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Daily Record
Daily Record
Entertainment
Kirsty McCormack & Kirsten McStay

BBC receive more complaints over Harry and William analysis at Prince Philip's funeral

The BBC have received more complaints following their analysis of Prince William and Prince Harry at their grandfather's funeral.

Prince Philip was laid to rest at St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle on Saturday, April 17, and the whole service was streamed around the world.

A limited number of the Royal Family attended due to coronavirus restrictions, but amongst the mourners present, Prince William and Prince Harry could be seen walking with their cousin Peter Phillips between them as they followed the coffin.

After the ceremony, the BBC then captured the brothers walking side-by-side alongside Prince William's wife Kate Middleton, writes The Mirror.

But many viewers weren't pleased by the coverage of the brothers' conversation.

The brothers were reunited for the first time in about a year at Prince Philip's funeral in Windsor (Getty Images)

In a statement shared on the BBC complaints board, the broadcaster announced that the company received complaints over the commentary that was made about the relationship between the royal brothers.

The statement began: "We received complaints from people unhappy that Nicholas Witchell offered analysis about the relationship between the Duke of Sussex and the Duke of Cambridge, when reporting on the funeral of HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh."

In response, the BBC stated that Prince William and Prince Harry’s relationship "has been a focus of interest in recent weeks".

Of course, they were referring to the alleged fallout between the brothers after Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle sat down for a tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey, which was broadcast in March.

The brothers were seen walking in between their cousin (Getty Images)

"Our Royal Correspondent, Nicholas Witchell, reported in detail on the funeral of HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, reflecting its historic and national significance, remembering the life and achievements of the Duke, while also examining what this moment meant for The Royal Family," the BBC continued.

"The relationship between Prince Harry and Prince William has been a focus of interest in recent weeks. In this context, Nicholas offered analysis of the implications of this solemn event on The Royal Family, and what could be construed about current family relations from what was seen at the funeral.

(Getty Images)

"This was a legitimate, impartial and proportionate part of the coverage of this story," the BBC added.

Prince Philip passed away at the age of 99, with news announced at lunchtime on Friday 9 April.

Following this, programmes were interrupted and the BBC cleared its entire non-news-related schedule in order to run dedicated programming focused on the Queen's husband.

Approximately 110,000 people complained about the BBC coverage, marking an all-time record number of complaints in UK television.

In a statement, the BBC said it was "grateful for all feedback, and we always listen to the response from our audiences".

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