Plus, "The Crown" has cast its William and Kate pair.

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Harry and Meghan’s ‘nuclear bombs’ take their toll on queen

The relentless attacks on the royal family by Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are taking their toll on Queen Elizabeth; a source who knows her well describes them to the Sunday Times as “nuclear bombs.” Prince Charles, a friend says, is “completely bewildered” by Harry’s behavior towards him.

The couple is in Britain this week to attend a youth summit in Manchester on Monday and the WellChild awards in London on Thursday; they will also travel to Germany.

A royal source spoke out to the Times in the wake of Meghan’s headline-causing interview with The Cut: “It is hard to see how what they’re doing would equate to the values of the queen, who has never encouraged people to discuss deeply personal family relationships in public.” The monarch, a source who knows her well says, “doesn’t want to be on tenterhooks all the time, waiting to see what the next nuclear bomb will be—that will take its toll.”

Although Meghan’s camp disputed the much-discussed quote about Harry “losing” his father, Charles’s friends tell the Times the jibes continue to be “painful” for him, particularly after spending time with Harry, Meghan and his grandchildren, Archie and Lilibet, during the Platinum Jubilee in June, which Charles saw as a “minor act of reparation,” according to one friend, after the Sussexes’ explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey last year.

The friend told the Times: “For two years, there has been a steady stream of really challenging things said about a man who cannot [publicly] defend himself by a couple he obviously loves and misses. That is incredibly difficult on a personal level. He is completely bewildered by why his son, whom he loves deeply, feels this is the way to go about managing family relationships.”

A royal source, said: “Everyone hoped they (Harry and Meghan) would go off to be financially independent, pursue their philanthropic endeavors and be happy—and that in going their own way, they might no longer feel the need to rail against the system as much as they still do. But then the star power of them requires an association with the royal family, and the fuel on those flames is the family discord.”

Meghan claimed a South African cast member of The Lion King told her at the 2019 London premiere of a film version of the musical: “When you married into this family, we rejoiced in the streets the same as we did when Mandela was freed from prison.” This has been widely disputed, and has also been met with disbelief at the palace. “The whole thing is just staggering,” said a royal source. “Nelson Mandela? Who’s next, Gandhi? There are simply no words for the delusion and tragedy of it all.”

A source who knows the Sussexes questions why Meghan “is constantly looking back at how awful it was to briefly be a royal. What does success look like, is it a number in the bank? Is it that they’ve killed off the monarchy?” Another Palace source told the Times: “Ultimately they are bashing the institution that has put them in the position they’re in, the longevity of that strategy is not sustainable.”

It’s certainly going to be a hectic week for Harry and Meghan. However, they will do their best to avoid any scrutiny by the press in the wake of Meghan’s interview with The Cut which saw that infamous Nelson Mandela comparison referenced above.

And, giving a unique twist to the concept of the press conference, Harry is to appear at one on Tuesday, but will disappear before any of the assembled press can actually ask a question. Harry will instead “deliver remarks” to the press at a meeting on Tuesday and then scuttle, as he helps launch the run-up to the 2023 Invictus Games, his Paralympic-style event for wounded veterans, the Telegraph reports.

The couple is unlikely to receive anything other than adulation once inside the doors of their headline engagements—the WellChild awards and the One Young World summit—but don’t be surprised if they avail of discreet entrance and exit arrangements to avoid being booed by an enraged British public on the street. Harry is locked in an ongoing battle with the British state over his security arrangements, saying that he should be entitled to automatic police protection in the U.K., but a spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police told MailOnline that the Monday event, at least, is being “privately secured.”

The ongoing pity of Thomas Markle

Thomas Markle, who collaborated with a paparazzi photographer to stage photographs of himself for profit, rarely loses a chance to attack his daughter. This weekend, Meghan’s dad, who suffered a stroke earlier this year which prevented him visiting the U.K. for the queen’s jubilee, is fanning the flames of his grievances in yet another interview with the Mail on Sunday. In response to Meghan’s claim that she “lost” him as a by-product of her troubles wit the royals, he told the Mail on Sunday, “She didn’t ‘lose’ me, she dumped me. I am not lost. She knows where to find me. My number hasn't changed. I would love to hear from my daughter and meet my son-in-law and my grandkids for the first time.”

In her interview Meghan also said: “I think forgiveness is really important. It takes a lot more energy to not forgive. But it takes a lot of effort to forgive.”

Thomas responds to this, “If she really believes in forgiveness, then why can’t she forgive me? I have apologized to her multiple times for any hurt and pain I might have caused her. I love my daughter. She talks about forgiveness, so why not start with her own family? What about forgiving me?”

New William and Kate found

The Crown has found its Kate and William. Kate Middleton will be played by Meg Bellamy and William by Ed McVey, Deadline reported this week. Both submitted self-taped auditions as part of a public casting call. Bellamy, the Telegraph reports, is a former head girl of her state school St Crispin’s, and previously worked as a dressed-up character at a theme park. We feel Kate would admire both these facts. Deadline reports that McVey, playing Prince William, has firearms and snowboarding knowledge. Is this a sign we should prepare for lots of noisy pheasant-shooting scenes?

The queen’s health

Where exactly we stand with regard to the queen’s heath may become clearer this week; on Tuesday she will perform the key constitutional duty of inviting a new prime minister to form a government, and photographs of this ceremony are customarily released. It’s happening in Scotland, where the queen lives for the summer, after the queen abandoned plans to travel to London to do the job in a concession to her mobility issues. On Saturday the queen was a no-show for the Braemar Highland games. A source told The Daily Beast the decision to cancel her appearance there was made “for the queen’s comfort.” Charles took her place.

This week in royal history

September 6 marks the 25th anniversary of the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, at which Elton John sang, and her brother Earl Spencer delivered a stirring address. The hearse carrying her coffin was showered with flowers thrown by onlookers as it left London on its way to her final resting place at the Spencer ancestral home, Althorp.

Unanswered questions

Will Harry and Meghan really not see any royals on their trip to Britain, especially as William and Kate are, quite literally, just down the road? What a sad indictment of all parties that would be, as less than 400 yards separates their new home Adelaide Cottage from Frogmore Cottage. Kate was spotted driving out of her new abode earlier this week. Go one, someone. Take round a cup of sugar.

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