When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced they would be stepping back as senior royals, people had strong opinions. Many asserted that the decision had to be Meghan's. British tabloids had already established the narrative that Meghan had Harry under her thumb. They reasoned that the only way Harry would want to step away from the family was to keep his marriage intact. They even ran with the name "Megxit" for the whole ordeal.
The highly buzzed-about biography of the couple tells a very different story. In Finding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of a Modern Royal Family, royal experts Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand reportedly reveal that Harry is the one who wanted to walk away.
We'll have to wait until the book's August 11 release to get the whole story, of course. This is just one of many bombshells the book is reported to reveal. While the authors have shot down any talk of the details, it stands to reason that the public may be let in on some hard truths the royal family has tried to hide.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's story has been told so many times that you might think you know everything there is to know about it. A new biography on the couple plans to challenge that notion with information from those closest to the couple. It's called Finding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of a Modern Royal Family.
On Saturday, The Sun reported a scoop from the book, which won't be released until August. According to a "publishing insider," they believe a large portion of the book will be dedicated to setting things straight regarding Harry and Meghan's decision to step back as senior royals. British tabloids spent a great deal of time building up the narrative that Meghan was responsible for the decision.
The tabloids claimed that Meghan couldn't handle the spotlight she was under as a royal, an interesting claim considering Meghan was previously an actress on a fairly successful TV series and has plenty of famous connections of her own. It's a narrative that's still being pushed despite the fact that Harry and Meghan have moved on.
"As an actress, she was used to being photographed — she was famous in her own right before marrying into The Royal Family — but she's said herself there was this suggestion that she would be able to handle the press attention and find her way in the spotlight because of her previous experience," royal expert Katie Nicholl told 9Honey.
"Whereas actually, I think what she encountered was almost impossible to prepare for and certainly her experience as a B-List actress wasn't going to stand her in [good] stead for suddenly becoming the most famous woman in the world," she continued.
"She became a global celebrity on a stage just incomparable to anything Hollywood was going to offer or the Hollywood stage that she experience before."
While that may be true for other women who have entered the royal family, Meghan has endured a level of backstabbing, deception, and vitriol that could very well be ripped out of the pages of a Hollywood screenplay.
The belief that Meghan was at fault was so prominent that the media called Harry and Meghan's decision to leave "Megxit." It's a term that The Sun emphasizes hasn't sat well with Harry.
"That word 'Megxit' in particular has always angered Prince Harry. It gives the impression that the decision to walk away from the Royal Family was Meghan's," the source noted.
"The reality is Harry drove that decision," the source continued.
"The book will make that clear and explain why it had to happen. The truth is Harry had been unhappy for a long, long time. He wanted to move in the direction that they did and had been considering it for more than a year."
"Meghan supported Harry's decision. But there was more than one occasion where she asked him if he was certain it was what he wanted," the source also added.
"And she always made it clear she would support him in whatever he did."
Omid Scobie, one of the book's two authors, took to Twitter to subtly slam The Sun's reporting. "Any 'insider' claiming to know what's in the book is simply throwing guesses out there," he tweeted. Many fans replied to his tweet wondering why the royal family's network was working so hard to diminish the book.
Katie also made comments recently that paint Meghan as a paranoid figure during her time in the royal family. In a piece for The Sunday Times, she allegedly spoke with friends close to Meghan.
"She was convinced there was a conspiracy against her and so she basically put herself in self isolation when they moved to Frogmore," the friend reportedly said.
"One of the things Meghan struggled with was not earning an income," the source continued.
"She has always worked and I think she felt unfulfilled. Having financial freedom was a big part of them wanting to leave."
Katie's piece in The Sunday Times came the day after the reports about the book's alleged contents in The Sun. While pieces like this certainly don't materialize in 24 hours, it's interesting that the narrative of Meghan's desire to leave continues to be pushed. If the book does, in fact, indicate this was Harry's desire and decision, where does that leave the public perception of Meghan?
Can Meghan really be considered paranoid for feeling like people were plotting against her? She was subject to one of the most consistent and hateful campaigns by the press in modern history. Even Harry drew parallels between her treatment and that of the late Princess Diana after her departure from the royal family.
Harry has been open about his desire to keep history from repeating itself. Could that not also mean that any "paranoia" coming from the couple may have also been Harry's deepest fears, at their root? Is it really wrong for him to want to protect his wife and child after seeing what happened to his own mother?
It's a long wait until August, but Finding Freedom looks like it will be worth it. If Harry is indeed the one who spearheaded their royal exit, what does that say about the royal family's willingness to protect their own, or even who they consider to be their own? Royal fans have so many questions, and there are only a handful of people who can answer them once and for all.
