Meghan, Harry, Kate and William bombshells from behind the closed door - 'flirting' to 'tantrums'
Meghan, Harry, Kate and William bombshells from behind the closed door - 'flirting' to 'tantrums'
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A brand new royal book claims to disclose huge secrets from within the four walls of the royal palace. Royal servants and staff who waited on Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, Prince William, and Princess Kate during their time as the Fab Four have shared a glimpse into their royal bubble and real lives behind the scenes. And the claims are explosive - from the Duchess' very American mannerisms fuelling a shock rumour to Kate's role in calming William's 'tantrums'.
According to Tom Quinn, nobody knows the Royal Family like the people who feed and clothe them, organise their days, and attend to their every need. And in his explosive new book, Yes Ma'am: The Secret Life of Royal Servants, which has been excerpted in The Times, Quinn lifts the lid on what many insiders observed during their time waiting on Harry and Meghan before they sensationally quit royal life. While some warmed to the Suits actress instantly, others found day-to-day challenges with the modern-day duchess. Light is shed on Kate and William's marriage too, including heartbreaking details about the future King's childhood.
The new book says that Meghan's American upbringing made her sheltered from the realities of British royal life. Quinn writes that when Meghan discovered that Harry was only worth about £20million, she "quickly realised" that she needed to "reassess other assumptions she'd made about this strange new family". As one royal staff member put it, "She expected a billionaire and she got a millionaire." A member of her former team is also quoted as saying that the actress "really disliked the hierarchy". Giving an example of senior royals getting jealous of each other's materialistic goods, the ex-staff member said: "Meghan thought they behaved like babies.".
Kate is said to play an important role in calming down William when he gets "fractious" and has "tantrums". Quinn writes that William follows in the footsteps of his father, King Charles, who "both get irritated very quickly", according to a former member of staff, who said they are "very picky" but only because it comes "naturally" to them. According to the book, if things aren't in order for William, he can get grumpy, which is where Kate steps in. The source added: "I don't know where William would be without Kate - she hasn't had everything done for her throughout her life, so she calms him down when he gets a bit fractious. She said he sometimes has to be treated as her fourth child'.".
It's not the first time Quinn has spoken about William and Kate's relationship, as he once told The Mirror that like any couple, the Waleses do sometimes argue. He said: "They do have rows. It's not a perfect marriage. They have terrific rows." But he reassured that the quarrels never become vicious and instead they "throw cushions at each other. It's always kept under control". Before joining the Royal Family, Meghan was used to being far more independent and in control. But she soon realised that it wasn't traditional royal protocol to 'grab the bull by the horns', according to the book. In early meetings with the new duchess and members of staff, Meghan was "so confident" that it seemed as though she wanted to run the meetings rather than listen and learn, one of her former team claimed.
Before their close bond crumbled, William and Kate were incredibly excited to welcome Meghan into the fold, Quinn says. The author recounts a surprisingly lighthearted moment between Meghan and William, allegedly witnessed by a junior staffer who saw them "doing a jokey parody of the Fifties jiving together". One staffer recalled the Waleses thinking Meghan was a "breath of fresh air" at the beginning.
William and Kate weren't the only ones to initially welcome Meghan with open arms. A courtier previously told the Daily Mail's royal reporter Richard Eden that "the Queen believed that Meghan would be a breath of fresh air and a great asset to the Monarchy.". They said: "The Queen fast-tracked her entry into the Royal Family, inviting Meghan to join her at a service to mark Commonwealth Day – her first official engagement with the Queen – two months before the wedding. It was another clear indication that Her Majesty valued Meghan and wanted her to be seen as a part of the family without delay.".
Meghan's affectionate side has always stood out in stark contrast to the Royal Family's formalities. But her hugging and cheek kissing was wrongly misinterpreted by staff as her 'flirting' with William, according to insiders quoted in the book. Quinn writes that her tactile manner made William feel "uncomfortable", as Meghan would allegedly hug him almost every time they saw each other. The hugging and cheek-kissing fuelled gossip among staff "that Meghan was flirting with William, which she was obviously not, but the tense atmosphere caused by all the touchy-feeliness (and the resultant gossip) deepened the rift between the brothers", the book claims. Both Meghan and Harry have previously stated that William and Kate found her love of hugging 'jarring'.
