It was more than two years ago that a royal race row was first sparked after claims by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle during their bombshell chat with Oprah Winfrey. The interview sent shockwaves through the monarchy after the couple spoke of their disgust at "concerns and conversations" over the colour of son Prince Archie's skin.
The Sussexes set in train a public debate about who in the Royal Family might harbour such racially charged views. In a multicultural modern Britain such allegations against the monarchy generated debate on a matter of such public importance with Omid Scobie's new book claiming to add to that public debate.
And this week the storm has been reignited once again after King Charles and the Princess of Wales were dragged into the row following the publication of the new royal book. Here we look back at the storm in full, from how it started to the royals being "united in outrage" after it has reared up again...
Shock claims
The first time it was claimed that comments were made about Archie's skin colour was back in March 2021 when Harry and Meghan sat down for a tell-all chat with Oprah Winfrey. For the first part of the interview, Meghan talked to Oprah alone when the conversation turned to claims that the Firm did not want to make Archie a prince at the time he was born. Oprah asked Meghan: "Why do you think that is? Do you think it's because of his race?"
Eventually Meghan replied: "I can give you an honest answer. In those months when I was pregnant, all around this same time.. so we have in tandem the conversation of 'He won't be given security, he's not going to be given a title' and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he's born."
After Oprah exclaimed: "What?", Meghan continued saying there had been a conversation with Harry about how dark Archie would be and "what that would mean or look like". Oprah added: "And you're not going to tell me who had the conversation?" To which Meghan replied: "I think that would be very damaging to them."
Oprah added: "Okay. So, how does one have that meeting?" And Meghan said: "That was relayed to me from Harry. Those were conversations that family had with him." Later in the interview, the two women were joined by Harry and Oprah asked: "Meghan shared with us that there was a conversation with you about Archie's skin tone. What was that conversation?"
Harry replied: "That conversation I'm never going to share, but at the time, at the time, it was awkward. I was a bit shocked." Oprah probed: "Can you tell us what the question was? But Harry replied: "No. I don't. I'm not comfortable with sharing that. But that was, that was right at the beginning, right?"
When Oprah asked if it was "what will the kids look like?" Harry explained: "But that was right at the beginning, when she wasn't going to get security, when members of my family were suggesting that she carries on acting, because there was not enough money to pay for her, and all this sort of stuff. Like, there was some real obvious signs before we even got married that this was going to be really hard."
In the days after the interview, Buckingham Palace released a short statement, which read: "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. Whilst 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." Elsewhere on a royal engagement after the interview, Prince William was asked by a reporter: "Is the royal family a racist family, sir? to which he quickly replied: "We're very much not a racist family.
Harry's denial
Claims about comments regarding Archie's skin were not brought up in either in Harry and Meghan's Netflix series released in December 2022 or in Harry's bombshell memoir, Spare. However, while promoting Spare in an interview on ITV in January, he was pressed on the claims.
During the interview ITV News at Ten host Tim Bradby said to Harry: "In the Oprah interview you accused members of your family of racism", but the Duke snapped back: saying "no I didn't", adding "the British press said that". In a further snipe at his family, Harry denied he'd "describe that as essentially racist", retorting: "I wouldn't, not having lived within that family." Harry once again refused to name those concerned, saying: "The difference between racism and unconscious bias, the two things are different.
"But once it's been acknowledged, or pointed out to you as an individual, or as an institution, that you have unconscious bias, you therefore have an opportunity to learn and grow from that in order so that you are part of the solution rather than part of the problem. Otherwise unconscious bias then moves into the category of racism."
Letter revelation
Then months later in April, a report surfaced that Meghan had wrote a personal letter to Charles over her concerns in the wake of the couple's explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey. The Telegraph reported that following the tell-all chat, Meghan expressed her concerns about 'unconscious bias' in the Firm.
A source claimed the Duchess felt she hadn't "received a satisfactory response to her concerns, and that is believed to be one factor in her decision not to attend the Coronation". The source went on to suggest the letters "make clear the identity of the senior member of the family who made the comment". It was reported that the King and Meghan accepted the remark was not made with malice.
Two royals accused
Fast-forward to the publication of royal biographer Omid Scobie's book Endgame earlier this week, where in it, he claimed Meghan named two members of the Firm who made the comments in letters exchanged between her and King Charles.
The book claimed the King was said to have wanted his return letters to express how he felt no "casual prejudice" had been involved. But the names of those involved in the English version of the book were not revealed. The author Mr Scobie claimed that he knew the names but "laws in the United Kingdom prevent me from reporting who they were."
Translation row
However, on the day the book was published, it was revealed copies of it were being pulled in Holland after it appeared to name those mentioned in the letters. Soon after, TV presenter Piers Morgan used the opening monologue of his show Piers Morgan Uncensored on Talk TV to identify the King and Princess of Wales as the subjects, declaring: "I do not believe any racist comments were ever made by any of the royal family."
In the clip, which was posted to the show’s official profile on X (formally Twitter) and seen more than 7.7million times since it aired, he said: "If Dutch people walking into a book shop can see these names then you, the British people are entitled to know, too…(and) until there is actual evidence of those comments being made, I will never believe it."
'United in outrage'
Last night, it then emerged that the Royal Family are "united in outrage" after the King and Princess of Wales were dragged into the row. It came after royal author Omid Scobie, Endgame appeared on ITV's This Morning programme to confirm an investigation had begun at the publishers responsible for translating his book into Dutch, but denied including the identities of the two senior royals in his manuscript.
Speaking of his frustration of the scandal that has sent shockwaves through the monarchy, Mr Scobie said: "I never submitted a book that had those names in it." The Dutch translator who worked on the book insisted the titles of the King and Princess of Wales were in the manuscript she was sent. Saskia Peeters claimed she did not add the names to the Dutch version of the book.
A royal source also said: "There is absolute an unequivocal denial that anything said by the two persons named publicly, both in the book and on television, was said or could be considered to be said in a racist manner. How much more should they take? This is an outrageous smear that first started with the Oprah (Winfrey) interview and now has blown up into another stratosphere."