He claims to have held onto 'dark truths' about the state of the monarchy through fear of losing his 'insider position', but now Omid Scobie has left no stone unturned in his scandal-ridden book, Endgame.
Painting himself as an outsider in the royal press pack, persistently battling a reluctant Buckingham Palace for a response to his allegations, and even a writer who faces 'prejudice' from royal aides, the UK-born author's new offering is a result of 'over a decade of personal reporting files' - but how does he gain such intimate access to the royals?
He makes shocking allegations in the book, including details on William and Harry's near non-existent relationship, royal staff members laughing at Meghan 's nicknames, Kate being slammed as a 'cold shirker' and Charles' odd bedtime routine.
However, some have called into question the authenticity of Scobie's work, as questions around his relationship with Meghan and Harry have swirled on more than one occasion. Despite being branded their unofficial spokesman, he has claimed not to be on personal terms with the pair. Yet on another occasion, he told how Meghan called him directly ahead of the publication of Finding Freedom.
Meghan was also forced to apologise in court after denying working with Scobie on the first book, only to backtrack and say she forgot about allowing her team to discuss the contents over email with the author.
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Here, we take a look at just how well he knows the Sussexes - including candid moments between him and Meghan, as described by Scobie himself.
Friends for years
Scobie reportedly first met Meghan in 2015 at Toronto Fashion Week and was on such friendly terms that he reportedly gave the former Suits star a "big farewell hug" in Buckingham Palace following the Sussexes' final engagement as working royals.
In his new book Endgame, the journalist gives insight into a heartfelt phone call he received from the Duchess back in 2018, before he co-authored the Sussexes biography, Finding Freedom. The pair bonded over the shared 'online harassment and threats' they were receiving, with Scobie saying he became a target due to his coverage of the Sussexes. Meghan, he said, decided to 'check in' to ask about his wellbeing.
Recalling the call, he writes in the book: "I received a call that I thought was from the couple's head of communications at the time, Sara Latham. We had been texting back and forth about an upcoming royal engagement. 'Hi, Omid!' a female voice chirped. It was different to Latham's northwestern American accent. 'It's Meghan.' I put my iced coffee down, not quite sure if the call was a prank. 'We saw your name keep coming up on our phone... and I just wanted to say hi, see how you're doing.' Sara had mentioned to her that I was dealing with my own harassment and threats."
Intimate royal secrets
Endgame contains a string of facts that only those close to the Royal Family would know. For example, he claims Harry wasn't contacted by his brother Prince William as the family headed to Scotland in the final hours before the death of Queen Elizabeth III. He also alleges that there are two royal family members involved in the race row with the Sussexes - not one - and while he didn't name them for legal reasons, he shared that the names were in private letters sent between King Charles and Meghan.
Omid Scobie denies interviewing the Sussexes for his new book Endgame (Good Morning America)The author has been forced to deny that he interviewed Harry and Meghan for his latest book, but he didn't deny that his sources included briefings from the Duke and Duchess of Sussexes team. When asked if Meghan and Harry were the ones to tell him the personal detail, Scobie insisted they weren't. The author told The Standard: "There's enough people around them and in their orbit who know the ins and outs of things", adding: "If there's ever been a private encounter with Meghan, I've spoken about it".
Not 'Meg's pal'
With the release of his latest offering, Scobie has tried to distance himself from Harry and Meghan. While he was once refereed to as the Duchess' "mouthpiece", he spoke out about claims he is friends with Meghan. Posting on X, formerly known as Twitter, before the book dropped, he wrote: "And let's get this nonsense out the way - #ENDGAME is about the current state of the British Royal Family. It's not 'Harry and Meghan's book', I'm not 'Meg's pal', the Sussexes have nothing to do with it, their story is a small part of a much bigger one you can read in 12 days."
Secret briefings
Scobie cites close friends of both Meghan and Harry in Endgame, but it's not the first time his relationship with the Sussex bubble has come under fire. Buried in an author's note at the back of the pages in his first book Finding Freedom, an admission reportedly states: "We have spoken to close friends of Harry and Meghan, royal aides and palace staff (past and present), the charities and organisations they have built long-lasting relationships with and, when appropriate, the couple themselves."
During Meghan's 2020 privacy lawsuit against The Mail on Sunday - after it published a letter that she had written to her estranged father - Scobie provided a supportive witness statement, affirming that, despite his claims, the couple hadn't been interviewed for Finding Freedom. Though Meghan later had to apologise to the court as it emerged her former chief of communications had been directed by the couple to brief the authors.
The writer then appeared in court earlier this year, where he testified during Prince Harry's hearing against a British group of newspapers in the High Court in London. Scobie insisted to the court that he does not have a personal relationship with either Harry or Meghan despite him being considered one of Meghan's pals and biggest cheerleaders.
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He claimed he had never socialised with the prince after being probed on whether he had a "vested interest" in representing the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in a good light in a bid to get ahead with his career. He insisted: "I don't have a close relationship [with the Duke and Duchess] personally."
The journalist, who added that he did not have Harry's number, said: "It's got to the point that when I get press releases from Harry and Meghan's people, I wait for other people to post it first so I don't have to deal with the Daily Mail articles saying that it came from me."
Elsewhere, his reporting in the aftermath of the Queen's death was questioned, as he said on television that her coffin would make the journey from " Scotland to the UK" via the royal train - however many viewers pointed out that Scotland is indeed part of the UK, while the coffin was flown to RAF Northolt in west London. He later owned up to the mishap, saying it was a "slip of the tongue and [I'm] happy to own it".
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