Prince Harry and Prince William’s “tumultuous” relationship is the centerpiece of a controversial new documentary.
Prince Harry and Prince William, seen at the annual Remembrance Sunday service at The Cenotaph, in London, on November 10, 2019, are the subject of a new BBC documentary ‘The Princes and the Press’.
The Princes And The Press is due to be broadcast on Britain’s BBC 2 Monday night and will look in detail at the the two royals and their dealings with the media.
The first episode will examine the period after Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012.
The second half of the two-part series will take the show into more inflammatory terrain as it takes the timeline from 2018 to 2021.
During that time, Meghan Markle has suggested “The Firm” played an active role in “perpetuating falsehoods about us.”
It covers the period when Meghan said she experienced suicidal thoughts amid negative media coverage but was told by the palace she could not go to a mental hospital as it would make the institution look bad.
It also covers the period when Meghan and Harry launched six lawsuits against media organizations in the space of around a year.
Historian Robert Lacey also wrote in biography Battle of Brothers that during this time William kicked Harry out of Kensington Palace during an argument over accusations Meghan Markle bullied her staff.
Before the show has even hit screens it has already sparked a backlash in the British press.
U.K. tabloid The Mail on Sunday ran a front page Sunday November 21, reading: “Royals at war with BBC over ‘tittle tattle’ documentary.”
The newspaper reported no one at the palace had been shown the documentary in advance of screening, with the first episode due to air tonight, November 22, at 9:00 p.m. GMT (4:00 p.m. ET).
Episode 1 is described on the BBC website: “Amol Rajan tells the story of one of the most dramatic periods in modern royal history, looking at how the younger royals’ relationship with the media changed following the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.”
Episode 2 dives into more controversial territory, taking the story past Meghan and Harry’s wedding to the period when the relationship between the brothers fell apart.
A description on the BBC website states: “Amol examines the period from 2018 to 2021, a tumultuous time for the royals that includes the birth of Archie Mountbatten-Windsor and the royal tours of the Sussexes and the Cambridges.”
Meghan was asked by Oprah Winfrey during a CBS prime time special in March how she felt about the palace hearing her “speak your truth.”
The duchess replied: “I don’t know how they could expect that after all of this time, we would still just be silent if there is an active role that The Firm is playing in perpetuating falsehoods about us.”
A BBC spokesperson said: “The programme is about how royal journalism is done and features a range of journalists from broadcast and the newspaper industry.”
