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Prince Charles will be 'deeply hurt': Experts weigh in after Harry and Meghan's Oprah interview

The interview has been filmed and will air in the US on 7 March. (CBS)
Harry and Meghan opened up to talkshow host Oprah Winfrey about a range of subjects. (CBS)

Prince Charles will be "deeply hurt" by the comments made by his son and daughter-in-law during their explosive interview with TV chatshow host Oprah Winfrey, according to a royal author.

Robert Jobson made the comment after the US broadcast of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's interview with Winfrey, in which Harry said he was let down by his father.

In the bombshell interview, Harry said: "I feel really let down because he’s been through something similar, he knows what pain feels like, (and) Archie’s his grandson.

“But at the same time – I will always love him – but there’s a lot of hurt that’s happened and I will continue to make it one of my priorities to try and heal that relationship.

“But they only know what they know, or what they’re told.”

Speaking afterwards on True Royalty TV, author and Evening Standard royal editor Jobson said Charles would be "deeply hurt".

Reflecting on Harry and Meghan's claim that they had not been able to get help when she was having suicidal thoughts, Jobson said that Charles had previously had counselling and had sought help for Diana too.

He said it was "astonishing" that Meghan claimed she would not be able to get help.

Royal editor of the Daily Mirror Russell Myers said: "They will be absolutely devastated."

Meghan revealed she had come to a point where she "did not want to live" while she was five months pregnant with son Archie.

And Harry said: "I didn’t have anyone to turn to. We’ve got some very close friends that have been with us through this whole process.

"But for the family, they very much have this mentality of, ‘This is just how it is, this is how it’s meant to be, you can’t change it, we’ve all been through it.’

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Royal author Angela Levin, who was also on the True Royalty TV special, said it was "catastrophic" to suggest that Meghan would not have been allowed to get any support, like counselling, when she felt "she did not want to be alive".

The trio reflected on some of the biggest moments of the two hour-long special.

Noting that Meghan suggested they had not wanted a big wedding, Levin, author of Harry: Conversations With The Prince, said: "Why did we pay £33m if they just wanted a smaller wedding?"

Myers said: "I thought that could be seen as rather sweet and lovely.

"But if they wanted the message that this wasn't what they wanted, why did they do it?"

On the rest of the Royal Family being trapped, Myers said "it's outrageous" to suggest the Queen did not want to continue her service.

He said the Queen had dedicated her life to service of the UK and the Commonwealth.

Speaking of the decision to reveal the sex of the royal baby, Levin said she "got the sense Harry didn't want to do it".

They all agreed that it was "unusual" because of the recent privacy battle which the couple have been through.

Watch: Meghan reveals she had suicidal thoughts

Read more: 'I will always love them': Harry says he wants to heal rifts with Charles and William

Jobson continued: "Words are cheap. That interview did not respect the Queen."

He said: "They have attacked the institution of monarchy."

He added: "This is a gross insult of British people."

Jobson also called it "mendacious" as the experts discussed the matter of Archie's title.

Meghan said she and Harry had not said they did not want their son to be a prince. At the time of Archie's birth a royal source said they had declined the offer of a title.

Archie fell too far down the line of succession to automatically become a prince but he could have had a title reflecting one of the various titles of Prince Harry.

Jobson said: "It's all there on letters patent – when the Prince of Wales becomes the king, their son can be prince and their daughter can be princess.

"Read about it, it's all there."

The experts also briefly compared the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's situation to Prince Andrew's, but Jobson denied that there was a fair comparison.

As host Kate Thornton pointed out that Prince Andrew has kept his military titles, Jobson said: "Nothing has been proven against Andrew.

"His lawyers have said not to speak to them as a witness so he is going with that. Personally I wish he would."

UNSPECIFIED - UNSPECIFIED: In this handout image provided by Harpo Productions and released on March 5, 2021, Oprah Winfrey interviews Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on A CBS Primetime Special premiering on CBS on March 7, 2021. (Photo by Harpo Productions/Joe Pugliese via Getty Images)
Meghan and Harry made some explosive claims in the interview. (Harpo Productions/Joe Pugliese via Getty Images)

Read more: Five things we found out for the first time from Meghan Markle’s Oprah interview

Meghan and Harry received plenty of support from Americans tuning in to watch the show as it played out in the US, including from Meena Harris, niece of vice president Kamala Harris.

She tweeted before the show: "Happy Meghan Markle appreciation day.”

After it had finished she said: “Her Majesty The Queen Oprah.”

Meghan's friend Serena Williams also made a statement on social media about the duchess.

She said: "Her words illustrate the pain and cruelty she’s experienced.

“I know first hand the sexism and racism institutions and the media use to vilify women and people of colour to minimise us, to break us down and demonise us. We must recognise our obligation to decry malicious, unfounded gossip and tabloid journalism. The mental health consequences of systemic oppression and victimisation are devastating, isolating and all too often lethal.

“I want Meghan’s daughter, my daughter and your daughter to live in a society that is driven by respect.

“Keep in your memory the fruitage of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, mildness, self-control. Against such things there is no law.”

Bernice King, the youngest child of the late civil-rights activist Martin Luther King, tweeted: “Royalty is not a shield from the devastation and despair of racism.

“I’m grateful that #MeghanMarkle is still here.”

Oprah With Meghan And Harry airs in the UK on ITV on 8 March at 9pm.