Just one week after Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, apologized for editing a photo of herself and her children on Mother’s Day, the UK royal family is in hot water again over another family portrait—which coincidentally is connected to Middleton.
Getty Images Wants AI to Stop Copying Them
Getty Images, one of the world’s largest photo agencies, alerted the public to the second manipulated image on Monday when it placed an editor’s note on a photo of the late Queen Elizabeth II surrounded by her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. “Image has been digitally enhanced at source,” reads the editor’s note on the photo, which is still available for licensing.
The photo, a rare look at the late monarch with the family’s youngest members, was taken by Middleton in August 2022 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. It was shared by the official social media account for the Prince and Princess of Wales on April 21, 2023, to commemorate what would have been Queen Elizabeth’s 97th birthday. Queen Elizabeth died in September 2022. The photo was also sent to agencies like Getty.
Getty was one of many photo agencies, along with the Associated Press and Reuters, that removed Middleton’s Mother’s Day photo from its offerings last week. The agencies only allow minimal editing in the photos they distribute.
“Getty Images is undertaking a review of handout images and in accordance with its editorial policy is placing an editor’s note on images where the source has suggested they could be digitally enhanced,” a Getty Images spokesperson told Gizmodo in an emailed statement on Tuesday.
The press office of the Prince and the Princess of Wales couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
To my untrained eyes, it’s not clear how many edits have been made to the photo of Queen Elizabeth with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and Getty didn’t specify. CNN reports that it found 19 possible alterations, while The Telegraph found 7.
Here are the ones I can see with my face pressed up to my computer screen:
There is a misalignment of Queen Elizabeth’s plaid skirt near her right elbow. This one is pretty bad. The misalignment run from the skirt to the green couch, where the fabric dimples near the button don’t align.
There is a black cutout above Prince George’s shoulder. You can see it set against the green dress of Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor.
Prince Louis, who is on the right next to the vase with the red rose, looks like his head was cropped out from somewhere else if you zoom in.
Savannah Philips, the Queen’s great-granddaughter who is sitting next to her in red, looks like her blonde hair is going through her red sleeve. It then magically reappears.
On the side of the couch near the vase with the rose, there’s another bad alignment. Dimple marks don’t line up.
If you all find more, please feel free to let me know in the comments!
While Middleton hasn’t come out to say the edits were her work—it’s very possible she only took the photo—it’s hard not to make the connection. (The Royal Family credited the Princess as the photographer on social media.) The incident calls the UK royal family’s reputation into question and increases the storm of scrutiny already surrounding them due to Middleton’s months-long disappearance from the public eye after abdominal surgery. Middleton’s absence has prompted a slew of conspiracy theories, with some speculating that she’s getting a divorce from Prince William or is actually dead.
Coupled with AI, which has been creating fake celebrity porn and other atrocities, the incident seems to reflect the dawn of a new era where we can’t trust what we see.
In an interview last week, Phil Chetwynd, the global news director of Agence France-Presse (AFP) said that the palace had been considered a trusted source for a long time. Asked if it was still a trusted source, Chetwynd said: “No, absolutely not.”
WANTED: Kate Middleton, The Princess of Wales, presumed kidnapped by King Charles and the Royal Family unless returned to our TV screens immediately.
I’m not one to follow the Royal Family — all I know is that Queen Elizabeth may be reincarnated into Trisha Paytas’ baby, Malibu Barbie, and they presumably disappeared Princess Di. And while my phone didn’t scream with a missing persons report, my Twitter (X?) timeline is all ablaze with conspiracies about what happened to Kate.
Amidst confirmation that King Charles III is battling cancer, followers of the Royals have noticed a peculiar missing piece at certain public events: Prince William’s wife, Kate. While William made a last-minute appearance at Greece’s King Constantine II’s funeral, Kate was noticeably absent. According to Vanity Fair,
Middleton, 42, has been recovering from her procedure at Adelaide Cottage, the couple’s residence at the royal family’s Windsor Castle estate, since she was discharged from a London hospital after a week-plus inpatient stay following the surgery.
And while we hope the Princess of Wales is in good health, the people of the internet have been making their own assumptions about what happened to Kate Middleton. Since we can’t help but speculate, social media users have tossed about ideas like she’s waiting out a bad haircut, she’s gotten plastic surgery, she’s run away to live in America, the list goes on…
Across the pond at Buckingham Palace, sources claim it was planned abdominal surgery (and we hope she’s safe and healthy)…but if we chose to believe everything the Royals said, we wouldn’t have The Crown.
