Meghan Markle ‘failed to understand she wouldn’t be royal top dog’ as ambitions ‘don’t align’

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were ‘exploitative’ in the run up to Queen Elizabeth II’s death in 2022 and have ‘lost the trust of the royal family’, according to an expert.

Phil Dampier has revealed that the Duke and Duchess have been marked by the royal family as ones ‘not to trust’, as they fear that being around Harry and Meghan means they will end up being featured in their Netflix programmes or in another project they’re working on.

The couple are also thought to have worried the late Queen Elizabeth so much, that she avoided any public photographs with them or their children Prince Archie or Princess Lilibet.

Phil Dampier, who spoke to The Sun, explained: “The big fear that the late Queen had and that the King now has is that when [Harry and Meghan] turn up, they do tend to turn up with a sort of Netflix film crew or a photographer in tow. You always get the feeling that whatever happens, whatever the discussions are, that it’s going to sooner or later end up on a programme or in some sort of podcast. And that’s unfortunately where the trust has gone and they just don’t trust [Harry].”

Dampier also explained that she was aware, right up until her death, that any photographs of her alongside the Duke and Duchess of Sussex or their children could have been “exploited”, and as a result chose not to be pictured publicly with them.

The comments come as Harry and Meghan are both focused on their current projects with Netflix. In 2020, the couple signed a reported $100million (£78.6million) deal with Netflix, which is due to expire next year in 2025. Since they signed with the streaming platform, Harry and Meghan have worked on several projects including their six-part docuseries, which featured many controversial comments about the royal family and their experience as royals.

Now Harry is working on a documentary series looking at the sport of polo with Meghan focusing on a lifestyle and cookery show, which is thought to tie into her new American Riviera Orchard brand. However it’s thought that interest in the former royals might be waning, as royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told The Mirror: “Yet since their $100 million contract with Netflix began, they have done hardly anything for it. It runs out next year and Netflix are no longer producing the series of The Crown, as they previously were. They might therefore have less interest in the Sussexes.”