Harry and Meghan's biographer breaks silence over Lilibet name row with swipe at late Queen

16 January 2024, 14:45

Harry and Meghan's biographer Omid Scobie has stepped into the Lilibet name row with a swipe at the late Queen Elizabeth.

Scobie, who famously co-wrote the 2020 book Finding Freedom and last year's Endgame, shared his thoughts on the latest stories regarding the Queen's alleged anger at the Duke and Duchess of Sussex naming their child Princess Lilibet after her.

Lilibet was the personal nickname the late Queen had and was used only by those in her inner circle.

The Queen was so upset by the move that she told royal aides: "I don't own the Palaces, I don't own the paintings, the only thing I own is my name. And now they've taken that", an aide told royal author Robert Hardman.

Read More: Queen was so upset by naming of Lilibet she told aides ‘the only thing I own is my name, and now they’ve taken that’

Read More: From Queen's fury over Lilibet to Her Majesty's final moments: What we've learned from King Charles’ new biography

Scobie wrote on X: "None of these Lilibet 'revelations' are doing the late Queen Elizabeth II any favours.

"Not only do they contradict details shared by the Palace with a cooperatively written biography in 2022 (see pic), they also depict the monarch in a way the public haven’t known her to be."

Harry and Meghan's spokesperson said at the time regarding the decision to call their daughter Lilibet: "The duke spoke with his family in advance of the announcement - in fact his grandmother was the first family member he called".

The royal pair said the late Queen had been supportive of the name choice in a statement reacting to reports that the Queen had ‘never’ been consulted about Lilibet’s name.

Royal author Robert Hardman claims in his new book titled Charles III: New King, New Court. The Inside Story, that a royal aide had never seen the Queen so angry following the Lilibet announcement.

Hardman wrote: "One privately recalled that Elizabeth II had been 'as angry as I'd ever seen her' in 2021 after the Sussexes announced that she had given them her blessing to call their baby daughter 'Lilibet', the Queen's childhood nickname."

He added: "However, when the Sussexes tried to co-opt the Palace into propping up their version of events, they were rebuffed."

Read More: Queen 'was furious after Harry and Meghan said she gave blessing to naming of Lilibet', new book claims

Read More: Queen's final moments: Her Majesty 'wouldn't have been aware of anything' as she 'slipped away'

Buckingham Palace aides celebrated that the Queen's anger with the Sussexes has been made public this week, according to the Mirror.

A source said: "You’ll find the silence [from the Palace] speaks volumes, but everyone is quietly celebrating this particular wrong being righted."

The royal pair said the late Queen had been supportive of the name choice in a statement reacting to reports that the Queen had ‘never’ been consulted about Lilibet’s name.

The latest revelations come after the late Queen's death at Balmoral on September 8, 2022, was described as "very peaceful" in a memo written by her private secretary.

The note also reveals that the late monarch "wouldn't have been aware of anything", according to the Mail.

Private secretary Sir Edward Young wrote: "Very peaceful. In her sleep. Slipped away. Old age. She wouldn't have been aware of anything. No pain."