Prince William Reportedly “Will No Longer Sit Back” Against Claims Made Against Him and the Royal Family by Sussexes

'Harry & Meghan' hits Netflix on Thursday, and could end the royals’ “never complain, never explain” policy for good.

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Prince William
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“Never complain, never explain” has been the mantra of the royal family for as long as most of us can remember, a deeply rooted part of the Palace lexicon. But those days may soon be coming to close—if not already so—as The Daily Mail reports that Prince William plans to “push back any wild claims” in Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s forthcoming Netflix docuseries, titled simply Harry & Meghan but potentially very complex for the royal family.

Palace insiders say William is ready to challenge and respond to Harry and Meghan’s claims, which are still unknown and will be unknown likely until the six-part series drops its first iteration on Thursday. The outlet reports William “will no longer sit back as they make dubious claims about the royal family,” citing a report from The Sunday Express. The Palace is “reportedly gearing up to swiftly respond to any inaccurate claims.”

“The Prince and Princesses’ team will wait to see what’s in the Netflix series before deciding what to do,” a source says, “but you can see the direction of travel.”

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In the past, the royal family has taken its time in responding to what The Daily Mail calls “explosive claims from the Sussexes”—for example, the Palace took two days to issue a statement after the Oprah interview in March 2021. Royal sources say that this Liz Garbus-directed docuseries will likely be “Oprah with more crying.”

Sources say the Prince and Princess of Wales were “surprised but not surprised” that the trailer for the show dropped in the middle of their three-day U.S. tour this week; sources also described how King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla are “not worried but wearied” by Harry and Meghan’s actions, emphasizing the word wearied.

“It is very wearying,” the Palace source repeated, with another adding “typically, if a member of the royal family has a high-profile foreign trip, then no one else back home would seek to disrupt the message of that trip.”

Not long after the release of the docuseries this week, right behind it will be the publication of Spare, Harry’s memoir, on January 10—the contents of which are also totally unknown. 

Rachel Burchfield
Rachel Burchfield
Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor

Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.