Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey didn’t win an Emmy award as some would have hoped - or feared.
The show was nominated for the prestigious award in the ‘outstanding hosted nonfiction series or special’ category in July but effectively lost to Stanley Tucci’s cocking show about Italian food and culture.
‘Stanley Tucci: Searching For Italy’ consists of six episodes as the renowned actor travels across the country to share with viewers some traditional receipts and secrets about this popular but still mysterious land.
Apparently it found more sympathy among juries than the scandalous Oprah’ interview that was watched by over 49 million people across the world in the first three days after it was aired in early March.
The interview became Harry and Meghan’s first sit-down with the media since their announcement in January 2020 that they would quit their senior royal posts and start balancing their “financially independent” life between the UK and North America. The couple eventually relocated to California and bought a $14.7-million mansion in Montecito last year.
During the talk, the Sussexes shared scandalous details about their life in the royal household – including Meghan’s near “suicidal” state during first pregnancy and royal aides’ alleged disregard to her mental health struggles.
The couple also accused the palace of failing to protect her from “racist” attacks from the British media. The two also astonishingly claimed that one unnamed senior royal had “concerns” about skin colour of their son Archie who was about to be born at that time and didn’t receive ‘prince’ status as Meghan complained.
The backlash around the talk made the Sussexes pretty popular in the US but in the United Kingdom their ratings took a nosedive.
Buckingham Palace led by Harry’s grandmother was reportedly left “reeling” by the interview.
Publicly the Royal Family responded that they had been “saddened” by Harry and Meghan’s experience. “Recollections may vary” though, the palace noted.
Meghan, who hasn’t set her foot in the UK since March 2020, was not happy with the answer, according to an updated version of pro-Sussexes biography ‘Finding Freedom’.