taylor is a writer and broadcaster. He lives in Whitby.

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