Prince Charles' Latest Hire Might Make Meghan And Harry Fume
Tensions seem to be high between Prince Harry, his wife Meghan Markle, and his father Prince Charles since the couple chose to leave the royal family in 2020. Though they are reportedly happy with their decision, the couple has still made an effort to see the family they stepped away from. Recently they visited England for Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee, though they did abruptly exit the country before the celebrations concluded (via the Daily Mail).
While the duke and duchess visited Prince Charles during the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, things were reportedly still tense between the couple and the future king ahead of the visit (per the Daily Record). When Harry opened up about leaving the royal family to Oprah Winfrey, he shared that he was especially hurt by Charles. "Of course, I will always love him but there's a lot of hurt that's happened and I will continue to make it one of my priorities to try and heal that," he said.
Though it seems Harry was hopeful to heal his relationship with his father, a recent hire by Prince Charles may have put moving forward with his son and daughter-in-law in jeopardy.
Prince Charles brought on a new member to his PR team
Things are changing in the royal family. Queen Elizabeth II is facing recurring health problems, which is making both the family and the English public start thinking about what the future will look like when Prince Charles takes the throne. The managing editor of Majesty magazine told Page Six, "People are a bit more focused on the transition since last autumn with the Queen's ... fluctuating health."
Prince Charles has made some changes within his camp in preparation for the future; he and Camilla Parker Bowles let go of their current spokesperson and replaced them with Tobyn Andreae, the Daily Mail's deputy editor (via Newsweek). This shakeup might lead to more trouble with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Meghan and Harry have long taken issue with the Daily Mail and have sued the online and print editions including The Mail on Sunday, which Andreae used to be the deputy editor of. Meghan has also sued the paper for an "obvious agenda of publishing intrusive or offensive stories about [Meghan] intended to portray her in a false and damaging light."
The couple has had issues with the way the Daily Mail reports on their family. Seeing Charles hire a prominent member of their team may add even more trouble to their already struggling relationship.
Prince Harry has sued the tabloids more than once
Prince Charles's latest acquisition is likely to shock Prince Harry since the prince previously sued the Associated Newspapers group, which publishes the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, and its online counterpart Mail Online, and won — twice. As The Independent reported at the time, Harry targeted the Mail after they published a couple different articles claiming he no longer had a relationship with the British armed forces after defecting from the royal family.
In fact, the notorious tabloid claimed the relationship had suffered to such an extent that higher-ups were even considering replacing Harry, who has ten years' service on his record, as Captain General of the Royal Marines. The prince's lawyers confirmed he was shocked and hurt by the allegations, especially considering how much working with veterans means to him. Harry's lawyer, Jenny Afia, decried the stories as "baseless, false and defamatory."
The prince received an apology and unspecified damages, which he donated to his own dedicated charity for injured servicemen and women. He just emerged victorious in another lawsuit against Associated Newspapers after they claimed he was trying to keep the details of his security battle in the UK out of the public eye.
Per NBC News, a High Court judge ruled on July 8 that the Mail on Sunday had published a misleading "exclusive" report. The judge ruled that the story implied Harry was to blame for "attempting to mislead and confuse the public as to the true position."
Meghan Markle also won a libel suit against them
Meghan Markle also notably came out on top in her defamation suit against Associated Newspapers; she received a symbolic £1 in damages. A judge ruled her privacy had been breached when the Mail on Sunday published a private letter the duchess sent to her estranged father Thomas Markle. The Guardian confirmed the case would not be appealed, though Associated Newspapers had initially attempted to do so.
Meghan was also slated to receive another, undisclosed pay-out for copyright infringement and was likely to have part of her legal fees covered too. Elsewhere, both front and homepage reports of the paper's defeat were to be published accordingly. The duchess called out the "deception, intimidation, and calculated attacks" used by the British tabloid media and criticized them for conditioning "people to be cruel."
She also claimed they were profiting "from the lies and pain that they create." Per BBC News, the defendants claimed, in their initial appeal, that there was an expectation the letter might be published someday, and that it was newsworthy as a result. In fact, Associated Newspapers legal team asserted, "The letter was crafted specifically with the possibility of public consumption in mind."
Thomas gave it to the tabloids in the hopes of clearing his name, but it had the opposite effect and created a further divide between him and his famous daughter.