Harry and Meghan’s extraordinary words to late Queen revealed

“Isn’t that great?”: New details have emerged about the furore surrounding the couple’s choice for their daughter’s name.

IN LONDON

New details about how Prince Harry and Meghan approached the late Queen about using her nickname for their daughter have surfaced after some telling remarks in the Duchess of Sussex’s recent podcast finale.

In June 2021, the couple announced the birth of their second child, whom they called Lilibet in a nod to what close family had called the late monarch from childhood.

Harry and Meghan insisted that she had given her blessing, but it was later claimed by author Robert Hardman in his biography, King Charles III: The Inside Story, that she was furious at that assertion.

The duke and duchess later instructed their London-based law firm to issue a threatening legal letter to the BBC over a report claiming they had “never asked” for the late Queen’s permission to use “Lilibet”, calling it “false and defamatory”.

New details have emerged about the drama surrounding the naming of Harry and Meghan’s second child. Picture: Craig Barritt/Getty Images for TIME

The couple with the late Queen at Royal Ascot in 2018. Picture: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

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However, rather than confirming their version of events, the UK’s Telegraph reported at the time that the Palace refused to deny the BBC’s suggestion.

The publication further added that the Queen was “told” about the name after the baby was born.

Just last week, Meghan issued advice to expectant mothers about how to approach naming newborns, warning them never to tell anyone what they’re planning on using.

“I will say this to every woman in the world or every person in the world who’s going to have a child — if you have an idea about what you are going to name that baby, you keep it so close to your heart, until that baby is born and it’s named. Don’t ask anyone’s opinion,” she said on her podcast, Confessions of a Female Founder.

Harry and Meghan are parents to Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 3.

Meghan shared a photo with her two kids, Archie and Lilibet, in line with Mother's Day. Picture: Instagram

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A source has now backed up earlier claims to the Daily Mail that the couple had, in fact, only told the late Queen about the use of her name after the fact.

“Harry and Meghan presented this to the Queen as: ‘We’re going to call her Lilibet. Isn’t that great?’,” the insider said.

“The palace version was that they didn’t ask. The Queen was asked to prop up their version of events that didn’t match her own. She wasn’t furious about using the name Lilibet, it was the way it was handled.”

Amid the earlier furore, a spokesman for the Sussexes told People magazine that “the Duke spoke with his family in advance of the announcement, in fact, his grandmother was the first family member he called.

“During that conversation, he shared their hope of naming their daughter Lilibet in her honour. Had she not been supportive, they would not have used the name.”

Originally published as Harry and Meghan’s extraordinary words to late Queen revealed