Harry, Meghan lay bare divisions in royal family

LONDON－Prince Harry and Meghan's explosive TV interview reverberated around the world, rocking an institution struggling to modernize with claims of racism and callousness toward a woman struggling with suicidal thoughts.

During the two-hour appearance broadcast on CBS on Sunday night with Oprah Winfrey, Harry revealed the problems had ruptured relations with his father, Prince Charles, and brother, Prince William, illuminating the depth of the family divisions that led the couple to step away from royal duties and move to California last year.

Meghan described feeling so isolated and miserable inside the royal family that she had suicidal thoughts. She said a member of the family had "concerns" about the color of her unborn child's skin.

Harry described feeling "really let down" by his father, heir-to-the-throne who had stopped taking his phone calls for a time.

The sit-down was the most startling since Harry's late mother Princess Diana's own bombshell revelations in 1995.

"Worst Royal Crisis in 85 Years," read the front page of the Daily Mirror newspaper, while the Daily Mail's cover asked "What Have They Done?" and The Sun columnist Trevor Kavanagh questioned if the interview meant the end for the royals.

"It could hardly be more damaging to the royal family, not least because there is little it can do to defend itself," The Times said in a lead article under the title "Royal Attack".

Queen Elizabeth, who led the family and has been on the throne for 69 years, wanted to take some time before the palace issued a response, a royal source said.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson refused to comment on the interview, praising the queen but saying that "when it comes to matters to do with the royal family the right thing for a prime minister to say is nothing".

Meghan's estranged father Thomas Markle on Tuesday suggested that his daughter exaggerated racism in the interview. He told ITV the chat was "way over the top" and suggested a royal family member could have asked a "dumb question" about her future baby's skin color.

Opinions split

Opponents of the monarchy said the allegations made by Meghan and Harry showed just how rotten the institution was, although some royal supporters cast Meghan as a publicity seeker with an eye on Hollywood stardom.

A snap YouGov poll of 2,111 adults in Britain indicated 47 percent thought the couple's interview was "inappropriate", with 21 percent in favor.

The gravity of the claims raised uncomfortable questions about how the British monarchy, which survived centuries of revolution that toppled their cousins, could function in a meritocratic world.

Former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull said the interview bolstered his argument for Australia severing its constitutional ties to the British monarchy.

"After the end of the queen's reign, that is the time for us to say: OK, we've passed that watershed. Do we really want to have whoever happens to be the head of state of－the king or queen of the UK, automatically our head of state?" Turnbull added.

Agencies via Xinhua