RICHARD KAY: There is a sense of shock within Palace circles after two royals were publicly identified as the so-called ‘racists’ in Omid Scobie’s book. The royal family looks like they are always one step behind events

Yesterday was not a good day for Omid Scobie. After showing virtuous innocence over his part in the way two members of the royal family were publicly identified as “racists” on British television, his attempt to escape any blame for the fiasco caused widespread ridicule.

Although he did not personally reveal the names of the two figures – media star Piers Morgan must take responsibility for that seismic intervention – Scobie’s corny explanation of how a Dutch version of his book containing their identities was printed quickly spiraled into of a crisis for the monarchy.

For Buckingham Palace, the clear focus is to ensure this despicable accusation does not overshadow the King’s trip to Dubai, where he opens the COP28 climate change conference, one of the most important events on his agenda.

And while it’s not advisable to infer too much from the royal body language, Charles’ response when asked how he was upon his arrival in the United Arab Emirates may indicate something of his mood. “I’m just about okay,” he told Nigerian President Tinubu, before suggesting he was recovering from the “shock” of turning 75 last month.

It was the kind of polished and diplomatic response we have come to expect from the king. But behind these exchanges, friends say Charles is furious at the way deeply personal and sensitive discussions about the color of his grandson Archie’s skin have become public. These were matters that many in the royal family thought had long been settled

Instead, the clock has been turned back almost four years, to when the allegations were first aired in Harry and Meghan’s interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Within Palace circles there was a sense of shock at the events, along with some skepticism about the competing narratives about who was responsible.

The finger-pointing deepened last night when the translator working on Scobie’s book insisted that the names of the two royal families, the King and Princess of Wales, were already in the manuscript she had received.

Saskia Peeters says that she did not add the names to the Dutch version of the book Endgame.

“As a translator,” she told the Mail, “I translate what is in front of me. The names were there. I didn’t add them.’

Speaking at her home in Arnhem and clearly shocked by the uproar over the Dutch version of the book, she added: ‘The names of the royal family were already in front of me. I just did what I was paid to do and that was translate the book from English to Dutch.’

Ms Peeters’ intervention directly contradicts statements made by Scobie, who has repeatedly said he did not include the names of the two royals when he submitted the completed manuscript to his publisher. Speaking on ITV’s This Morning yesterday, Scobie said: ‘I never submitted a book that had these names in it.’

Although this contradicted his earlier claims when he suggested that the Dutch printing error of his book was due to ‘translation errors’.

But in an interview that contained few details, he made no apologies for everything that happened. Instead, he blamed publishers in the Netherlands for the mistake, while sticking to his well-known complaint that he was treated unfairly by the media.

Moreover, he breathtakingly claimed that he himself had been the victim of ‘character assassination’. A vision that could have serious problems with the two members of the royal family whose lives have been turned upside down.

The fallout from their mention on Piers Morgan’s Talk TV show was still being investigated by royal aides who were reportedly considering all options, including the possibility of legal action.

The difficulty for the royal family is that they are constantly one step behind developments.

After airing the names on his Talk TV show Wednesday night, Morgan then posted the identities to his more than seven million social media followers.

While some saw Morgan’s move as “self-serving,” others said it was backed by the right to free speech.

Morgan himself argued that he was merely demonstrating the hypocrisy of the names being easily found on the Internet and in the Netherlands, where many copies of the book were in circulation before publishers could pulverize the unsold copies, while they were denied to residents of the United Kingdom whose taxes pay the costs. maintenance of the royal family and their opulent homes.

The controversy has parallels with what happened to exiled King Edward VIII in the run-up to his abdication in 1936.

Subsequently, British newspapers did not report the story of the king’s romance with twice-divorced American Wallis Simpson, but were shocked when details emerged abroad about the implications of the relationship, showing that he would have to sacrifice the crown for the woman he loved. .

No one wants to return to those days of censorship when the British were denied the ins and outs of their own monarchy, but what about the rights of those accused of what Scobie calls in his book ‘unconscious bias’?

What can they do now that the world knows their identity? And if they choose the legal route, who could they sue? Mr. Scobie and his Dutch publishers?

Perhaps the two royals will do no such thing and Harry and Meghan will press charges instead. That’s certainly a suggestion from media lawyer Mark Stephens, who says they may have a case against Scobie for invasion of privacy. The names are said to come from private correspondence between Charles and his daughter-in-law.

It would, he says, serve a dual purpose: to prevent him or anyone else from repeating information that “should never have seen the light of day” and as a show of goodwill “it could be the great rapprochement.”

But judging by their silence, not just on the Scobie book, but on the entire racism claim, it seems highly unlikely.

Since the topic came up on Oprah in 2021, the couple has not returned to the subject. It did not appear in Harry’s memoirs, nor in the six-part Netflix series about their lives.

What could worry them, however, is who leaked the correspondence – or at least its contents – to Scobie. A palace insider described the possibility that the leak came from within the royal household as “disappeared unlikely.” That leaves the Sussex circle, although they would deny any involvement in any leaks. It is also possible that Scobie has been aware of the letters and their contents for some time.

Of course, for all their good intentions, it is unlikely that any palace investigation will crack the mystery.

And it’s why those close to the said royals are angry on their behalf at what they see as the way their good intentions have been twisted.

“Being excited about the color of mixed-race children is not racist, but shows curiosity,” a source told me. ‘If Harry had married a blonde English girl, there would have been similar speculation about whether any children would have his red hair or resemble his wife.’