The U.S.-based animal rights group PETA has detailed an undercover investigation into the practice of baiting and killing black bears with guns or crossbows in Canada, which it says is fueled by a British military tradition. The group, in a statement and a video released Wednesday narrated by actor and comedian Stephen Fry, alleges the fur from the bears killed using the method, which is not illegal in Canada, is auctioned off and sometimes ends up in the iconic hats worn by the soldiers of the King’s Guard.
The PETA campaign calls on the U.K. Ministry of Defense to switch to fake fur in the hope that it will curb the form of hunting. Bears were hunted to extinction in the U.K. in medieval times, but bear baiting as a form of hunting has been explicitly outlawed under Britain’s wildlife protection laws for more than four decades.
Members of the British Army’s King’s Guard take place in the Changing of the Guard ceremony in front of Buckingham Palace in London, July 9, 2023.
Mike Kemp/In Pictures/Getty
“Every day that our soldiers wear hats made from the fur of slaughtered bears brings dishonor to our country,” Fry says in the video, which shows hunters using buckets of sweet or greasy food to lure the unsuspecting animals before shooting and skinning them.
The King’s Guard have worn the bearskin hats for more than 200 years, though the headgear is now used only ceremonially, during parades and military events at Buckingham Palace and other royal venues.
“It’s time to modernize this iconic symbol of Britain by switching to a fabulous faux fur that has been tested specifically to ensure its suitability for use by the King’s Guard,” PETA’s senior campaign manager, Kate Werner, said in the group’s statement.
The Ministry of Defense insists the fur used in the King’s Guard hats all come from legal hunts licensed by Canadian authorities, and it notes that various faux fur options trialled previously have failed to meet the standards required of a viable replacement.
“Our Guardsmen take immense pride in wearing the bearskin cap which is an iconic image of Britain, and the quality of sustainability of the caps is incredibly important,” it said in a correspondence replying to a citizen’s concerns, which was obtained and published by PETA.
According to public records obtained by PETA, the Ministry of Defense purchased almost 500 bearskin hats between 2017 and 2022.
Thanks for reading CBS NEWS.
Create your free account or log in for more features.
LONDON (AP) — Prince Harry is challenging on Tuesday the British government’s decision to strip him of his security detail after he gave up his status as a working member of the royal family and moved to the United States.
The Duke of Sussex said he wants protection when he visits home and claimed it’s partly because an aggressive press jeopardizes his safety and that of his family.
The three-day hearing scheduled to begin in London’s High Court is the latest in a string of Harry’s legal cases that have kept London judges busy as he takes on the U.K. government and the British tabloid media. It was not clear if he would attend Tuesday’s hearing.
Harry failed to persuade a different judge earlier this year that he should be able to privately pay for London’s police force to guard him when he comes to town. A judge denied that offer after a government lawyer argued that officers shouldn’t be used as “private bodyguards for the wealthy.”
Harry, the youngest son of King Charles III, said he did not feel safe bringing his wife, former actor Meghan Markle, and their two young children back to Britain and was concerned about his own safety after being chased by paparazzi following a London charity event.
Harry’s animosity toward the press dates back to the death of his mother Princess Diana, who died in a car wreck as her driver tried to outrun aggressive photographers in Paris. Harry, whose wife is mixed-raced, cited what he said were racist attitudes and unbearable intrusions of the British media in his decision to leave the United Kingdom.
The 39-year-old prince is challenging the decision by the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures to provide his security on a “case by case” basis after moving in 2020 to Canada and then California, where he and his family now reside.
He said the committee unfairly nixed his security request without hearing from him personally and did not disclose the makeup of the panel, which he later learned included royal family staff. He said Edward Young, the assistant private secretary to the late Queen Elizabeth II, should not have been on the committee because of “significant tensions” between the two men.
The Home Office has argued that any tensions between Harry and the royal household staff was irrelevant and that the committee was entitled to its decision because he had relinquished his role as a working member of the family.
The case is one of five that Harry has pending in the High Court.
The four other lawsuits involve Britain’s best-known tabloids, including a case that alleges the publisher of the Daily Mail libeled him when it ran a story suggesting he had tried to hide his efforts to continue receiving government-funded security. A ruling is expected in that case Friday.
The Amazon Prime series about espionage was far from reverent toward the royal establishment during a joke about the Duchess of Cambridge, who has long been a foil for Chopra Jonas’ dear friend, Meghan Markle.
The quip came while the partner (played by Richard Madden) of Chopra Jonas’ character tried to convince a crime boss (played by Sen Monro) to arrange a deal with top brass at the military.
