Buckingham Palace finally responds to Prince Harry and Meghan’s interview
The next chapter in the saga of Prince Harry & Meghan Markle’s break from British royalty is finally here. And honestly? It’s a little anticlimactic.
We’ve been waiting for almost two whole days to find out how Buckingham Palace would react to Prince Harry & Meghan’s interview with Oprah Winfrey. The royal family’s response? Somewhere between “K” and “I’m sorry you feel that way.”
Okay, maybe we’re not being completely fair to the royals. This is a tricky situation and the whole world has its eyes on them. They have to choose their words carefully. Still, a bit of a letdown after how much tea was spilled by Prince Harry & Meghan on Sunday.
Measured words
Here’s the statement released by Buckingham Palace. Pay attention and don’t blink or you’ll miss it:
“The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan. 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. Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved family members.”
That’s it. No mention of all that drama with the press. No reprimand for The Daily Mail for playing favorites. No “holy crumpets, one of our own was severely depressed and we didn’t notice!” Come on, guys. Meghan’ father has more to say about the whole scandal than you do! (Granted, the argument could be made that he shouldn’t be saying anything, but we digress . . . .)
Opening scroll
Of course, this could just be a prelude to bigger things to come. This statement could be the equivalent of “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away” before a Star Wars movie goes nuts. For all we know, the royal family is just warming up and they had to release a placeholder of a statement while they got the big guns ready.
How mindblowing would it be if the way the royal family ends up addressing these “concerning” issues actually upends long-standing traditions? What if Buckingham Palace suddenly said, “Hey, we’re done giving all these newspapers access to our lives.” What if Prince Charles publicly enrolled in racial sensitivity classes? What if Kate Middleton released a TikTok about how much she loves Prince Harry & Meghan?
Don’t give us that look. Let us dream. We don’t want to focus on how “will be addressed by the family privately” sounds a whole lot like WarnerMedia conducting a private investigation of Joss Whedon’s misdeeds. They need a Ray Fisher to stir things up over in Buckingham palace!
Stateside
Given how brief and unspectacular Buckingham Palace’s response turned out to be, we probably shouldn’t hold our breath waiting for a follow-up from Prince Harry & Meghan. Doesn’t mean we won’t get commentary from everyone else though. James Corden took Prince Harry for a bus ride on his show – we’re sure he’ll have something to say!
It wouldn’t surprise us if Oprah also had some opinions regarding the response from the royal family. In a way, Oprah set off this final operatic movement in Prince Harry & Meghan’s story. That CBS interview touched on racism, depression, bad press, and all sorts of other royal drama. Oprah might be feeling like she put in a lot of work on a Facebook post just to get a like, not even an actual comment.
In the end, however, what matters the most is how Prince Harry & Meghan feel. For all we know, Buckingham Palace’s response hit them right where they live, in a good way. What we see as an unimpressive PR move, they might see as a gesture of goodwill, proof that the bridges haven’t been burned down yet. The Queen sent Archie a waffle maker, after all.
