During her interview with Opera Winfrey in which she criticises the monarchy, the Duchess of Sussex was at pains to say how wonderful The Queen has been to her.
Talking about her experiences of the Monarch, Meghan said: “The Queen has always been wonderful to me.”
She added that Her Majesty made her “feel welcomed” and she particularly enjoined their joint engagement to Chester a few years ago.
During that visit, The Queen gifted her a pair of pearl earrings and a necklace.
Meghan added that during a car journey they shared together, The Queen had a blanket for warmth and said: ‘Meghan come on – and she put it over my knees’
The Duchess was keen to emphasise that the family and institution are two different things.
The Duchess of Sussex’s highly publicised interview with Oprah Winfrey was broadcast on Sunday evening for viewers in America.
In the 90-minute programme, Meghan and Harry discussed a variety of subjects with Oprah.
One of the first revelations to be made was that the couple married three days earlier than was first suspected.
Although the public ceremony took place in St George’s Chapel on May 19th 2018, Harry and Meghan actually tied the knot three days earlier in their back garden.
In a much more serious line of questioning, the Duchess opened up about suicidal thoughts she had been having while living in the UK as a working royal.
Meghan said that she thought about taking her own life, but that support was not available for her despite approaches being made to Buckingham Palace’s HR department.
She said: “I was ashamed to say it at the time and ashamed to have to admit it to Harry. But I knew that if I didn’t say it – then I would do it. I just didn’t want to be alive anymore. That was clear and real and frightening and constant thought.”
She added that she thought her suicide “would be better for everyone” in one of her darkest moments.
Meghan also addressed reports that she made the Duchess of Cambridge cry during a rehearsal for her wedding ceremony.
The Duchess countered these reports, saying that in actual fact, Catherine was the one who made her cry.
Meghan said: : “Everyone in the institution knew it wasn’t true. I am not sharing that piece about Kate to be in any way disparaging about her. I would hope that she would want that to be corrected.”
The Duchess added that Catherine “is a good person.”
Nonetheless, Buckingham Palace finds itself with serious questions to answer following the broadcast of this interview, not least because of allegations made of racism.
Speaking to Oprah, Meghan said that conversations were had about how dark Archie’s skin would be when he is born.
Meghan declined to reveal who was involved in the discussions because it would be “very damaging to them.”
Oprah asked Meghan whether there were concerns within the palace that her child would be “too brown,”
The Duchess replied: “If that is the assumption you are making, that is a pretty safe one.”