Startled by the spy’s huge ask, the mobster replies, “The chief of armed forces? You might as well have asked me how to get between the legs of the Duchess of Cambridge.”
Chopra Jonas’ close relationship with Markle is no secret.
The Bollywood star and the Duchess of Sussex first met at the 2016 Elle Women in Television dinner and stayed in touch. Two years later, Chopra Jonas attended Markle’s lavish royal wedding to Prince Harry.
Chopra Jonas praised her pal in an essay celebrating her spot on the Time 100 list in 2018, writing, “More than anything else, Meghan is an important influencer in a world that needs strong public figures to respect and look up to. People the world can be inspired by. Meghan, standing shoulder to shoulder with Harry, will be a princess for the people.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are currently embroiled in their own drama after an incident with New York paparazzi last week. A spokesperson for the couple said they were in a “near catastrophic” car accident after being chased by photographers while riding in a taxi.
Their taxi driver’s account seemed to downplay any danger. “I don’t think I would call it a chase,” driver Sukhcharn Singh told The Washington Post. “I never felt like I was in danger. It wasn’t like a car chase in a movie. They were quiet and seemed scared but it’s New York — it’s safe.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be in attendance along with other leaders from the Commonwealth nations.
While the main ceremony and procession are scheduled for Saturday at Westminster Abbey, Canada is also preparing to mark the occasion with a number of events planned over the weekend in Ottawa.
Here is a look at the entertainment for the coronation weekend.
On Sunday, a special coronation concert will be held at Windsor Castle.
Story continues below advertisement
The concert is open to the public and will be broadcast on BBC starting at 8 p.m. BST (3 p.m. ET).
New rendered images have been released ahead of the star-studded concert on Sunday 7 May, produced by BBC Studios. Windsor Castle will host the spectacular live concert, with over 100 countries watching from around the world. pic.twitter.com/7Y75WWWeEx
While the palace has not released an official list of artists, several big names have confirmed they will be performing. Among them is American singer Lionel Richie, who met Charles during a garden party at Buckingham Palace on Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters there, Richie said performing at the coronation concert will be a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
“Pinch me somebody,” he said. “I’m so excited, I’m a kid at Christmas time.”
Britain’s King Charles III, left, reacts with U.S. singer Lionel Richie and Lisa Parigi, during a garden party at Buckingham Palace, London, Wednesday, May 3, 2023, in celebration of the coronation on May 6.
(Yui Mok/Pool via AP)
The concert will also feature British boy band Take That which is making a comeback.
Story continues below advertisement
Members of the band – Gary Barlow, Mark Owen and Howard Donald told the BBC: “This will be our first live show since the Odyssey Tour, four years ago in 2019, and what a stage to come back on! A huge live band and orchestra, a choir, military drummers, the backdrop of Windsor Castle and the celebration of a new King. We can’t wait.”
Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli will also take the stage on Sunday, performing a duet alongside Welsh singer Sir Bryan Terfel.
U.S. pop artist Katy Perry is on the lineup reported on last month by the BBC. She is an ambassador of the British Asian Trust which was founded by Charles in 2020.
On Saturday at 10 am E.T. an hour-long event will take place at 144 Wellington Street in Ottawa.
“The celebratory event will bring together artists and speakers who reflect the values that Canada and His Majesty share, such as protecting the environment, service to others, and celebrating our country’s diversity,” says a statement from Canadian Heritage.
Algonquin group Eagle River Singers, slam poet Sabrina Benaim, singer–songwriter Florence K, the Ottawa Regional Youth Choir and traditional music group Inn Echo will be among the performers.
On Saturday and Sunday, Canadians will be able to visit the residence of the Governor General as well as the Rideau Hall grounds, where they can view a recording of the coronation ceremony.
Story continues below advertisement
The Peace Tower and other federal buildings will be lit up in emerald green throughout the weekend.
Canada Post will unveil new stamps featuring the King.
The outlet said on Sunday that a spokesperson for the Sussexes confirmed that the couple “recently received email correspondence from His Majesty’s office regarding the coronation.”
“An immediate decision on whether the Duke and Duchess will attend will not be disclosed by us at this time,” the representative added.
HuffPost did not immediately hear back from Archewell or Buckingham Palace in requests for additional comment.
The news comes after a busy week of royal news for Charles, Harry and Meghan.
King Charles (left) has officially invited Meghan Markle and Prince Harry to his May 6 coronation.
The Sun ― which exclusively revealed the news ― said the royal couple was asked by Buckingham Palace and Charles to leave one day after the publication of Harry’s memoir, “Spare.”
