Confirming rumours of a royal rift all while opening up about facing an onslaught of criticism from the British press, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle sent shockwaves through Buckingham Palace when their tell-all TV documentary, ‘Harry & Meghan: An African Journey’, aired earlier this week.
WATCH: Harry confirms rift with William in TV interview
While thousands of fans appreciated their earnest comments which were no doubt a breath of fresh air, the royal family was “fairly astonished” and deeply disturbed by the “level of personal detail” Harry and Meghan shared in the documentary.
“There seems to be a lot of bemusement within the royal family about what exactly Harry and Meghan are trying to achieve, as members of the royal family do not usually speak in such detail about personal matters,” an insider told E! News. “It’s fair to say that there is a deep sense of unease in the royal households about the direction this is all headed.”
Harry’s unexpected remarks about his strained relationship with his brother William is also said to have left a bitter taste in his mouth, with an insider claiming he was profusely offended he’d confirmed rumours of a royal rift.
“William is extremely concerned about Harry and Meghan,” a royal also told Us Weekly. “Even though the brothers have grown apart, William still cares about Harry and is hoping that he’ll open up to him about his current struggles. William wants to be there for Harry and hates seeing him in such a bad place. Despite their differences, blood is thicker than water.”
During the rare interview, Harry was asked by journalist Tom Bradby whether he was at odds with his brother. After a brief pause, the new dad to Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor admitted their relationship is, in fact, fractured.
“Umm… part, part of this role and part of this job and part of this family being under the pressure that it’s under, inevitably, stuff happens,” the Duke of Sussex began, initially laughing at the question.
“But look: We’re brothers, we’ll always be brothers — and we’re certainly on different paths at the moment. But I’ll certainly always be there for him as I know he’ll always be there for me.”
He continued: “We don’t see each other as much… we’re so busy. But I love him dearly and the majority of the stuff is created out of nothing. But as brothers, you have good days, you have bad days.”
The touching documentary also featured a heartfelt interview with the former Suits actress who admitted she was ill-prepared for the intense amount of backlash she was set to receive. In fact, she said life has been “tough” since becoming a member of the royal family.
“Look any woman, especially when they’re pregnant, you’re really vulnerable,” the Duchess of Sussex said.
“And so that was made really challenging and then when you have a newborn, you know…and especially as a woman, it’s really, it’s a lot, so you add this on top of just trying to be a new mum or trying to be a newlywed, it’s, um…Yeah, well I guess…and also thank you for asking because not many people have asked if I’m OK, but it’s, uh, it’s a very real thing to be going through behind the scenes.”
Midway through the couple’s trip to Africa, Prince Harry issued a statement on behalf of his wife, slamming the British tabloids for “bullying” his wife. He also revealed he’d taken legal action against The Mail after the outlet published a private letter Meghan wrote to her estranged father Thomas Markle month before.
“It’s an accumulation, and Harry refuses to sit and do nothing as the British press scrutinises Meghan and invades her privacy,” a source previously told Us Weekly. “Meghan comes across as a strong woman, but she’s been deeply affected by the negative stories about her.”
Days after filing a law suit, news broke that Harry was also suing the owners of the Sun and Daily Mirror over an alleged phone hack.
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