Omid Scobie’s controversial new book has been withdrawn from sale in the Netherlands after the Dutch translation appeared to mention the ‘royal racist’.
Publisher Xander has confirmed to the Ny Breaking that it had received a last-minute request from the US to stop sales of Endgame and was ‘awaiting further instructions’.
Scobie, in his original edition of the book, does not name the member of the royal family who reportedly expressed “concerns” about the skin color of Harry and Meghan’s future son, Archie.
He says libel laws prevented him from naming them – although he goes on to claim a second person within the royal family also echoed the comments.
But a page from a review copy of the book sent to Dutch journalists appears to contain the person’s identity.
Meghan and Harry pictured with Archie during a tour of South Africa in September 2019
Scobie does not name the member of the royal family who allegedly raised ‘concerns’ about Archie’s skin color in the original book
Referring to letters written between Meghan and the king discussing the matter, it says: ‘But in those private letters (the identity) was confirmed: ….’ (the Mail has redacted the name in question)
It is not clear why a foreign-language version of the book would mention a person while other editions did not, or whether it was intentionally included or a major publishing error.
A spokesperson for the Dutch publisher said: ‘You’re right, but I can’t talk about the details. However, we received a request to put the title on hold and we did so.’
When asked when that request was received, she explains: “Just now.
‘We are awaiting further instructions. I don’t know how long this will be. You need to speak to the American agent.”
The original claim was made by Meghan in her infamous March 2020 Oprah interview, when she revealed there were “several conversations” between herself, Harry and members within the royal family about “how dark” their baby could be before Archie was born .
“During the months I was pregnant, there were concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he was born,” Meghan said in the interview.
Harry added: ‘I’m never going to share that conversation. At that moment it was awkward, I was a bit shocked.”
Meghan added: “I think it would be very damaging to them.”
The resulting furor prompted Prince William to publicly declare that they were “not a racist family at all.”
Harry and Meghan discussed the ‘royal racist’ in their impressive interview with Oprah Winfrey
Scobie doesn’t mention the “royal racist” in the British edition of Endgame
Buckingham Palace said the claims were “concerning” and that “recollections may vary” but that they would address the claims privately.
Harry later clarified that the member of the royal family in question was not the Queen or the Duke of Edinburgh.
But by not saying who might have made the comment and what the context was, it has led to ongoing debate and uncertainty that continues to haunt the royal family to this day.
Many critics of the couple believe it was deeply unfair to have made accusations of racism without defining them or giving those involved a chance to explain their side of the story.
In his new book, Scobie refers to a subsequent exchange of letters between Meghan and her father-in-law that both parties wanted to keep confidential and which addressed the Duchess’s “concerns about unconscious racial bias in the Royal Family.”
It is suggested that they contain ‘damning details’.
Scobie goes on to say that Charles first contacted Meghan in the spring of 2021 to express his sadness over the “distance” between them and his disappointment that the couple chose to make their words so public.
He apparently said how “appalled” he was over claims that “concerns” had been raised about what Archie’s skin color would be “and what that would look like (to the Firm).”
He adds that in the pages of these private letters, “two identities were revealed. Laws in Britain prevent me from reporting who they were.’
He quotes “sources” as saying that the king’s response was to convey to his daughter-in-law that he felt there was “no ill will or casual prejudice when the two people had discussed his future grandson.”
The book also quotes a ‘royal insider’ as saying: ‘He wanted to clarify something he felt strongly about’.
Despite the obvious inferences in her interview, Scobie is at pains to emphasize that Meghan never used the words racist or racism when speaking about the event or in her letters.
Archie seen with baby Lilibet in the Sussexes’ 2021 Christmas card
He says her concerns were that the tone revealed “persistent unconscious biases and ignorance within the family that needed to be addressed.”
He claims that although the king and Meghan never agreed on the issue, there was at least a sense that both had been heard.
Scobie adds that there were “no hard feelings.”
One well-placed source with knowledge of the situation has emphasized to the Mail that the conversation was a private conversation between Harry and the person involved and that Meghan was not present. Her husband later recounted the conversation to her.
There was no immediate comment from Buckingham Palace.