The outlet also reported that the two were being asked to leave the property to make way for the king’s disgraced brother, Prince Andrew.
Just a few days later, Harry participated in a livestreamed sit-down interview with physician and author Dr. Gabor Maté in California.
“I felt strange being in this container,” Harry explained. “I know that my mum felt the same. And so it makes sense to me. I felt as though my body was in there, but my head was out. And then sometimes it was vice versa.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Netflix docuseries, released in December, made headlines and became a polarizing topic of discussion in many circles. One of their most vocal critics, British TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson, has now offered a new and more direct apology for comments he made in a column published in The Sun newspaper, in which he said he “hates” Markle.
In the December article, which has been removed from The Sun’s website, Clarkson said he lies awake at night “grinding my teeth and dreaming of the day when she [Meghan] is made to parade naked through the streets of every town in Britain while the crowds chant ‘Shame!’ and throw lumps of excrement at her.”
The article immediately received widespread backlash, including more than 20,000 complaints to the U.K.’s Independent Press Standards Organization, which aims to hold newspapers and magazines accountable to uphold certain standards. Clarkson then said he was sorry his comments “caused so much hurt,” but he stopped short of apologizing directly for what he said.
In an interview with ITV, Prince Harry said the article was “horrific and hurtful and cruel towards my wife,” BBC News reported.
In his new statement, shared on Instagram Monday, Clarkson said he usually he reads his work to someone before submitting it, but he was in a hurry when he wrote the article about the couple and he “just pressed send.”
“I really am sorry,” he writes. “All the way from the balls of my feet to the follicles on my head.” He said he became aware of the criticism as a “slow rumble” at first, “but then the rumble got louder.”
In the statement, Clarkson said he was referring to a “Game of Thrones” scene in his description of Markle being paraded through the streets, but forgot to mention it in the article. He made the same explanation on Twitter after the article was published: “Oh dear. I’ve rather put my foot in it. In a column I wrote about Meghan, I made a clumsy reference to a scene in Game of Thrones and this has gone down badly with a great many people. I’m horrified to have caused so much hurt and I shall be more careful in future,” he tweeted.
He said he had been “accused of all sorts of things” in the past but “it was very rarely sexism,” and he was angry with himself after the debacle with his column.
“I was mortified and so was everyone else,” his new statement reads. “My phone went mad. Very close friends were furious. Even my own daughter took to Instagram to denounce me.” Clarkson’s daughter, Emily, wrote at the time: “I want to make it very clear that I stand against everything my dad wrote about Meghan Markle.”
The Sun published an apology on December 23, writing: “We at The Sun regret the publication of this article and we are sincerely sorry.” Still, critics called on Clarkson to be fired — or even charged with a hate crime, he says in his statement.
Clarkson said he emailed an apology to Prince Harry and Meghan on Christmas morning. “I said I was baffled by what they had been saying on TV but that the language I’d used in my column was disgraceful and that I was profoundly sorry,” he writes.
In their documentary series, “Harry & Meghan,” the couple said what drove them to leave their roles in royal family in 2020 was the antagonizing media, which perpetuated rumors and sometimes made racist comments against Markle, who is biracial and the first person of color to join the royal family.
In Prince Harry’s new book “Spare,” released last week, he also called out the British media and said his family was not supportive as he and Meghan struggled with the tabloids and especially the “racial undertones of comment pieces” about his wife.
“They felt as though it made them look bad,” Harry told Anderson Cooper in an interview for CBS News’ “60 Minutes.” “They felt as though they didn’t have a chance or weren’t able to do that for their partners.”
“What Meghan had to go through was similar in some part to what Kate and what Camilla went through, very different circumstances. But then you add in the race element, which was what the press— British press jumped on straight away.”
Clarkson stars on “Clarkson’s Farm,” an Amazon Prime Video series, following his attempt at running a farm. Variety reports that Amazon will likely part ways with Clarkson and canceled a virtual press event for the show on Monday.
Clarkson also hosts “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” on ITV in the U.K. Kevin Lygo, the head of ITV’s media and entertainment division, said there were no plans “at the moment” to replace him as host, BBC News reports.
After weeks of headline-grabbing leaks and TV interviews, Prince Harry’s tell-all memoir, “Spare,” is finally on bookshelves worldwide. As CBS News correspondent Holly Williams reports, the book is full of startling revelations and bombshell allegations regarding Harry’s brother William, his father King Charles, and the U.K. tabloid media.
