The author of a bestselling biography of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry recently claimed that Prince William was so incensed by revelations in the book that he wanted the writer “barred” from his royal engagements.
Omid Scobie, the royal journalist who co-authored the 2020 biography Finding Freedom, discussed William’s reported response to his work in an opinion piece on Wednesday promoting his upcoming book, Endgame: Inside the Royal Family and the Monarchy’s Fight for Survival.
Billed as an exposé of the “chaos, family dysfunction, distrust and draconian practices” of the House of Windsor, Scobie’s Endgame is set for publication in November, chronicling the changes that have befallen the royals since the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
In an article for the i newspaper in Britain, Scobie wrote that in recent years “royal churnalism—the regurgitation of press releases and steady supply of briefing memos sent out by royal aides—has become the tried-and-trusted reporting style for a number of royal correspondents when it comes to protecting precious relationships with those at the Palace.”
When Finding Freedom was published in 2020 as an authoritative account of Harry and Meghan’s experiences in the royal “firm” and the circumstances around their decision to leave it, Scobie wrote that his first experience of Palace displeasure with his work came from one of the book’s prominent figures, Prince William.
Sources told me that Prince William was so incensed by my revelations that his Kensington Palace team had given negative information to favoured journalists about his brother that he wanted me barred from his engagements,” he claimed.
Among the revelations in Finding Freedom was the claim that William had told Harry: “Don’t feel you need to rush this,” when talking about his relationship with Meghan, adding: “Take as much time as you need to get to know this girl.”
