By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Photo Credit: CBS.
Queen Elizabeth said Tuesday that the royal family will address allegations of racism within Buckingham Palace made by Prince Harry and the Duchess of Sussex in their explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey.
The queen’s comments were her first since that interview, when Harry and Meghan Markle also detailed a lack of support by the royal family for the duchess’s mental health issues and media intrusion.
“The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan,” Elizabeth said in a statement issued at 5:30 p.m. London time, after hours of speculation about how she would respond to the claims.
The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately, “she added.
“Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved family members.”
Before the statement, there had been a wall of silence from the royal family about the interview, which was aired Sunday on CBS and by British broadcaster ITV on Monday night.
The palace was said to have held “crisis talks,” according to British media reports, including the BBC, with senior royals reported to have had urgent discussions over how to limit the fallout from the interview, which saw Harry and Meghan allege that a member of the royal family had questioned what skin tone their then-unborn child might have.
Meghan, the first mixed-race member of the modern British royal family, would not reveal who had made the comment, saying, “I think that would be very damaging for them.”
Winfrey later clarified that the royal who had made the comment was not Queen Elizabeth II or Prince Philip.
The two-hour interview, skillfully handled by the veteran broadcaster, was watched by 17.1 million viewers in the U.S, More than 12 million viewers watched the U.K. transmission, according to figures released by ITV on Tuesday.
In addition to allegations of racism, the interview contained damaging claims that the palace had failed to provide support for Meghan when she experienced mental health issues that left her feeling suicidal.
The interview has left commentators and royal correspondents questioning how damaging the allegations are for the royal family, an institution that has worked to maintain a public image of duty and decorum and has always sought to keep internal family affairs, let alone rifts and controversies, out of the spotlight.