The Queen Reportedly Called Prince Harry to Remind Him to Uphold His Family Values Before His Oprah Interview

Prince Harry had a good call with his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, before news of his and Meghan Markle's interview with Oprah broke.

  • Before news of the Sussexes' upcoming tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey broke, Prince Harry reportedly had a call with the Queen to discuss finalizing the royal exit.
  • According to the Daily Mail, "it was Harry who pushed to restart talks over his and Meghan's position early this year" and the Sussexes' "urgency" made sense when news of the Oprah interview broke. 
  • During the call, the Queen reportedly urged Harry to "uphold his family's values" and he, in turn, promised "to never do anything to embarrass them."

ICYMI: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's royal exit is officially official. It had long been reported that Queen Elizabeth and Harry would meet to revisit the royal exit this spring, but the Sussexes made their break from royal duties permanent this month, a bit earlier than expected. Apparently, the expedited timeline was Harry and Meghan's decision.

According to the Daily Mail, "Palace insiders earlier revealed that it was Harry who pushed to restart talks over his and Meghan's position early this year. They claimed there was a 'puzzling sense of urgency' to his requests that perplexed palace officials—but it 'all became clear' when news of Meghan's deal for a 'tell all' interview with Oprah broke."

Before news of the couple's upcoming tell-all interview broke, however, Harry apparently had a very good talk with the Queen in which she gave him some advice that would definitely apply to the Sussexes' Oprah tell-all—or, at very least, how the royal family would like the Oprah interview to go. According to the Mirror, the Queen urged Harry to "uphold his family's values" going forward as he and Meghan build their new life together.

"Harry has spoken to the Queen, and she told him she was delighted he has found happiness. She only wants the best for him and his family," a source told the Mirror. "She has seen him struggle with his position in the family and had always had a great deal of affection and sympathy for him."

And it was apparently a great talk for Harry too. The prince described life away from royal duties as "free," but promised his grandmother that he would never do anything to "embarrass them."

"Harry explained he had no regrets about his decision to step back from his role within the family," the Mirror's source said. "He went further to detail his thoughts about his future role. He described it as being free, but he knows he has a duty to the family and he reiterated his promise to never do anything to embarrass them. This is all about moving on, it was a very harmonious conversation between a caring grandmother and her grandson."

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Weekend Editor at Cosmopolitan

Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with over 10 years of professional experience covering entertainment of all genres, from new movie and TV releases to nostalgia, and celebrity news. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.