Royal family unveil lavish Christmas decorations at Windsor Castle amid Omid Scobie race row

Christmas has arrived at Windsor Castle, where the royal family has unveiled lavish decorations.

The royal residence of Berkshire has been transformed with a 20ft Christmas tree in St George’s Hall, festive garland and twinkling lights.

This year also marks the 675th anniversary of the Order of the Garter atop the Christmas tree.

And the festive atmosphere is also palpable in the Waterloo Chamber, where a huge dining table is adorned with statement pieces, including trays of golden pears and fruit.

However, it will be difficult for the family to get into the Christmas spirit amid an ongoing racing row following the release of Omid Scobie’s book Endgame this week.

The Berkshire royal residence has been transformed with a 20ft Christmas tree, festive garlands and twinkling lights

The author defended his work on British television today and refused to take the blame for the racism scandal over the naming of two royals in the Dutch translation, stating: “I have never submitted a book in which those names appear.”

The Sussexes’ favorite royal reporter has roundly blamed the publisher in the Netherlands – and denied it was part of a money-grubbing ‘stunt’ to distribute more copies worldwide.

In an interview with ITV’s This Morning, which started with a denial that he is ‘Meghan’s mouthpiece’, Omid offered no mea culpa or apology for the mistake and when asked if he was upset he said: ‘I’m clearly frustrated. I wouldn’t say I’m angry about it.”

And the festive atmosphere is also palpable in the Waterloo Chamber, where a huge dining table is adorned with statement pieces, including trays of golden pears and fruit.

The huge festive fir, decorated with red and gold baubles and tinsel, stands tall and proud in St. George’s Hall

This year also marks the 675th anniversary of the Order of the Garter atop the Christmas tree

Mr Scobie also gave no explanation as to how the version of Endgame that was squashed in the Netherlands ultimately pointed the finger at two members of the royal family who are now accused of asking about the color of Archie’s skin before he was born.

Asked whether Dutch Farrago was a “stunt to sell books” despite bad reviews, he said: “I wish it was” and that “an investigation is underway.”

“I’ve never submitted a book that had the names in it, so I can only talk about my version,” he said. ‘I wrote and edited the English version of the book at one publisher. This is then licensed to other publishers. I don’t speak Italian, German, French, Dutch or any of the other languages ​​it was released in’.

Mr Scobie’s appearance on the This Morning sofa with Craig Doyle and Alison Hammond started with an immediate denial that he is ‘Meghan’s mouthpiece’, ‘her cheerleader’ or simply ‘an articulate fan’. He claimed he had been treated ‘unfairly’ and these pro-Sussex nicknames are all part of ‘a character assassination’.

In addition to the china and glassware, there are also ornate candlesticks, and in the center there is also a small Christmas tree

A huge, ornate Christmas tree towers over St George’s Hall at Windsor Castle today as the festive cheer begins

Pictured: Royal Collection Trust staff putting the finishing touches to a Christmas tree at Windsor Castle

To emphasize his point, he said, “I have very little interest in what they do [the Sussexes] do in California. Harry and Meghan are not relevant to the future of the royal family.”

But he admitted he had been ‘sympathetic’ and claimed he had witnessed unfair treatment of the Duchess of Sussex when she was a royal, ‘so I went on television and spoke about the racism she faced’ .

He denied being ‘Meghan’s mouthpiece’ and said: ‘I’m not their friend. I have never sat down with Meghan privately for an interview, nor exchanged information with Meghan. I’m not in their private world.’

He also said that he and Endgame had been unfairly criticized. He said: ‘I knew this book would be controversial, whether it was about race or the Palace’s relationship with the press. I never expected it to be presented fairly.” He said: ‘There have been unfair attacks on me’.

He said he believed he had been victimized because he said “loudly from the beginning” that Meghan was the victim of racism. He added that being mixed-race gives him a different perspective on the racism she faced – but emphasized that he wasn’t just an “articulate fan.”

Mr Scobie was asked how the names had appeared in the Dutch version that has now been taken off the shelves. Piers Morgan said it live on television last night.

He said: ‘It is still under investigation. I wrote and edited the English version of the book for one publisher. This is then licensed to other publishers. Obviously I don’t speak Italian, German, French, Dutch or any of the other languages ​​that come out.

The family’s festive celebrations are likely to be marred by a race riot following the release of Omid Scobie’s book Endgame this week

Defending his work on British television today, the author refused to take blame for the racism scandal over the naming of two royals in the Dutch translation, stating: ‘I have never submitted a book in which those names appear’

‘I’m just as frustrated as anyone else. I make it very clear in this book that I want to adhere to the laws surrounding this subject in every possible way. That’s why I’ve been very careful about the way it’s described in the book and that’s why I’ve never talked about it more than what I’ve said before in the public domain.

‘The reality, however, is that this is information that is not known only to me. Journalists across Fleet Street have known these names for a long time. We’ve all followed a certain code of conduct when it comes to talking about it. It’s frustrating that what’s happening now in the Netherlands with the book, which was of course immediately withdrawn and is now being reprinted, has happened, and I’m glad to hear that. But for me, I can only talk about the English version of the book that I wrote and produced.”

Scobie told ITV’s This Morning that reporting on Meghan Markle was often “steeped in xenophobia, misogyny and prejudice.”

He said: ‘I think when Meghan was a working member of the royal family she was massively misrepresented in a lot of reporting. A lot of it was steeped in xenophobia, misogyny and prejudice, and I always said that very loudly from the beginning.

“It’s something that has made me a target for a lot of people in terms of someone just being seen as an articulate fan of hers, rather than maybe okay. I’m a mixed-race member of the press and I have something different to say about that.’

Omid said he had never used the word “racist” in connection with the comments about Archie’s skin color, adding that it was described as “unconscious bias.”