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
Prince Harry spoke with “60 Minutes” about how members of his family leaked negative stories about him to the British press to improve their own image. He also clarified previous claims about alleged racism in the royal family. Charlie D’Agata has more details.
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
Prince Harry’s memoir “Spare” has not yet been released but a copy allegedly obtained by a British newspaper contains a story about Prince William allegedly attacking Prince Harry. CBS News foreign correspondent Holly Williams reports.
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
London — In his forthcoming autobiography, Spare, Prince Harry says that his brother, heir to the throne Prince William, physically attacked him in 2019, according to a report in Britain’s Guardian newspaper. The Guardian says it viewed a copy of Harry’s book, which is due out next Tuesday. CBS News has not seen a copy of Spare and is not able to independently verify the report.
According to the Guardian, William went to meet Harry at his then residence on the grounds of Kensington Palace, Nottingham Cottage, wishing to discuss “the whole rolling catastrophe” of their struggles with the media and their personal relationship.
When he arrived, Harry said, William was already angry and started “parrot[ing] the press narrative,” calling Meghan “abrasive,” “difficult,” and “rude.”
William reportedly said Harry was not being rational, and Harry accused his older brother of acting like an heir and refusing to understand why Harry wasn’t happy to be treated poorly, just because he was not the next in line for the throne. William reportedly said he was trying to help Harry, who scoffed, further angering William, who moved towards him, swearing.
The book apparently describes Harry then going into the kitchen and giving William a glass of water.
“He set down the water, called me another name, then came at me,” Harry writes, according to the Guardian. “It all happened so fast. So very fast. He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor. I landed on the dog’s bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me. I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out.”
Harry said that William urged him to hit him back, referencing fights they had as kids, but Harry refused, so William left but then returned, “looking regretful, and apologized.”
Harry said he didn’t immediately tell Meghan about the fight, but did tell his therapist. When Meghan later noticed the scrapes on his back, he told her, and “she was terribly sad.”
There was no comment from Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace or the publisher of Spare, Penguin Random House, in response to the Guardian report.
The book recounts another meeting of the brothers, according to the Guardian, this time with their father, now King Charles III, after the funeral of the late husband of Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Phillip, in April 2021.
According to the Guardian report, Harry says Charles stood between his two angry sons and said: “Please, boys. Don’t make my final years a misery.”
Two interviews ahead of the official release of Harry’s book are expected this weekend, one with CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” and the other with British broadcaster ITV News.
In the “60 Minutes” interview, which will air in full on Sunday, Harry says he tried to resolve the conflicts with his family in private, but that the palace used the media against him and Meghan. In a clip from the ITV interview, which also airs Sunday, he seems to suggest that he would like to reconcile.
“The door is always open,” Harry says. “The ball is in their court.”
The first volume of the docuseries launched on the streaming platform Thursday, taking the British media to task for what the Duke and Duchess of Sussex say is racist, intruding and unkind coverage of Markle over the years — and it’s sent many of the tabloid newspapers into overdrive.
Britain’s press did not hold back their outrage Friday, clearly taking umbrage with the televised dressing-down.
While none of the major tabloids used their front pages to address the specific claims levelled at them, some splashed angry headlines attacking the couple and channelling their ire into unflattering screengrabs from the series.
Story continues below advertisement
The Daily Mail’s headline accused the couple of an “assault on the queen’s legacy,” and cited palace insiders who claim “it’s as if” the Sussexes “want to bring down the monarchy.”
The series, so far, takes a deep dive into the toxic but symbiotic relationship between the palace and the press. The palace relies on the media to share its messaging, but the tabloid newspapers also feel entitled to publish intimate (and sometimes false) stories about members of the Royal Family, since British taxpayers fund their lives.
This unwritten contract, Harry and Markle explain, often leaves members of the Royal Family feeling as though they have to “perform” for the media — they call it a “we pay, you pose” arrangement.
The Daily Express accused Harry of hurling “slurs” that it claims have made members of the Royal Family “deeply upset.”
So far, for the record, neither the palace nor any senior members of the family have officially commented on the contents of the documentary. They royals are notoriously tight-lipped, and it’s generally accepted protocol that they rarely publicly respond to matters of the press or politics.
Story continues below advertisement
Front page: So hurtful! Royals ‘deeply upset’ by Harry’s slurs #TomorrowsPaperToday
The Mirror went a different direction, leading with the documentary but chastizing all parties — it included a photo of the Sussexes as well as a photo of Prince William and Kate Middleton — for sparring while the British people endure a cost-of-living crisis. “Meanwhile, thousands of ordinary Brits are choosing between heating and eating,” the subhead read.
