Following its release this week, Omid Scobie’s new book about the royal family has been causing a stir around the world.
In the latest turn of events, the Dutch version ofEndgame has reportedly been pulled from the shelves after it appeared to name 'two senior royals' at the centre of a racism scandal which involved Meghan Markle and Prince Harry.
The claims relate to a 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview, in which Meghan alleged that there were 'concerns and conversations' about how dark her and Harry's son Archie's skin might be while she was pregnant.
Now, Piers Morgan has waded into the controversy by naming the two royals allegedly at the centre of the scandal on his Talk TV show, Piers Morgan Uncensored. The move has sparked significant backlash online.
Naturally, this has all ignited interest about who the people might be. ‘Royal racist named’ is currently trending on Google, and ‘who are the royal racists’ is a related query under Piers Morgan’s name.
Scobie has addressed the claims, saying that a ‘translation error’ had led to a name featuring in the passage of the book, which had been shared with journalists in the Netherlands. Appearing on Dutch chat show RTL Boulevard, he said 'The book is in several languages, and unfortunately, I do not speak Dutch. But if there are translation errors, I’m sure the publishers will have it under control,’ continuing ‘I wrote and edited the English version…there’s never been no version that I’ve produced that has names in it.’
Here’s everything we know about the controversy so far….
Who is the alleged 'royal racist?'
We don’t know who the people are, but according to reports their identity appears to have been mistakenly revealed in the Dutch translation of the book. The people alleged to have been responsible meant ‘no ill will or bias,’ according to Scobie in the Dutch edition. The book quotes a royal insider who claims that person wanted to clarify that point, which was considered ‘very important.’
The Dutch journalist Rick Evers told ITV that ‘names of two senior royals are mentioned during the book,’ continuing ‘the first one is very specific. The second one is a little bit vague, if this person is really involved in the story. But the first one is very clear and the official way was that it was a translation issue.’ He added 'There are some debates about how these passages were stated in the book. I would say how could you translate a name wrong?’
This has reportedly led to the Dutch translation of Endgame being pulled from the shelves. Xander, who published the Dutch edition of the book, have put sales of Endgame on hold ‘temporarily’ over what it calls an ‘error.’ They said in a statement ‘[We are] temporarily withdrawing the book by Omid Scobie from sale. An error occurred in the Dutch translation and is currently being rectified.’
What did Piers Morgan say when he named the ‘royal racist?’
Piers Morgan named two members of the royal family who allegedly made remarks about the skin colour of Meghan and Harry’s son on his TalkTV show, Piers Morgan Uncensored. It is unconfirmed whether the allegations against the names accidentally revealed are true.
‘I’m going to tell you the names of the two senior royals who are named in that Dutch version of the book because, frankly, if Dutch people wandering into a bookshop can pick it up and see these names, then you, British people, here - who actually pay for the British royal family - you’re entitled to know, too,’ Piers said. ‘But now we can start the process of finding out if they ever got uttered, what the context was and whether there was any racial intent at all. Like I say, I don’t believe there was.’ Grazia has chosen not to identify the two royals alleged to be at the centre of the row.
The move has sparked backlash against Piers. ITV News' Royal Editor Chris Ship was among many who criticised his decision, writing on X ‘The 2 royal names were never that hard to find & now @piersmorgan made it even easier by sharing them on his TV show. We should however remind ourselves what Harry himself said to @ITV about these remarks by his family: neither he nor Meghan ever said these comments were “racist.”’
Piers responded to the backlash by posting on X ‘I’m outraged too - that the rest of the British media hasn’t done the same! Why should British people be barred from knowing what Dutch people know about OUR Royal Family?’
What does the UK version of Endgame say?
In the UK version of Endgame, Scobie details that Meghan complained about two people who had upset her by allegedly making comments about Archie’s skin tone but didn’t name them, citing 'laws in the UK.’
Scobie also claims that Charles and Meghan discussed the issue in private letters that were exchanged in the aftermath of the interview, with Charles reported to have suggested Meghan should also share her feelings with Kate and William.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Scobie said ‘I hope that people understand that despite press coverage, this is not a book about Harry and Meghan. This is not Finding Freedom part two. It’s a really important look at the current state of the British royal family written in a way I don’t think anyone has ever done before at a time when I think is more important than ever. And I hope that rather than trying to ignore or reject this kind of dialogue that it’s embraced because I think that ultimately it always leads to better things.’
What did Meghan and Harry say in the Oprah interview?
The alleged scandal first came to light in Meghan and Harry’s interview with Oprah in 2021. In the interview, Meghan claimed that when she was pregnant with Archie, some family members expressed ‘concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he is born' continuing 'There are several conversations, potentially and what that would mean or look like.’ However, Meghan did not ever mention the names of the people who had these concerns. ‘I think that would be very damaging to them,’ she said. Harry added ‘That conversation, I am never going to share. At the time it was awkward, I was a bit shocked.’
A short statement made on behalf of the Queen in March 2021 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. 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.’
William also addressed the claims made in the Oprah interview. That same month, he told a Sky News reporter: 'We are very much not a racist family,' as he and Kate stepped out for the first time since the interview. When asked if he had spoken to Harry after the Oprah interview, he added, 'No, I haven't spoken to him yet, but I will do.'