Endgame: Omid Scobie denies naming royal ‘who asked about Archie’s skin colour’
Omid Scobie has insisted he is not to blame for a "translation error" which led to the Dutch version of his book apparently naming the royal who allegedly asked questions about the skin colour of Harry and Meghan's first child.
The writer's book, Endgame, which was published on Tuesday, has caused ripples with his assertions about the royal family, which he says is "in a crisis" and in a "fight for survival".
Mr Scobie references Meghan’s allegation that a member of the family was concerned about how dark Archie’s skin would be.
He has said libel laws prevent him from naming them. However a Dutch translation of the book appeared to have done just that.
A page taken from a review copy of the book reportedly shows this when Mr Scobie discusses letters between Meghan and King Charles.
It reportedly reads: “But in those private letters [the identity] was confirmed: ….”
The book was pulled from shelves in the Netherlands on Tuesday.
The publisher has since blamed a “translation error”.
Mr Scobie told Dutch chat show RTL Boulevard: “The book is in several languages, and unfortunately I do not speak Dutch. But if there are translation errors, I'm sure the publishers will have it under control.
“I wrote and edited the English version. There's never been no version that I've produced that has names in it.”
Meghan made the original allegation during her Oprah interview in March 2020.
She said: “In those months when I was pregnant [there were] concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he was born.”
Harry added: “That conversation, I am never going to share. At the time it was awkward, I was a bit shocked.”
The writer claims King Charles missed an opportunity to let "bygones be bygones" and begin a new chapter in his relationship with Harry, when the duke contacted him after the release of his memoir Spare which made a series of damning allegations about the royal family.
Endgame quotes a source as saying Charles was "cold and brief rather than open to proper dialogue" when he spoke to his son.
And the King's relationship with his eldest son, William, appears equally as fractious, according to Mr Scobie, who writes: "Distrust and simmering animosity between father and son are nothing new to their working relationship."
The 42-year-old author said he did not interview the Duchess of Sussex for Endgame but shares mutual friends with her which helped with sourcing information.
