Omid Scobie’s book is believed to contain a raft of scathing criticisms of the royal family. Here, Royal Correspondent NATASHA LIVINGSTONE separates fact from fiction…
Claim: The Royal Household’s push for diversity is just a PR stunt.
Truth: Proof of Prince William’s famous statement that ‘we are not a racist family at all’ was the appointment of British-Nigerian cultural anthropologist Eva Omaghomi as Charles and Camilla’s director of community engagement. The king’s commitment to hiring staff from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds dates back decades. A typical example is how in 1998 he hired Colleen Harris, whose family came from Guyana, as press secretary. It was said that she ‘helped turn Charles into a human’.
Eva Omaghomi attends the British Vogue ‘Forces For Change’ Dinner hosted by Edward Enninful and Vanessa Kingori at The Londoner Hotel on December 4, 2022 in London, England
Claim: William ‘distanced’ himself from Harry after his marriage to Meghan.
Truth: The Sussexes got married in May 2018, after which rumors slowly spread that the brothers were growing apart. But William, Harry, Kate and Meghan made several smiling public appearances together afterward. These included attending the 2018 Christmas morning church service together at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham, whilst maintaining their reputation as the close-knit ‘Fab Four’.
Then-Prince Charles, William, Catherine, Meghan and Harry at the Sandringham estate on December 25, 2018 in King’s Lynn
Claim: The monarchy is unpopular with the public and in decline.
Truth: A poll published in the Daily Mail during King’s Coronation week in May found that more than half of Britons would vote for a constitutional monarchy. Sixty-five percent of the 11,450 people surveyed agreed that the royal family was ‘an asset to Britain’.
Claim: Charles might have preferred a life as Camilla’s tampon.
Truth: This cruelly refers to a funny private phone conversation between Camilla and Charles in 1989 that was recorded without their knowledge and made public four years later by a redtop tabloid newspaper. Charles made a juvenile joke about turning into a Tampax, which was typical of his Goon Show style humor.
Claim: Charles never tried to mend fences with Harry after ‘Megxit’.
Truth: The king extended an olive branch by inviting Harry to his coronation, despite the publication of his son’s book Spare, which contained hurtful accusations about the royal family. But it was reported that Harry delayed his response because he was busy playing “transatlantic ping-pong” and was “preoccupied” with where he should sit in Westminster Abbey.
Claim: The palace lied by promising that Camilla would never become queen.
Truth: Palace guidance on Camilla’s title has evolved over time. In 2005, courtiers said it was ‘intended’ for the former Mrs Parker Bowles to use the title HRH Princess Consort when Charles ascended the throne. But in 2020, Queen Elizabeth II said it was her “sincere wish” that Charles’ wife would be known as Queen Consort. After the coronation she was simply called Queen Camilla.
Claim : Charles was a “flirting husband who ruined Princess Diana’s life.”
Truth: Charles admitted on camera to committing adultery in an interview with Jonathan Dimbleby in 1994, but only after his marriage to Diana “became irreparably broken, after we both tried.” The following year, Diana also admitted to being unfaithful in her infamous BBC Panorama interview with Martin Bashir and said she had fallen in love with cavalry officer James Hewitt. Royal author Robert Lacey wrote in his 2020 book Battle Of Brothers that the young Prince William initially felt so betrayed by Diana’s confession that he cried and refused to speak to his mother for a while.
Built in 1760, the Gold State Coach has been used at every coronation since that of William IV in 1831 and waits outside Westminster Abbey during the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on May 6, 2023 in London
Claim: The monarchy relies on chauvinism and “Trumpian” efforts to stay relevant.
TruthMore than 250,000 people queued for hours to see Elizabeth II lie in state in London in September 2022. Interest in the royal family has remained high since then, with all the pomp and circumstance of Charles’ coronation in May – left – watched by almost 20 million Britons when it was broadcast across 11 TV channels and services