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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Kyle O'Sullivan & Jennifer Newton

Eight times Prince Harry and Meghan Markle brutally attacked the royals in Netflix doc

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made a series of brutal attacks on the Royal Family in their new Netflix docuseries.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who stepped back from royal life in what was dubbed Megxit, have turned on his family once again with a number of savage claims.

From Harry making a dig at the royals for not protecting Meghan, to the former Suits actress taking aim at Princess Kate, no one was safe from their allegations.

And that's only from the first three episodes, which landed on the streaming site today, as a preview for next week's instalments showing Megan telling the camera: "This is when a family and a family business are in direct conflict."

But the anger goes both ways, with sources close to Prince William saying he will be "furious" that footage from Princess Diana's infamous Panorama interview with shamed BBC journalist Martin Bashir was shown.

Here is a look at all the savage digs that Harry and Meghan have made at the royals in their docuseries so far.

Harry claims they didn't protect Meghan

Harry wanted his family to protect his wife (Getty Images)

A devastated Harry has claimed the royals asked why Meghan should be "protected" from media speculation.

The Duke alleges that he was told it was an ordeal all royal women, including Princess Diana and Kate, have to go through.

Speaking in episode two, Harry claims the Palace told them to say nothing when it came to stories printed about them, which is in line with the family's 'Never Complain, Never Explain' motto.

He tells the camera that his relatives said their wives had to endure press intrusion in the early days of their relationships, so when he started dating Meghan she shouldn't expect any special treatment.

While he was speaking, a montage of photographers taking snaps of his mum Princess Diana, Sarah Ferguson and then Kate Middleton plays over his voice.

"The direction from the Palace was don't say anything," says Harry. "But what people need to understand is, as far as a lot of the family were concerned, everything that she was being put through, they had been put through as well.

"So it was almost like a rite of passage, and some of the members of the family were like 'my wife had to go through that, so why should your girlfriend be treated any differently? Why should you get special treatment? Why should she be protected?'

"I said 'the difference here is the race element'"

Meghan adds: "It was horrible, but I continued to hold the line and say nothing. "

Harry's swipe at Charles' parenting

Harry has praised others for bringing him up (Getty Images)

In the first episode, Harry appears to take aim at King Charles by claiming he has friends in Botswana who "literally brought me up".

The Prince talks about his love of Africa and the charity work he has done there and how he wanted to carry his late mum's "torch and try to keep her legacy alive".

Diana died when Harry was just 12 - with parenting duties falling to his father, who at the time was known as Prince Charles.

The action then moves to an old clip of Harry where he declares: "Botswana is a country very close to my heart. The fact that I spend more time here than at home worries my father a lot."

And in the new Netflix show, he adds: "I've got a second family out there. A group of friends that literally brought me up.

"For me, it's always been quite special. So it was absolutely critical to share it with Meg."

Meghan's dig at 'formal' Kate

The Duke and Duchess spoke about William and Kate in their new Netflix series (Getty Images)

The tension between Meghan and sister-in-law Princess Kate is well known, so it come as no surprise that she was in the firing line.

Meghan claims she was "surprised" by the behind the scenes formality of members of the Royal Family.

She recalls a dinner party with William and Kate during the early days of her relationship with Harry, when the two couples lived just a few doors apart in Kensington Palace.

Speaking in episode two, she says: "When Will and Kate came over, and I met her for the first time, they came over for dinner, I remember I was in ripped jeans and I was barefoot.

"I was a hugger. I've always been a hugger, I didn't realise that that is really jarring for a lot of Brits.

"I guess I started to understand very quickly that the formality on the outside carried through on the inside.

"There is a forward-facing way of being, and then you close the door and go 'You can relax now', but that formality carries over on both sides. And that was surprising to me."

Claims royals had a problem with Meghan being an American actress

Meghan was an actress on Suits (NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images)

In another dig at the royals, Meghan and Harry recall her first meeting with her now in-laws.

Harry says: "I remember my family first meeting her being incredibly impressed. Some of them didn't quite know what to do with themselves (laughs). So I think they were. They were surprised.

"They were surprised that such a ginger could land such a beautiful woman. And such an intelligent woman.

"But the fact that I was dating an American actress, was probably what clouded their judgement more than anything else. Oh she's an American actress, this won't last long. "

While Meghan adds: "The actress thing was the biggest problem, funnily enough. There is a big idea of what that looks like from the UK standpoint -Hollywood -and its just very easy for them to typecast that."

