You can rent a room in The Merrion Hotel for a cool €7k a month
You can rent a room in The Merrion Hotel for a cool €7k a month

IMAGE

The IMAGE staffers on the spring accessories they’re shopping for this season
The IMAGE staffers on the spring accessories they’re shopping for this season

Sarah Gill

Venting, oversharing, or straight up trauma dumping — when does confiding in friends turn toxic?
Venting, oversharing, or straight up trauma dumping — when does confiding in friends turn toxic?

Sarah Gill

Real Weddings: Aoife and Brendan tied the knot at a Tudor-style house in Co Carlow
Real Weddings: Aoife and Brendan tied the knot at a Tudor-style house in Co Carlow

Shayna Sappington

This modern farmhouse in Enniskerry is on the market for €945,000
This modern farmhouse in Enniskerry is on the market for €945,000

Sarah Finnan

3 ways to style your trusty adidas Sambas
3 ways to style your trusty adidas Sambas

Sarah Finnan

The best off-the-shoulder tops and jumpers to elevate any look
The best off-the-shoulder tops and jumpers to elevate any look

Sarah Gill

This charming Enniskerry farmhouse with gorgeous grounds is on the market for €2.5 million
This charming Enniskerry farmhouse with gorgeous grounds is on the market for €2.5 million

Sarah Finnan

What to eat this weekend: Fish n’ courgette chips with homemade tartar sauce
What to eat this weekend: Fish n’ courgette chips with homemade tartar sauce

Meg Walker

How to quit the cycle of feeling bad from social media
How to quit the cycle of feeling bad from social media

Niamh Ennis

Image / Agenda / Breaking Stories

Is this the truth about the question of Archie’s skin tone?


By Holly O'Neill
30th Nov 2021
Is this the truth about the question of Archie’s skin tone?

A new book claims it was Prince Charles who made the remark about the skin tone of Meghan and Harry's future children.

In Meghan and Harry’s explosive interview with Oprah this past March, one of the most sticking points was when Meghan said the royal family had “concerns” about Archie’s skin colour.

Meghan said, when she was pregnant with Archie, a member of the royal family raised “concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born”. Asked whether there were concerns that her child would be “too brown” and that would be a problem, Meghan said, “If that is the assumption you are making, that is a pretty safe one.”

“In those months when I was pregnant, all around this same time, so we have in tandem the conversation of, “you won’t be given security, not gonna be given a title” and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born,” she said. Meghan did not say who expressed those concerns, saying “I think that would be very damaging to them.” Harry told Oprah that the questions were along the lines of, “What will the kids look like?” and that this conversation happened “right at the beginning.”

In an interview on US breakfast television,  Oprah said that Harry had told her that the Queen and Prince Phillip were not behind the remark. “He did not share the identity with me but he wanted to make sure that I knew – and if I had the opportunity to share it – that it was not his grandmother nor his grandfather that were part of those conversations,” she said.

A new book is claiming that it was Prince Charles who made the remark that kicked off a rift between the royal family and Meghan and Harry.

Brothers and Wives: Inside the Private Lives of William, Kate, Harry and Meghan by American journalist Christopher Andersen says these comments were taken out of context when they reached Meghan and Harry.

The book claims that Charles made the comment the morning the couple became engaged. According to a source in the book, Charles allegedly asked Camilla, “I wonder what the children will look like?” She said, “absolutely gorgeous.” It is claimed that Charles replied, “I mean, what do you think their children’s complexion might be?”

Christopher Andersen claims that palace advisers had taken the words out of context and given them a racist spin by the time they reached Meghan and Harry. Harry is said to have confronted Charles, who according to a source, told him that he was being “overly sensitive about the matter”.

It is claimed that Prince William agreed with Charles and said the comment was tactless but “not a sign of racism within the family.”

A representative for Prince Charles told The Times of the book; “This is fiction and not worth further comment.”