Prince William “does not think King Charles is a competent leader” and was baffled that the king “lay awake every night worrying about Prince Andrew,” Omid Scobie claimed in his book “End Game.”
The book, out in the UK tomorrow, takes an in-depth look at the royal family’s handling of Prince Andrew’s involvement with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Before Prince Andrew was stripped of his military affiliation and patronage in January 2022, King Charles and Prince William struggled with the best course of action, according to the author.
A source close to King Charles said: “You won’t believe it but.” [Charles lay] I wake up many nights worrying [Andrew].’
According to the author, Prince William was “baffled” as to why his father was agonizing over the decision – and wanted him to take decisive action.
Before Prince Andrew was asked to step down from his royal duties, King Charles and Prince William (pictured in September 2022) struggled with the best course of action, according to the author
A source said: “William [doesn’t’] Honestly, I think his father is competent enough.
“Although they share similar passions and interests, their leadership styles are completely different.”
Scobie claims Prince William felt the Queen would be “soft” on Prince Andrew if he didn’t communicate his concerns to her directly.
The author says a family friend told him that Andrew was the one who would make it [the Queen] laugh, keep her company, and because he was always a little lost, she pampered him.
The author claims that Prince William put the plan to overthrow Prince Andrew into action with his private secretary because the late Queen and then-Prince Charles were “unwilling” to initiate the process themselves.
With Prince Philip no longer there to “take the lead”, Prince William consulted his team on the “Andrew problem” and then arranged a meeting with his grandmother and her private secretary at their home in Windsor.
After reportedly speaking to Prince William for over an hour, the Queen called Charles in Scotland to inform him that they needed to strip Andrew of his titles and duties.
The author claims it was a “really sad” moment for the Queen and a “slap in the face” for the family following the death of Prince Philip.
King Charles III attended St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham, Norfolk yesterday
Scobie claims Prince William felt the Queen would be “soft” on Prince Andrew if he didn’t communicate his concerns to her directly
Prince Andrew resigned from public duties in May 2020 before being stripped of his military titles and patronages by the Queen in 2022.
Elsewhere in the book, Scobie claims that William admired the Queen’s political neutrality and wanted her rule to reflect more than Charles’s.
In a scathing chapter dedicated to the future queen, he branded Kate “the last shining thing of the monarchy for many years” and claimed her workload was lighter than other senior members of the firm, saying that she was “technically a part-time working queen.
Scobie, known for his sympathetic coverage of Harry and Meghan, added that Kate was not known for the “leadership and outgoing nature” of “Meghan,” who was “another shimmering gem in the royal family tree” before her resignation.
Harry and Meghan’s “cheerleader-in-chief” Omid Scobie took aim at the Princess of Wales in his new book “Endgame,” published in Australia. Kate is pictured at a recent event
According to Scobie’s recollection, this meant that coverage of Meghan’s engagements during her brief time as a working royal was “much less about her fashion choices and more about her work or her role in the company.”
Scobie also claims that Kate “has no plans to increase her workload for the next 10 to 15 years” or until her children reach adulthood, adding that she earned the nickname “Katie Keen” because of the press release of the palace she softened with the statement “do less” is “eager to learn”.
In a pointed swipe, Scobie writes that Kate’s lifestyle is something most parents “could only dream of” and that palace staff were afraid to pressure her into anything that “made her uncomfortable” before the queen died.
He added that the future queen had five different private secretaries in six years because they all found the role “uninspiring and frustrating.”
In an interview with ABC’s “Good Morning America” today, Mr. Scobie was asked if he knew who made the comments about Archie’s skin color.
He said: “I know who made the comments about Archie’s skin color.” The names were mentioned in letters between Meghan and Charles exchanged some time after the Oprah interview.
“We know from sources that Charles was horrified that Meghan felt this way. These were conversations and he wanted to have this conversation with her, so to speak on behalf of the family.
“And that’s why I personally think, in hindsight, they were able to move forward with some sort of line of communication, even though they may not agree on that.”
Mr Scobie’s claims threaten to reignite the “royal racists” row that erupted after Harry and Meghan’s interview.
Meghan had claimed in the TV special that an unnamed member of the royal family had spoken about “how dark his (Archie’s) skin might be when he is born”.
However, it is now claimed that a second member of the extended royal household – who may not be a member of the royal family itself – has made similar comments.
The two people are not mentioned by name in “Endgame,” which is subtitled “Inside the Royal Family and the Monarchy’s Fight for Survival.”
The book makes a number of claims about the royals and looks at their future following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September last year.
These include that William was involved in “things that came to light about his own brother” and that the older brother ignored text messages from Harry as the family made their way to Balmoral before the late queen died last year.
Other claims in the book include that there is a rift between the king and William, that Queen Camilla has “quietly thanked” Piers Morgan for “defending the firm” and that a shy Princess of Wales is being encouraged to perform must commitments.
Mr Scobie added to the ABC: “I think before people assume that I’m calling this the end of the royal family, I’ll just explain that we’ve reached a sort of climax where the royal family as we know it, is at stake.’
He also claims Prince William leaked stories about Harry.
Mr Scobie said: “He shared private information about his brother which not long later ended up on the front page of a newspaper. “These are things that have caused irreparable damage to their relationships.”
He described William as a “man of society” and said: “We have seen the emergence of a man much tougher, who seems to have embraced and embodied the royal institution.”
The ABC report also states that Harry is ready to end the rift between William, who has been trying to get in touch with his brother, and that relations with his father Charles “may be on the mend.”