19 March 2024 , 20:00
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Prince Harry issued Meghan Markle with strict instructions before she sat down for a high-profile interview, a royal biographer has revealed.
The Sussexes first met in 2016 and were married just two years later. Prior to their engagement, Meghan was given the opportunity to appear on the front cover of Vanity Fair along with an accompanying interview, in September 2017.
The focus was primarily to be on he bi-racial background and her work on Suits - but Harry seemingly took additional steps to ensure the line wasn't overstepped.
In his book, Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsors, Tom Bower revealed that Meghan had been "ecstatic" when she was asked to appear in the magazine.
But she tried to direct the interview with contributing editor at the magazine, Sam Kashner, away from her relationship with Harry, the author reports.
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Bower's book reads: "Kashner arrived at Meghan's home and told that his interviewee was under strict orders from both Harry and Keleigh Thomas Morgan [publicist at PR firm Sunshine Sachs].
"Aware that Diana and Sarah Ferguson had destroyed themselves in interviews, Harry had asked Meghan to maintain tight-lipped silence about sensitive subjects - Donald Trump , race, their relationship and especially himself. He was not to be mentioned."
Meghan appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair in 2017 (Vanity Fair)It didn't work out entirely to plan. Meghan did appear on the cover - but with the headline, 'She's Just Wild About Harry'. The couple were reportedly not happy.
Bower adds: "Within hours, Meghan called Ken Sunshine [founder of Sunshine Sachs Consultants] and Keleigh Thomas Morgan. Hysterically, she described Buckingham Palace's fury at 'Wild About Harry'. Sunshine Sachs said Meghan should have ensured that her comments about Harry were removed. Why wasn't the focus on her philanthropy and activism?
"Ken Sunshine feared that Meghan would fire his agency. Puzzled why Buckingham Palace was angry, he called the magazine's editor to deliver what he imagined to be the ultimate threat. 'You're going to have to deal with the Queen on this,' he said. "The furious monarch, he imagined, like Trump, would pick up the phone and berate the editor. The editor was bemused."
Harry and Meghan's reticence to focus on their romance was not altogether unsurprising. Less than a year earlier, the Prince had publicly confirmed their romance by issuing an extraordinary statement through Kensington Palace. In it, he attacked the "racial undertones" in press coverage and in social media, saying that he also feared for her safety.
"The past week has seen a line crossed," the Palace's statement warned. "(Meghan) 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.
"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.
"Prince Harry is worried about Ms. Markle's safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her," it continued. "It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms. Markle should be subjected to such a storm. 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. This is not a game – it is her life and his."