The second volume of Prince Harry and his wife Meghan's Netflix documentary finally delivered new revelations about the rift in the British royal family when it was released on Thursday.
The final three episodes of documentary series Harry & Meghan saw the “gloves come off”, as Prince Harry took aim at his brother Prince William, the Prince of Wales, and others with a string of allegations.
Viewers learnt more about the couple’s struggles with the press — allegedly aided by Buckingham Palace briefings, the Duchess of Sussex's mental health and their relationship with the Prince of Wales. The brothers are said to no longer speak.
Daily Mail royal correspondent Rebecca English said “the gloves are off” while her counterpart at broadcaster ITV, Chris Ship, said that “it's getting dirty”.
Suggestions that Prince William and his entourage were to blame for the negative coverage that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex received was “a dramatic escalation”, he added.
Buckingham Palace has not responded to the programme and disputed claims by Netflix that the monarchy was approached for comment on the contents of the series.
Senior royals, led by Harry's father, King Charles III, are expected to attend a Christmas carol concert on Thursday, in a demonstration of “business as usual”.
But commentators suggested they may be forced to act if further criticism gets personal, as the Sussexes faced calls to give up their royal titles — or have them removed.
Key revelations from the final three episodes of Harry & Meghan
Episode four
- The Duchess of Sussex said it was “really important” for Prince Harry's father to walk her down the aisle at her wedding.
- She said in private that she treated the queen “as my husband's grandma” and recalled moments they shared.
- Prince Harry said “the penny dropped” for the Duchess of Sussex after she was the one who appeared on the front page of The Daily Telegraph following an event attended by every member of the royal family.
- The Duke of Sussex said broadcaster Danny Baker's tweet comparing his son Archie to a chimp was “one of the first things” he saw following the birth of his child.
- The Duchess of Sussex recalled thinking about taking her own life, saying: “It was like, 'All of this will stop if I am not here.'”
- Her mother, Doria Ragland, said discovering her daughter had suicidal thoughts “really broke my heart”.
- Regarding his wife's treatment in the press, Prince Harry claimed: “No one would have private conversations with the editors saying, 'Enough'.”
- Harry said it was “heartbreaking” to see his brother's communications office “copy” the behaviour of their father's by “trading” stories with the press.
- James Holt, executive director of the couple's Archewell charity, said there were fears the Duchess of Sussex could cause “national, geopolitical rows” between the UK and South Africa, during their 2019 tour there.
Final part of Harry & Meghan Netflix documentary released – in pictures
Episode five
- The Duchess of Sussex broke down in tears as she described receiving death threats online.
- Prince Harry said it was his decision to step back as a working royal, not his wife's.
- The Duke of Sussex said a letter he wrote to his father about them moving to Canada to work as royals was leaked to the press.
- He claimed the timing of a meeting with senior royals at the Sandringham country estate about the couple's future was deliberately arranged so his wife could not attend.
- Prince Harry said it was “terrifying” to have his brother “scream and shout” at him during their meeting about moving abroad.
- He said he wrote to his father in January 2020 to say that he and his wife would be willing to relinquish their titles if the couple's plan to move to Canada as working royals did not work out.
- The Duchess of Sussex said the queen told her to write a letter to her estranged father which was then leaked to the press.–
- The couple described their “farewell week” when they flew back to the UK from Canada in March 2020
Harry & Meghan Netflix documentary released – in pictures
Episode six
- The pair reflected on the Duchess of Sussex's victory in a privacy case against Associated Newspapers title the Mail on Sunday.
- Prince Harry said his wife suffered a miscarriage during her lawsuit battle, “because of what the Mail did”.
- Home video footage appeared to show the couple watching their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey, before kissing.
- Other footage showed Prince Harry holding up his phone to the Duchess of Sussex to show her a text from his brother Prince William. Her reaction is to say “Wow”, as she looks at the screen.