Even the broadsheet newspapers, like The Guardian and The Times of London, featured the Sussexes on their front pages, though their coverage was decidedly less sensational and focused more on the series’ content than reaction.
Guardian front page, Monday 5 December 2022: ‘Sicker and poorer’: report reveals Britain’s widening health divide pic.twitter.com/j94txZzfBJ
Meanwhile, royal experts, critics and columnists across the U.K. have been offering their takes on the series, ranging from anger to pure indifference.
Nick Bullen, editor-in-chief of True Royalty TV, told Reuters it was the most “self-serving piece of television” he had seen in quite a while, describing it as more like a reality show than a documentary.
Lester Holloway, editor of The Voice, Britain’s only Black national newspaper, was more impressed, calling it a “love story” which talked about the struggles and challenges they have faced as a couple and their battles with the media.
Key takeaways from Harry and Meghan’s explosive new doc series
Other critics found it a satisfying glimpse into the private lives of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
“Does Meghan and Harry’s Netflix documentary live up to its no-holds-barred expectations?” wrote Jessie Thompson from British newspaper The Independent. “Well, within the first five minutes we’ve seen a makeup-less Meghan, hair wrapped in a towel, crying into her phone camera — so I’m going to say yes.”
Bob Seely, a lawmaker with the governing Conservative Party, said he would try to introduce a bill in Parliament to strip the couple of their royal titles, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Seely said Prince Harry was attacking important British institutions, “as well as trashing his family and monetizing his misery for public consumption.”
Employment Minister Guy Opperman branded the couple “utterly irrelevant” in an interview with BBC and urged people “to boycott Netflix and make sure that we actually focus on the things that matter.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex on a walkabout at Trinity College during their visit to Dublin, Ireland.
Joe Giddens / Getty Images
King Charles declined to comment on the series during public engagements in London on Thursday or during a visit Friday to Welsh soccer club Wrexham AFC, where he met the team’s owners, Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
Story continues below advertisement
King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort, meet with co-owners of Wrexham AFC, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, during their visit to Wrexham Association Football Club (AFC) on Thursday in Wrexham, Wales.
Arthur Edwards / Getty Images
Both said they had not watched the series, with McElhenney joking, “I’ve never heard of it.”
— With files from The Associated Press and Reuters
It all started with a blind date and one question: “Is he nice?” Now — six years, two children and a royal exit later — one of the world’s most famous couples, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, are revealing new details of their relationship and what led them to step back from the royal family.
The six-part Netflix documentary “Harry & Meghan” is already controversial, with trailers revealing provocative soundbites and emotional moments from their lives, and promising much more. The first three episodes of the docuseries drop Thursday, with the remainder of the episodes released on December 15.
Here’s what to know about the couple at the center of the media storm.
These photos show Meghan Markle attending a movie premiere in London in 2013 and Prince Harry in London in 2016.
JUSTIN TALLIS, ANDREW COWIE/AFP via Getty Images
July 2016: Meeting on a blind date
The start of Harry and Meghan’s romance was far from the royal norm. The British royal and the American actress first met when a mutual friend set them up on a blind date in 2016, with neither of them having any idea who the other was. In fact, the only question Meghan had for their mutual friend prior to that first date was, “Is he nice?”
“Because if he wasn’t kind, it just, it didn’t seem like it would make sense,” she told the BBC in 2017. “And so we went and met for a drink and then I think very quickly into that we said, ‘Well, what are we doing tomorrow?’”
They quickly had two more “back-to-back” dates in London, Prince Harry told BBC News, and within a few weeks, Meghan traveled to Botswana with the prince, where they “camped out with each other under the stars.”
“It was fantastic, it was absolutely amazing to get to know her as quickly as I did,” Harry said.
October 2016: First reports of their relationship
The first report of the couple’s relationship appeared in the British tabloid The Sunday Express on October 31, 2016. Citing anonymous sources, the outlet report that Harry, then 32, was “besotted” with Meghan, who was 35 at the time.
November 2016: Prince Harry blasts tabloids for racist and sexist “abuse and harassment”
After that first story on their relationship, outlets went wild with the news, some of it rife with racist and sexist commentary. One tabloid, The Sun, published a cover story referring to Meghan as “Harry girl’s on Pornhub,” making it seem as though the actress had posted sex tapes, when in reality someone else had uploaded steamy scenes from her USA network show “Suits” to the Pornhub website.
This, among other headlines, prompted the royal family to issue an unusual public statement about relationship, blasting the media for the tone of its coverage.
