Meghan insists she didn't leak names of royals at centre of race row to Endgame author Omid Scobie
1 December 2023, 12:28
Meghan Markle did not leak names of the royals at the centre of the race scandal to Endgame author Omid Scobie.
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A source close to the Duchess of Sussex also insisted that despite the royal racism row that began she after comments she made during an interview with Oprah in March 2021, she did not want them named publicly.
The source said that Meghan did not hand Mr Scobie the notorious letter to King Charles in which she complains about two people she alleges had upset her with comments about Prince Archie’s skintone.
Meghan and Harry have not commented publicly on Endgame or the scandal that has erupted over the Dutch translation which was pulped after two senior royals were identified.
The Royal family is considering legal action and leading lawyers have called on the Sussexes to sue Omid Scobie after he revealed he had seen the names on letters exchanged between Meghan and King Charles.
Royal experts have also said that the couple must publicly condemn the book. Several commentators are doubting if the names featuring in Endgame can even be correct.
It is unlikely that Buckingham Palace would want to get involved in a protracted legal battle. However, the Royal Family may opt to send out a legal warning to those tempted to further repeat the names, particularly given there has been no confirmation that these are indeed the people concerned or whether there is any truth even to the allegations themselves in the first place.
The other option would be to publicly release a statement, much like the late Queen Elizabeth did in the wake of Harry and Meghan marking their original allegations in their Oprah interview in 2021 when the Duchess of Sussex alleged that a senior royal express their 'concern' about her son, Prince Archie's, skin colour.
Then the late monarch said famously that while the issues around race were concerning, "recollections may vary" and vowed to deal with the matter privately.
LBC has contacted Buckingham Palace for comment.
The Daily Telegraph reported that they had spoken to sources close to Meghan who say she is clear that she never intended any royals to be publicly identified. The source also denied that the letter she sent to Charles was leaked to Scobie by her or anyone in her camp.
Royal author Phil Dampier told MailOnline: "The onus is now very much on Harry and Meghan. If they are not behind this book and don't believe the royal relatives are racist they should now come out and say so. Their silence speaks volumes and I can't see any reconciliations any time soon."
Last night Mr Scobie swore on his own life and that of his family that the naming of two royals in the Dutch version of Endgame is not a "stunt" to shift more copies of his book.
Mr Scobie, 42, said he was 'hurt' by the suggestion and dismissed it as a conspiracy theory by people who want to believe that he is 'in cahoots' with Meghan Markle, declaring: "It couldn't be further from the truth".
He also refused to apologise for the racism scandal that has erupted, claiming: "I'm as frustrated as everyone else. The book I wrote, the book I edited, the book I signed off on, did not have names in it".
It was business as usual for Kate last night as she and William attended the Royal Variety Performance in London while Charles is at the climate conference in Dubai.
Palace sources told The Mirror that the "entire Royal Family is united in outrage" after members of the family were "unfairly named in this way".
They added: "There is absolute and unequivocal denial that anything said by the two persons named publicly was said, or even could be considered to be said, in a racist manner.
"The row was described as 'an outrageous smear' that began with the Oprah interview but has now 'blown up into another stratosphere".
The interview also came just hours after both Dutch translators who worked on Mr Scobie's controversial book insisted that the names of two royals at the centre of a racism scandal were in the manuscript they received.
Saskia Peeters said she did not add the names to the Dutch version of the book Endgame.
Speaking to MailOnline from her home in Arnhem, she said: "As a translator, I translate what is in front of me.
"The names of the royals were there in black and white. I did not add them. I just did what I was paid to do and that was translate the book from English into Dutch."
