Prince Harry and Meghan Markle upset the late Queen Elizabeth when they brought a photographer along to their meeting with her and Princess Lilibet at Windsor Castle, who was prevented from entering.
This was the first time that the Queen met her youngest great-granddaughter, as she was born in California following Harry and Meghan’s decision to step down as working royals.
There was a family reunion when the Sussexes all flew over for the Platinum Jubilee in June 2022, but according to royal expert Phil Dampier the Queen was less than pleased with their apparent plan to spin the sweet moment for their own ends.
He told The Sun: “I think the main fear that the late Queen had was that when they [Harry and Meghan] turn up, they do tend to turn up with a Netflix film crew or a photographer in tow.
“You always get the feeling that whatever happens, whatever the discussions are, that it’s sooner or later going to end up on a programme or some sort of podcast or whatever.”
He added: “That’s unfortunately where the trust has gone and they just don’t trust them. Even if the Queen had been struggling with her health she was still sharp as a tack.
“She realised that any photograph taken of her with Lilibet could have been exploited. I don’t think she was very pleased that it was presented to her as a fait accompli that the name Lilibet was chosen in the first place.
“She put her foot down and said ‘no photographs’ and I must admit I don’t blame her. But it’s sad that we’ve never seen one [a photograph].”
“They’re trying to remind people of why they fell in love with them in the first place but too much damage has been done.”
Ms Schofield elaborated: “Because their first strategy was to come out guns blazing and take down the British Royal Family.
“And they signed contracts, they signed their souls away to Netflix, they signed their souls away to Penguin Random House with the book Spare and they had expectations they had to meet for the dollar.
“And not only did they lose very important family members in the process, as in Prince William and King Charles, but they jeopardised their relationship with the public.”