“The past week has seen a line crossed. [Harry’s] girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment. Some of this has been very public – the smear on the front page of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments,” the Palace said in a statement.
“Some of it has been hidden from the public — the nightly legal battles to keep defamatory stories out of papers; her mother having to struggle past photographers in order to get to her front door; the attempts of reporters and photographers to gain illegal entry to her home and the calls to police that followed; the substantial bribes offered by papers to her ex-boyfriend; the bombardment of nearly every friend, co-worker, and loved one in her life.”
The statement said Harry was worried about Meghan’s safety and was “deeply disappointed” he hadn’t been able to protect her from the maelstrom.
“It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms. Markle should be subjected to such a storm,” the statement said. “He knows commentators will say this is ‘the price she has to pay’ and that ‘this is all part of the game’. He strongly disagrees — it is her life and his.”
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry attend a wheelchair tennis match at the Invictus Games on Sept. 25, 2017 in Toronto, Canada.
Samir Hussein/Samir Hussein/WireImage
September 2017: Meghan’s first big interview and public appearance with Harry
Meghan Markle’s first major interview about her royal romance with the prince was published in September 2017 in Vanity Fair, during which she discussed the “waves” of challenges that had emerged in the couple’s first year.
“We’re two people who are really happy and in love. We were very quietly dating for about six months before it became news, and I was working during that whole time, and the only thing that changed was people’s perception,” she told the magazine. “Nothing about me changed. I’m still the same person that I am, and I’ve never defined myself by my relationship.”
That interview led British betting-exchange Betfair to promote odds on when the couple would get engaged. Soon after the interview’s publication, Meghan and Harry made their first official public appearance together as a couple, holding hands at the Invictus Games, an event founded by Harry to help wounded veterans.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle hold hands at a photocall to announce their engagement at Kensington Palace in London on Nov. 27, 2017
Photo by Karwai Tang/WireImage
Many key members of the royal family, including Charles and Harry’s brother Prince William, announced their excitement about the news.
May 2018: A historic wedding at St. George’s Chapel
Harry and Meghan’s wedding was lavish, historic and somewhat controversial. Meghan became the first American in decades to marry into the royal family. The last to do so was Wallis Simpson, who married the former Edward VIII after he abdicated the throne in 1936.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex share a kiss after their wedding at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018 in Windsor, England.
WPA Pool / Getty Images
Meghan also became the first known mixed-race woman to marry into the royal family.
The wedding ceremony included the first African American presiding bishop to help officiate a royal wedding, Michael Curry.
Upon their marriage, they were given the titles Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex visit Bondi Beach on October 19, 2018 in Sydney, Australia.
Samir Hussein/Samir Hussein/WireImage
October 2018: Couple expecting their first child
The royal family announced on October 15, 2018 that Harry and Meghan were expecting their first child together.
Palace officials said the couple “appreciated all of the support they have received from people around the world since their wedding in May and are delighted to be able to share this happy news with the public.”
May 2019: Baby Archie is born
On May 6, 2019, Meghan delivered a baby boy they named Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.
Archie became the first known child of mixed-race heritage to be born into the royal family. The celebration was somewhat overshadowed, as Meghan later revealed that there were “several conversations” by royal insiders speculating on “how dark” the baby’s skin color would be.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and their baby son Archie Mountbatten-Windsor during their royal tour of South Africa on September 25, 2019 in Cape Town, South Africa.
Toby Melville – Pool/Getty Images
October 2019: Documentary reveals chaos behind the public spotlight
ITV News unveiled a documentary featuring interviews with the royal couple, who discussed their recent trip to Africa, what it was like for Harry to retrace the steps his mother took just months before her tragic death, and the couple’s ongoing battle with the press. For the prince, the constant turmoil with the media felt triggering, as it was a paparazzi-filled car chase that led to his mother’s death in 1997, when he was 12.
“I think being part of this family — in this role, in this job — every single time I see a camera, every single time I hear a click, every single time I see a flash, it takes me straight back,” Harry said in the interview. “In that respect, it’s the worst reminder of her life as opposed to the best.”
Meghan was also asked of her struggles with the press.
“Not many people have asked if I’m OK,” she told ITV’s Tom Bradby, tearfully agreeing that she had been struggling. “It’s a very real thing to be going through behind the scenes.”
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex depart Canada House in London on January 7, 2020.
Neil Mockford/GC Images
January 2020: Plans to step away from “senior” roles
A few months after those interviews, Harry and Meghan made the stunning announcement that they would be stepping away from “senior” royal roles. They said they would work to become financially independent and split their time between the U.K. and North America. They made the decision, they said, in part to “raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter.”