Meghan found Kate and Wills jarring

The Fab Four are no more (Getty Images)

In one candid confessional during the second episode, Meghan recalls how she met Prince William and Kate for the first time and how she didn't realise a lot of Brits find hugging "jarring".

She says: "When Will and Kate came over, and I met her for the first time, they came over for dinner, I remember I was in ripped jeans and I was barefoot.

"I was a hugger. I've always been a hugger, I didn't realise that that is really jarring for a lot of Brits.

"I guess I started to understand very quickly that the formality on the outside carried through on the inside.

"There is a forward-facing way of being, and then you close the door and go 'You can relax now', but that formality carries over on both sides. And that was surprising to me."

Meghan slams 'weird' royal tradition

Meghan showing her exaggerated bow when she first met Queen (Netflix)

Meghan has slammed a 'weird' royal tradition that she had to do when meeting the late Queen for the first time.

She quite rudely claims she thought it was a "joke" when asked to curtsy in front of the most loved monarch of all time.

"My grandmother was the first senior member of the family that Meghan met. She had no idea what it all consisted of so it was a bit of a shock to the system for her," says Harry.

Meghan adds: "There wasn't like some big moment of 'Now you're going to meet my grandmother'. I didn't know I was going to meet her until moments before.

"We were in the car and we were going to Royal Lodge for lunch, and he's like 'Oh, my grandmother's here, we're going to meet her after church.' And I remember we were in the car driving up and he's like 'You know how to curtsy, right?' And I just thought it was a joke."

Harry admits it was hard to explain to people, especially an American, to bow in front of his grandmother.

While Meghan adds: "Now I'm starting to realise 'This is a big deal'. I mean, Americans will understand this. We have medieval times, dinner and tournament. It was like that. It was so intense.

"When she left, Eugenie Jack and Fergie said 'you did great' and I said thanks. I didn't know what I was doing."

Swipe at William's wife choice?

Do the royals marry for love? (BUCKINGHAM PALACE/AFP via Getty)

In another attack on the institution he was born into, Harry claims there is a temptation in the royal family to marry someone who "fits the mould".

Speaking in the first episode of the Netflix documentary, he says: "I think for so many people in the family, especially obviously the men, there can be a temptation or an urge to marry someone who would fit the mould as opposed to somebody who you perhaps are destined to be with.

"The difference between making decisions with your head, or your heart. And my mum certainly made most of her decisions - if not all of them from her heart. And I am my mother's son."

Eagle-eyed fans jumped on his remark, claiming it was a dig at Prince William and his bride, Princess Kate.

One person tweeted: "First swipe - Harry says there’s a temptation for royal men to marry someone who fits the mould.

"Says he makes decisions from the heart like his mum Diana. #HarryandMeghanNetflix."

While GB News' Dan Wootton wrote: "Obvious and very cruel dig at William and Kate by Harry... #HarryandMeghanNetflix."

However, others hit back and suggested that Harry had actually been referring to Charles, and that he had been inferring that his dad should have married Camilla from the start.

One tweeted: "I think it’s gone over your head. If Charles chose heart he would have married Camilla from the start."

Meghan hints at 'direct conflict'

A picture taken before this Netflix nastiness (AFP/Getty Images)

If you thought this was bad, things look set to get even spicier next week.

In a trailer for the second three-episode instalment, the couple's decision to quit the monarchy is the main focus.

"This is when a family and a family business are in direct conflict," exclaims Meghan, after a snap of Archie's christening is shown.

Harry then says "everything that's happened to us was always going to happen to us", as images of Buckingham Palace and newspapers being printed flash across the screen.

Meghan adds: "Suddenly what clicked in my head was, it's never going to stop."

The teaser ends with Harry saying: "There was no other option at this point. I said, 'We need to get out of here'."

What drama will the next set of episodes bring?

The Sussexes signed lucrative deals thought to be worth more than £100 million with Netflix and Spotify after quitting the monarchy amid the Megxit crisis as they struggled with royal life.

Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace and members of the royal family were not approached for comment on the content of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Netflix series, palace sources have said.

A senior source in the royal household countered the written statement of "Members of the royal family declined to comment on the content within this series" which appeared on a black screen at the start of episode one.

Following the end of the third episode, in a clip listed as a Next On Teaser: Harry & Meghan, seeming to reference snippets coming up in the final instalments, a voice can he heard referencing the couple’s decision to "take a step back from their royal duties".

The teaser ends with Harry saying: "There was no other option at this point… I said 'we need to get out of here…'."

What are your thoughts on Harry & Meghan? Have your say in the comment section below.

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