TV

Oprah Winfrey was 'surprised' Meghan Markle and Prince Harry went 'all the way there' during interview

The media mogul said she had no idea that the interview "would have the reverberating impact that it has had and continues to have."

By

Ruth Kinane

Published on April 26, 2021 11:22AM EDT

Oprah Winfrey was as surprised by Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's candidness during her sit-down interview with the royal couple as many of us were.

During an interview on The Nancy O'Dell Channel on talkshoplive — where Winfrey was promoting her book What Happened To You? Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing — the talk show host was asked about her March 7 interview with Markle and Prince Harry, during which the couple expressed concerns about racist attitudes within the royal family, in particular pertaining to their son, Archie, and the color of his skin. Markle also shared during the interview that she had felt suicidal while living in England and didn't receive the support she needed from the family.

Those revelations came as a shock to Winfrey too. "I was surprised," she said during the Nancy O'Dell interview. "What? You're going there? You're going all the way there." In regard to the her conversation with the royal couple, Winfrey went on to say, "What makes it powerful is when you have somebody else who is willing to be as open as vulnerable, as truthful as they were. The reason the interview was what it was because they answered the way they did."

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex with Oprah Winfrey — Joe Pugliese/Harpo Productions

Winfrey also shared that she put in a lot of preparation for the interview and that it was important to her that nothing leaked from it ahead of time, so that nothing was misconstrued. "I had no idea that it would have the reverberating impact that it has had and continues to have," she said.

Prince Harry's brother, Prince William, has since denied that any racism exists within the royal family, telling a reporter, "We are very much not a racist family." Following the death of their grandfather, Prince Harry returned to the U.K. to attend his funeral and was seen chatting with his brother. Markle was unable to attend due to her current pregnancy.

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