by LONDON — Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, are expected to voice their grievances against the British monarchy on Thursday when they stream the final episodes of a series on Netflix about the couple’s decision to step down from their royal duties and make a fresh start in America.
“After the first three installments of Harry & Meghan” focused on British media coverage of the couple and how the couple was affected by racism, California-based streaming giant Netflix introduced the latest episodes with a trailer where Harry claimed the couple were victims of “corporate gaslighting”.
“They were happy to lie to protect my brother,” says Harry in the trailer, referring to Prince William, heir to the throne. “They were never willing to tell the truth to protect us.”
While it’s unclear who “they” are, the trailer suggests that a combination of media and palace officials are most likely the alleged criminals. The quote is transmitted via a shot of Buckingham Palace and a video of William and Harry walking side by side during the funeral of their grandfather, Prince Philip, in April 2021.
Explosive new chapters, King III. Charles claims that the House of Windsor could help unite an increasingly diverse nation by personally meeting with representatives of the ethnic groups and faiths that make up modern Britain – whatever the claims against him, he seeks to show that reality is different.
Pauline Maclaran, author of “Royal Fever: The British Monarchy in Consumer Culture,” said the royal family would likely wait for the last three episodes “with a gasp”, as the first three chapters contain several direct attacks on the institution.
“This is very provocative and it looks like some kind of war has been declared,” he said before his release. “But let’s wait and see.”
Harry’s 2018 marriage to former Meghan Markle, a biracial American actress, was once seen as a public relations coup for the royal family, fueling the monarchy’s effort to move into the 21st century by more representing a multicultural nation. But the fairy tale, punctuated by the horse-drawn carriage ride and the grand wedding at Windsor Castle, was soon resolved amid relentless media attention, including allegations that Meghan was selfish and bullied her team.
“I wasn’t throwing myself at the wolves, I was being prey to the wolves,” Meghan says in a clip in the trailer.
The series is Harry and Meghan’s latest effort to tell their own stories after the couple stepped back from royal life and moved to the affluent Southern California enclave of Montecito in early 2020. Their life on a land facing the Pacific Ocean was financed in part by lucrative contracts with Netflix and Spotify.
The first three episodes featured extensive commentary by Harry and Meghan, as well as interviews with friends and allies and race and racism experts in British society. No comments were received from the aforementioned newspapers.
Race became a central issue for the monarchy after Harry and Meghan interviewed Oprah Winfrey in March 2021. Meghan claimed that before their first child was born, a member of the royal family commented on how dark the baby’s skin could be.
After the interview, Prince William defended the royal family by telling reporters, “We are not a very racist family.”
Buckingham Palace faced renewed allegations of racism earlier this month when a Black advocate for domestic abuse survivors said that a senior member of the royal family questioned her about her origins during a reception at the palace. Coverage of the issue flooded the British media, eclipsing the much-anticipated visit to Boston by William and his wife Kate, which they hoped would highlight the palace’s environmental credentials.
Maclaran said the Netflix series was problematic for Palace because Harry and Meghan appealed to the same younger, more culturally diverse demographic that William and Kate were trying to win over.
“I think it should be worrisome for the royal family about their future, because if they’re going to survive, they need to get this younger generation on their side to some extent,” he said. “They’re going to have to make a huge effort to show themselves more diverse, and I think we see a little bit of that, but not enough.”