On their new website, Sussex Royal, couple said they would no longer be using the British pool system of royal correspondents, which, despite being “regarded internationally as credible sources,” actually help in the “amplifying of frequent misreporting.”
(L-R) Prince Charles; Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall; Queen Elizabeth II; Meghan, Duchess of Sussex; Prince Harry, Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, on July 10, 2018 in London, England.
Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson/Getty Images
February 2021: Official split from the royal family
After months of speculation, Buckingham Palace announced that Harry and Meghan would not be returning as working members of the royal family.
“Following conversations with The Duke, The Queen has written confirming that in stepping away from the work of the Royal Family it is not possible to continue with the responsibilities and duties that come with a life of public service,” a Buckingham Palace spokesman said. “…While all are saddened by their decision, The Duke and Duchess remain much loved members of the family.”
A spokesperson for the couple also released a statement at the time, saying that they would “remain committed to their duty and service to the U.K. and around the world,” regardless of their “official role.”
“We can all live a life of service,” the statement said. “Service is universal.”
The couple eventually settled into a new home in California and announced a series of new projects, including deals with Spotify and Netflix.
March 2021: Explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey interviews Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on a CBS primetime special that aired on March 7, 2021.
Harpo Productions/Joe Pugliese via Getty Images
In a stunning interview, Harry and Meghan sat down with Oprah Winfrey in a prime-time special on CBS and spoke out about the numerous struggles that took place behind closed doors at the palace. Among other things, they recounted conversations about “how dark” their son Archie’s skin color would be, and described the lack of support that resulted in Meghan feeling that she “just didn’t want to be alive anymore.”
They also shared that despite many tabloid suggestions, Harry had a “really good relationship” with his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. However, he said he was “disappointed” by actions of his father, and said he and his older brother, Prince William, were on “different paths.”
While they unveiled a slew of accusations and revelations in the interview, they also disclosed a happy development: they were expecting a baby girl.
“It’s a girl,” Prince Harry told Winfrey during the interview. The couple had announced the pregnancy on Valentine’s Day — 37 years to the day after Harry’s mother, the late Princess Diana, announced her pregnancy.
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex attend the 2022 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Ripple of Hope Gala at New York Hilton on December 6, 2022 in New York City.
Mike Coppola/Getty Images
June 2021: Baby Lilibet is born
The couple’s second child was born on June 4, 2021. They named her Lilibet Diana — Lilibet being the family nickname for Queen Elizabeth, and Diana in honor of Harry’s late mother.
December 2022: The “full truth” in controversial Netflix docuseries
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex say they’ll be revealing much more about what’s gone on behind the scenes of their relationship and within the royal family, with the premiere of the Netflix docuseries “Harry & Meghan.” In a trailer for the series, Prince Harry teased that only they know the “full truth” about what has happened over the past six years.
“No one knows the full truth. We know the full truth,” Prince Harry says, later intimating that he’ll expose some sordid stories of royal life.
“There’s a hierarchy of the family. You know, there’s leaking, but there’s also planting of stories,” he says. “…It’s a dirty game.”
Prince Harry is shutting down a recent report that accused him of telling a friend “Those Brits need to learn a lesson” ahead of the couple’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey last year.
The global press secretary for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex told HuffPost that “this is a baseless hit piece masquerading as journalism.’”
“This story is riddled with inaccuracies, not least of which is a quote erroneously attributed to Prince Harry,” the spokesperson said Sunday.
“To accuse a man who spent 10 years serving his country of wanting to teach that same country a lesson is not only an attempted distraction but an unfortunate and predictable tabloid strategy,” she added. “To pit him against his country is shameful and manipulative, especially when Prince Harry has never spoken ill of the British public.”
The Sun did not immediately respond to a HuffPost request for further comment.
The story and response come on the heels of Prince William and Kate Middleton’s recent, three-day tour of Boston, where they were for the Earthshot Prize Awards.
As the tour nearly coincided with the release of Harry and Meghan Markle’s forthcoming Netflix docuseries, a palace source prior to the trip said the Prince and Princess of Wales wouldn’t “be distracted by other things.”
A trailer for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s six-part series with the streaming giant dropped on the second day of William and Kate’s royal tour, leading many to question the timing of its release.
In the teaser, a voice asks Harry, “Why did you want to make this documentary?”
“No one sees what happens behind closed doors,” the prince responds. “I had to do everything I could to protect my family.”
“When the stakes are this high, doesn’t it make sense to hear our story from us?” Meghan later adds in the clip.
