The royal author said an investigation was ongoing into claims that the Dutch version of her new book, named after two senior members of the British royal family, addressed the skin color of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s unborn son.
According to the allegations in the book, which was removed from the bookshelves and broadcast on television programs in England and the USA, it is stated that King Charles and the Princess of Wales were involved in conversations about Prince Archie before his birth. Holland.
The book includes conversations about Archie and how discussions began about whether there was “unconscious bias” in the royal family.
Buckingham Palace declined to respond on Thursday. “This is not something we will comment on,” a spokesman told the Guardian.
Broadcaster Piers Morgan used his TalkTV show on Wednesday to name the royals featured in the now-shot and pulped translated version of Omid Scobie’s book Endgame: Inside the Royal Family and the Monarchy’s Fight for Survival.
Speaking to ITV’s This Morning on Thursday, Scobie insisted he had “never handed over a book with their names in it” and could only talk about the English version he had written.
He said he never used the word “racist” and talked about “unconscious bias” in his book. He claimed that other Fleet Street journalists had “known these names for a long time”.
He said the inclusion of the names is still being investigated at this time. I wrote and edited the English version of the book with a single publisher. It is then licensed to other publishers. Frankly speaking, I cannot speak Italian, German, French, Dutch or any of the other languages. So you only hear about the book from the moment it is made public.
“I’m as angry as anyone. But the truth is that this is information that isn’t exclusive to me. Journalists on Fleet Street have known these names for a long time. We’ve all followed some sort of code of conduct when it comes to talking about it.”
Dutch said the book was immediately canceled and would be reprinted: “I’m glad to hear that.”
When asked if he was bothered by the names being revealed, he said: “I have never delivered a book containing these names. So I can only talk about my version. Frankly, I’m disappointed, but I can’t say I’m upset about it either because, to be honest, I’ve been working in a bubble devoid of any emotions for the last 10 days. But I was disappointed in this, as in so many other things I’ve seen said or written about the book.
In a March 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Meghan claimed that at least one member of the royal family had “talked to” Harry about the color of his children’s skin.
Scobie said: “First of all, I never used the word racist in this matter. Even the book makes it clear that we are talking about unconscious bias here.
“We’re talking about a conversation that came up about Archie’s skin color, which was referred to as ‘concerns.’ It was important for me to get to the bottom of this; why was it never addressed again, why did the Sussexes never talk about it, what happened behind the scenes? The Palace said this issue was being handled privately. Was it like that?”
Dutch royal correspondent Rick Evers published a video highlighting passages in the book involving King Charles and Catherine in connection with the claim, which are not included in the English version.
On Wednesday night, Morgan said he repeated the allegations to spark an open debate.
He told the audience: “I’m going to tell you the names of the two senior royals who are mentioned in the Dutch version of the book because frankly, if Dutch people who walk into a bookshop can pick up the book and see those names, then you, the British here who pay for the British royal family, have a right to know too.”
“And then we can discuss all this nonsense more openly because I don’t believe any racist comments have been made by anyone in the royal family and I will never believe it until there is actual evidence that those comments were made.”
“The royals featured in this book are King Charles and Catherine, Princess of Wales.”
The couple’s names also appeared in reports from non-UK media outlets, including Sky News Australia and the New York Post.
The book’s publisher, Xander, said that a revised Dutch version of the book, without the names, will be published in bookstores in the Netherlands on Friday.
Translated passages from the filmed book claim Charles was identified in the letters as the royal who speculated about Archie’s skin colour. Another passage makes a more indirect reference to Catherine in connection with the claim. Meghan and Charles allegedly exchanged letters “about unconscious bias within the family following revelations that the King and Princess of Wales had engaged in such discussions about Archie.”
Speaking to Dutch television program RTL Boulevard, Scobie said: “If there are translation errors, I’m sure the broadcasters will get it under control. I wrote and edited the English version. “There has never been a version that I produced that included their names.”