UK Media Declares War on Harry and Meghan

The media in the UK, which has been the main target of criticism in the Netflix documentary “Harry and Meghan,” retaliated against the estranged prince and his wife on Friday, accusing them of lying and insulting Queen Elizabeth II.

The royal family was largely avoided in the first three episodes of the Netflix show, which aired on Thursday, with the emphasis instead on Harry’s early life and his resentment of the media, which he blames for his mother Diana’s death.

However, the prince did accuse the Royal Family of unconscious racial bias, and the royals will be on high alert for the next installment, which promises more revelations.

The saga dominated the front pages of Friday’s newspapers, which were mostly critical of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex — Harry and Meghan’s formal titles.

The Sun’s headline was “Harry the Nasty,” and the couple had “trashed the Queen’s legacy,” leaving Harry’s father King Charles III and his brother Prince William in a “state of sadness” and unfairly tarnishing the entire country as racist.

The paper, like many others, focused on one scene in which Meghan performed a melodramatic curtsey as she recalled her first meeting with Queen Elizabeth II.

“How low can you sink?”

“Mocking Meghan exaggerated a curtsey to poke fun at the royals — and compared their traditions to a tacky US medieval chain,” the tabloid asked.

The right-wing Daily Mail, which has frequently clashed with the couple, led with the headline “palace anger at ‘assault on the Queen’s legacy,'” and carried nearly 20 pages of coverage on the show.

Inside, one commentator called their claim that Brexit fueled racism in the UK and contributed to their eventual separation from the family “the most insulting distortion.”

‘Monetising his anguish’

Conservative MP Bob Seely announced late Thursday that he intends to introduce legislation to deprive the couple of their royal titles.

“There’s a political issue here,” he explained. “In addition to trashing his family and monetizing his misery for public consumption, he is attacking some of this country’s most important institutions.”

The Mail also devoted four pages to refuting the couple’s “fantasies and lies,” such as their claims of an unrelentingly hostile media and stories about their first date and engagement.

It also claimed that previous media interviews with the couple had been “cynically doctored” by the show.

The front pages of the broadsheets were also devoted to the show, with the centre-right Daily Telegraph leading with a “‘direct hit’ on the queen’s legacy.”

The Times headlined the story “Palace and Netflix clash over Sussexes soap opera,” but one commentator pleaded, “Please make it stop Netflix, I can’t take any more of this self-centered nonsense.”

The left-wing Guardian was more sympathetic to the couple, focusing on Prince Harry’s criticism of the royal family for failing to protect Meghan from racially charged reporting.

The show was slammed on the front page of the centre-left Daily Mirror, which is generally less critical of the couple than its right-wing counterparts.

“Just two months after our Queen died, Prince Harry is complaining about his treatment once more.” … Prince William is venting his rage once more. … Meanwhile, thousands of ordinary British citizens must choose between eating and heating.”