Harry and Meghan: Questions left unanswered in Netflix series

Viewers might be left with questions after watching, including how the Duke and Duchess of Sussex first met and which royal family member made racist remarks

Prince Harry and Meghan arriving to attend the Christmas Day morning church service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham, Norfolk, in 2017. PA
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Prince Harry and Meghan touched upon a range of issues in the first three episodes of their Netflix documentary series.

These are some of the questions viewers may be left with after watching.

Who was Prince Harry thinking of when he said there is a temptation in the royal family to marry someone who 'fits the mould'?

Prince Harry did not mention any names but speaking in the first episode, he said: “I think for so many people in the family, especially, obviously, the men, there can be a temptation or an urge to marry someone who would fit the mould as opposed to somebody who you perhaps are destined to be with.”

Viewers may wonder if he had any particular relatives in mind.

Women who have recently married into the royal family include the Princess of Wales, Queen Consort Camilla and the Countess of Wessex, as well as Prince Harry’s late mother Diana.

Which male members of the family challenged Prince Harry on why Meghan should get special protection from the media?

Prince Harry said some of his male relatives saw the media’s treatment of their wives as “a rite of passage”, but that they failed to grasp the “race element” that affected Meghan.

“Some of the members of the family were like, ‘My wife had to go through that, so why should your girlfriend be treated any differently?’ ‘Why should you get special treatment?’ ‘Why should she be protected?’” he said.

“And I said, ‘The difference here is the race element’.”

How did Prince Harry and Meghan first meet?

The pair previously said they met on a blind date but Prince Harry now said he first spotted his wife on social media.

In their 2017 engagement interview, both referred to having a “blind date”.

But Prince Harry revealed he first spotted Meghan on Instagram.

“I was scrolling through my feed and someone who was a friend had this video of the two of them, it was like a Snapchat,” he said.

An image of Meghan with the popular dog ears filter is then shown in the episode.

The Duke said: “That was the first thing. I was like ‘who is that?’”

Meghan said she went through Prince Harry’s social media feed where she admired the “beautiful photography”.

Harry & Meghan Netflix documentary released — in pictures

What happened when Meghan first met Prince William and Kate?

In their engagement interview in 2017, Prince Harry said of Kate: “Catherine has been absolutely amazing”, and added: “She’s been wonderful.”

Prince Harry said: “As has [Prince] William as well.”

But in the Netflix show, Meghan described how, at her first meeting with Prince William and Kate, she was surprised at the “formality” of the royal family behind closed doors.

“I’ve always been a hugger, I didn’t realise that that is really jarring for a lot of Brits,” she said, revealing she was dressed down in ripped jeans and was barefoot.

What will Prince William think of the use of footage from his mother’s 'Panorama' interview?

Midway through the first episode, clips are shown of Diana, Princess of Wales, speaking in the controversial 1995 interview, a programme that Prince William said exacerbated his mother’s “fear, paranoia and isolation”.

A report by Lord Dyson, published in May 2021, found the BBC covered up Martin Bashir’s deceit in obtaining the interview and “fell short of high standards of integrity and transparency”.

In a scathing statement issued following the publication of the report, Prince William said: “It is my firm view that this Panorama programme holds no legitimacy and should never be aired again.”

Harry & Meghan documentary — in pictures

Who told Prince Harry and Meghan to start recording their experiences?

Episode one revealed Prince Harry and Meghan filmed footage on their phones at the culmination of the Megxit crisis.

Prince Harry said a friend told them they should document this particular chapter of their lives.

“With all of the misinformation that was going on out there, especially about us and the departure, it seemed like a really sensible idea,” he said.

The footage now features in Netflix’s six-episode series — part of the Sussexes’ multimillion-pound deal with the streaming giant.

Who are Prince Harry’s second family?

Prince Harry said a “second family” in Africa brought him up.

He travelled to Lesotho in his younger days, setting up a charity there, and also spent time doing conservation work on the continent.

“I have a second family out there. A group of friends who literally brought me up,” he said.

Harry and Meghan at the Ripple of Hope awards gala — in pictures

Why was Meghan told not to invite her niece to the royal wedding and who gave her the guidance?

Meghan claims she was given guidance that Ashleigh Hale — Samantha Markle’s biological daughter — ought not to attend the 2018 ceremony.

When Prince William, now the Prince of Wales, married Kate Middleton, his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II told him to rip up the official guest list and start with the people he knew first.

Were Meghan’s relationships “managed” by the royal household?

Meghan’s niece Ashleigh Hale said: “Communication with Meg became less and less frequent.

“My impression was that her relationships were being managed on some level.”

Why were Prince Harry and Meghan surprised there were police snipers on the roof at their wedding?

Security is always tight for large-scale royal events and snippers are often seen on duty at such occasions, which Prince Harry would have experienced in the past.

Were the royal family given the right to respond to the Netflix documentary?

A row has broken out between Netflix and the royal family, with the streaming company saying they were given the opportunity to respond, but Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace saying they were not.

On a black screen at the start of episode one, the following statement appears: “Members of the royal family declined to comment on the content within this series.”

The households say they received an email said to be from a third-party production company, and asked Archewell and Netflix to verify its authenticity, but never received a reply and so did not offer a response.

Prince Harry and Meghan Duchess of Sussex through the years — in pictures

How was Prince Harry and Meghan’s engagement interview an 'orchestrated reality show'?

The pair sat down for an in-depth interview with experienced BBC broadcaster Mishal Husain in November 2017, looking happy and relaxed as they chatted about how they met and fell in love, and their hopes for the future.

But Meghan said it was “rehearsed”, royal aides prepped them for questions and told them to expect to show the ring.

“My point is, we weren’t allowed to tell our story,” she said.

Will Prince Harry and Meghan name the royal they accused of making a racist remark about her son?

Meghan told Oprah Winfrey in an earlier interview that, when she was pregnant with Archie, a member of the royal family — not the queen or the Duke of Edinburgh — raised “concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born”.

The series' three final episodes will air next Thursday, but it is unlikely that the couple will unmask the accused royal family member.

Updated: December 09, 2022, 7:05 AM