Royals and race: inquiry under way into naming of
Charles and Catherine in new book
Dutch version of book pulped after king and duchess
named as speculating about skin colour of Harry and Meghan’s son, in pages on
‘unconscious bias’
Matthew
Weaver and Caroline Davies
Thu 30 Nov
2023 16.06 CET
A royal
author has said an investigation is under way into how the Dutch version of his
new book named two senior members of the British royal family alleged to have
discussed the skin colour of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s unborn son.
In an
edition that has now been withdrawn from bookshelves, King Charles and the
Princess of Wales were named as taking part in conversations about Prince
Archie before his birth, according to allegations in the book that have been
broadcast on TV programmes in the UK and the Netherlands.
The book
claims conversations about Archie related to how it opened up discussions about
whether there was “unconscious bias” in the royal family.
Buckingham
Palace declined to respond on Thursday. “It is not something we are going to
comment on,” a spokesperson told the Guardian.
The
broadcaster Piers Morgan used his TalkTV show on Wednesday to name the royals
mentioned in a now pulled and pulped translated version of Omid Scobie’s book
Endgame: Inside the Royal Family and the Monarchy’s Fight for Survival.
Speaking to
ITV’s This Morning on Thursday, Scobie insisted he had “never submitted a book
that had their names in it”, and could only talk about the English version that
he wrote.
He said he
had never used the word “racist”, and that his book referred to “unconscious
bias”. He claimed other Fleet Street journalists had “known those names for a
long time”.
He said the
inclusion of the names was “still being investigated right now. I wrote and
edited the English version of the book with one publisher. That then gets
licensed to other publishers. I obviously can’t speak Italian, German, French,
Dutch or any of the other languages. So the only time you hear about the book
is once it’s come out in the public domain.
“I am as
frustrated as everyone else. The reality is, though, that this is information
that is not privy just to me. Journalists across Fleet Street have known those
names for a long time. We’ve all followed a sort of code of conduct when it
comes to talking about it.”
He said the
Dutch book was immediately rescinded and was being reprinted: “I’m glad to hear
so.”
Asked if he
was upset about the names appearing, he said: “I have never submitted a book
that had their names in it. So I can only talk about my version. I’m obviously
frustrated, but I wouldn’t say I’m upset about it because, to be honest, I’ve
been operating in a bubble of no emotion for the last 10 days. But I’m
frustrated about it just like many of the other things I’ve seen said or
written about the book.”
During an
interview with Oprah Winfrey in March 2021, Meghan claimed at least one member
of the royal family had had “conversations” with Harry about their child’s skin
colour.
Scobie
said: “Firstly, I have never used the racist word in this subject. Even the
book makes it very clear we are talking about unconscious bias here.
“We’re
talking about a conversation that was raised about the colour of Archie’s skin,
that they called “concerns”. For me it was important to get to the bottom of
that; why was it not covered ever again, why did the Sussexes never talk about
it, what happened behind the scenes? The palace said it was being dealt with
privately. Was it?”
The Dutch
royal reporter Rick Evers has posted a video pointing out the passages in the
book that named King Charles and Catherine in connection with the allegation,
and which do not appear in the English version.
On
Wednesday night, Morgan said he was repeating the claims to prompt an open
debate.
He told
viewers: “I’m going to tell you the names of the two senior royals who are
named in that Dutch version of the book because, frankly, if Dutch people
wandering into a bookshop can pick it up and see these names, then you, British
people, here – who actually pay for the British royal family – you’re entitled
to know, too.
“And then
we can have a more open debate about this whole farrago because I don’t believe
any racist comments were ever made by any of the royal family, and until there
is actual evidence of those comments being made, I will never believe it.
“The royals
who were named in this book are King Charles and Catherine, Princess of Wales.”
The pair
were also named in reports by non-UK media, including Sky News Australia and
the New York Post.
The book’s
publishers, Xander, said a re-edited Dutch version of the book, without the
names, would appear in bookshops in the Netherlands on Friday.
Translated
passages from the pulled book claim Charles was identified in letters as the
royal who speculated on Archie’s skin colour. Another passage makes a more
oblique reference to Catherine in connection with the allegation. It claimed
Meghan and Charles exchanged letters about “unconscious bias within the family
after it was revealed that the king and Princess of Wales took part in such
discussions about Archie”.
Speaking to
the Dutch TV show RTL Boulevard Scobie said: “If there are translation errors,
I’m sure the publishers will have it under control. I wrote and edited the
English version. There’s never been a version that I’ve produced that has names
in it.”
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