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Princess Kate Middleton is not happy about speculation that she was one of the people who discussed nephew Archie’s skin tone ahead of his May 2019 birth.
“Kate was 100 percent not one of the people who discussed it,” an insider exclusively tells Us Weekly. “She is saddened that her name got pulled into this because she had nothing to do with it.”
Earlier this week, reports surfaced that the Dutch edition of Omid Scobie’s book Endgame was pulled from shelves because it identified the members of the British royal family who allegedly questioned “how dark” Archie’s skin would be. Archie, now 4, is the son of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. They also share daughter Lilibet, 2.
During the Wednesday, November 29, episode of his TV show, Piers Morgan claimed that the Dutch version named King Charles III and Kate, 41, as the royals who made racist remarks about Archie. Morgan, 58, added that he doesn’t personally “believe any racist comments were ever made by any of the royal family.”
Princess Kate and Meghan Markle’s complex relationship started off on the right foot, with the two aligning themselves together in a fast friendship after meeting in January 2017. However, rumors of a growing rift between the two soon begun to plague the royal family. Before she tied the knot with Prince Harry in May 2018, […]
Scobie, meanwhile, denied ever including the names in Endgame to begin with. “I never submitted a book that had those names in it,” he said during a Thursday, November 30, interview on ITV’s This Morning, noting that he is as “frustrated as everyone else” about the controversy.
While no names appeared in the English translation of Endgame, the insider tells Us that Kate isn’t pleased that her name surfaced in connection with the controversy, and it isn’t helping her relationship (or lack thereof) with Meghan.
“This has closed the door on any reconciliation with Meghan as far as Kate is concerned,” the source says. “She has had enough of Meghan’s antics and wants absolutely nothing to do with her. She will never make up with her.”
Princess Catherine Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images
Meghan, 42, and Harry, 39, first mentioned the alleged comments about Archie’s skin color during their March 2021 interview with CBS, which occurred one year after they made their last official appearance as senior working royals.
“That conversation I’m never going to share. But at the time, it was awkward. I was a bit shocked. I’m not comfortable sharing it,” Harry said before clarifying that his late grandmother Queen Elizabeth II and late grandfather Prince Philip were not the people who had made the remarks.
Kate and her husband, Prince William, have remained silent since Endgame’s release earlier this week. When asked about the book and Morgan’s comments at an event on Thursday, both Kate and William, 41, steadfastly ignored questions.
Back in March 2021, William had a different approach, telling reporters outside an event that “we’re very much not a racist family.”
The palace also released a statement following the CBS interview. “The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan. The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning,” the statement read. “While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately. Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved family members.”