Battle of the brothers as royal rift opens

Are Harry and Meghan the future of British royalty? Some think they are a breath of fresh air in a stuffy institution – but others argue it was selfish to give up their royal duties. “Almost unsurvivable.” These are the stark words with which Meghan Markle describes her time at the heart of the British Royal Family, in a trailer released yesterday for a lengthy, two-hour interview between Meghan, Prince Harry and Oprah WinfreyAn American talk show host and media personality. . Many wonder if it will be the latest episode in the increasingly bitter split between the couple and the rest of the royal family. In 2020, the pair stood down from their royal duties, blaming the UK media for its ferocious attacks on Meghan – but also implying that other members of the family had failed to support her. The new interview, to be broadcast this Sunday, seems likely to fuel the flames. In the trailer, Harry likens Meghan’s experience to that of his mother, Princess Diana. Many felt she, too, was unfairly shunned by the royal family. That is why some think the younger generation of the royal family is now split between two couples offering very different images of royalty. On one hand there are Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton, who represent the traditional monarchy: private, unexpressive, focused on their royal duties. But Meghan and Harry seem different. They talk honestly about the difficulties of life in the public eye. Meghan is also the first mixed-race person to join the family. Some feel they are more representative of modern, diverse Britain than the other royals. And they have thrown out several royal customs. Although royals are required to be apolitical, Meghan has spoken in favour of liberal causes, like Black Lives Matter. When the Queen issued a statement seeming to imply that the pair had abandoned the “duties that come with a life of public service,” Meghan and Harry hit back, saying: “We can all live a life of service. Service is universal.” In doing so, they appealed to a democratic ideal of service, for which no one is marked out by birth – a breach of royal tradition. This divide has exposed deep divisions in the attitudes of the British population at large. Some conservatives think it was selfish for Harry and Meghan to give up their royal duties, and that the pair should not endorse liberal causes that could be seen as controversial. But many Britons are relaxed about the young royals endorsing liberal causes they do not see as controversial. They are more invested in royal personalities than they are in royal traditions. This could be a problem for William, who will not become king until after both the Queen and his and Harry’s father, Prince Charles, have died. That means he might not ascend to the throne for more than 20 years. By then, the people who like Meghan and Harry’s style of royalty will outnumber those who prefer a traditional monarchy. On the other hand, some argue that Harry and Meghan are not so different from the rest of the royals. In reality, they claim, the entire Royal Family reinvented itself for the celebrity age a long time ago: coverage of Kate and William’s wedding in 2011 treated them more like celebrities than aristocrats. Are Harry and Meghan the future of British royalty? My brother’s keeper Yes, say some. They think Harry and Meghan speak to a younger generation of Britons: more emotionally expressive, more socially liberal and tolerant, more interested in the royal family as personalities than as the linchpin of a political system. In 20 years’ time, when the Crown will likely have passed to Prince William, this younger generation will be the majority. Not at all, say others. They argue that however much people might feel sympathy for Harry and Meghan, they do not want their monarchs to be celebrities. For them, Harry and Meghan can only distance themselves from the rest of the royal family because it is unlikely that Harry will become king; the public simply would not tolerate it in someone directly in line to the throne. KeywordsOprah Winfrey - An American talk show host and media personality.