Conversations about “how dark” their baby’s skin tone would be. A rift between Prince Harry and his father so deep that Harry said that at some point his father ‘stopped taking my calls’. And Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, says she just does not want to live anymore.
These were some of the shocking details Harry and Meghan described in an exclusive interview with Oprah Winfrey, the first they have given since stepping down from official royal duties last year. They said they would have stayed if they had received support from the royal family.
In one of the only frivolous moments, the couple revealed that their second child, who is expected this summer, will be a girl.
But Harry and Meghan spent most of the discussion trying to give their side to many of the tabloids that have been circulating about them since they met, including one about how Meghan once made her sister-in-law, Catherine, cry.
While they had harsh words for their treatment in the press, the most disturbing parts of the interview focused on how they were treated by members of the royal family. Harry said he had a “very good relationship” with the queen, but said he was “disappointed” by his father and that while he loved his brother William, he was “on different paths”.
Meghan said that ‘in the months when I was pregnant, a conversation was going on that he would not get security; he will not get a title, and also worries and conversations about how dark his skin can be when he is born. “Harry said it was not a conversation he ever wanted to discuss.
Meghan said she had a “clear and genuine and frightening thought” about suicide while she was a working member of the royal family. Harry said she had not received any support from the royal family about her mental health, saying: “It was not a conversation.”
The couple focused heavily on the royal family’s refusal to provide security for them, especially Harry’s concern over the death of his mother. He said his experience with Meghan showed him how difficult it must have been for his mother.
More episodes of the interview will be broadcast exclusively on “CBS This Morning” on Monday morning from 7 p.m.
Harpo Productions / Joe Pugliese