This Princess Diana Biographer Is Trying to Discredit Meghan Markle’s Claims of Isolation in the Royal Family

Meghan Markle’s words from her interview with Oprah Winfrey last month are still resonating in royal circles. One prominent insider, Princess Diana biographer Andrew Morton, has some thoughts about what the Duchess of Sussex has to say, especially on how it compares to Prince Harry’s late mother’s treatment — and some of it may surprise you.

He somewhat agrees with Meghan’s assessment that there’s a “sense of isolation” and a “sense of desperation” when it comes to living as a royal, given that Diana echoed similar sentiments to him, even “exactly what Diana was saying to me,” per Morton’s appearance on the Royally Obsessed podcast last week. The job isn’t easy and there are strict protocols to follow that are often antiquated and somewhat sexist. (That nude stockings rule has to go!) For someone like the Duchess, who had years of freedom and independence as an actress in Hollywood, her new role most likely felt stifling at times.

He recognizes those similarities between Prince Harry’s mother and Meghan, but he also believes the Duchess had it much easier than Diana did back in the days. Things might not have been as challenging as they were portrayed in the Winfrey interview.

“Well, friends of mine have seen Meghan walking from Whole Foods supermarket on Kensington High Street with bags of food back to Kensington Palace,” added Morton. The author goes on to defend Queen Elizabeth for being open-minded in welcoming Meghan to the family and giving the couple the “opportunity to go wherever they pleased.”

Whatever trips to the grocery store Meghan may or may not have made, there’s no denying that she was similarly hounded by the UK press as Diana. And if the latter’s paparazzi took a more physically aggressive approach with the latter, we can say that they took a more racist approach with the former — but ultimately, that comparison does no one any good at all.

If we start comparing who had it worse, it only diminishes the feelings of both women, who both bravely openly spoke about feeling isolated behind palace walls and their decision to take their mental health seriously, even when met with little support. No one wants to see more generations suffer in silence within the royal family (right?), so we should be welcoming the opportunity to hear about their experience — not nitpicking it to see whether she really had a right to complain.

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Before you go, click here to see the craziest conspiracy theories Meghan Markle has faced since becoming a royal.