A Fox & Friends host linked the death of Queen Elizabeth II’s husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle just minutes after his passing at the age of 99 was announced by Buckingham Palace.
Reacting to the death announcement on the Fox News morning show on Friday, host Brian Kilmeade immediately linked it to Harry and Meghan’s damning interview with Oprah Winfrey last month, which aired when Prince Phillip was in hospital for treatment of an infection.
In that interview, which caused headlines worldwide, the couple claimed that royal family members had subjected Meghan to racist treatment and had debated about the skin colour of their first child, Archie.
Speaking on Fox & Friends on Friday after Prince Phillip’s death was announced, Mr Kilmeade said: “There are reports that [Philip] was enraged after the interview and the fallout from the interview with Oprah Winfrey, so here he is trying to recover and he’s hit with that.”
He then referenced comments made from Piers Morgan, who resigned from his UK-based morning show, Good Morning Britain, after the network, ITV, received numerous complaints about his criticisms aimed towards Meghan and her mental health struggles.
“Piers Morgan was saying on his morning show, which he famously walked off of, is like ‘Really?” Mr Kilmeade said, referencing Morgan’s attacks on Harry and Meghan’s interview last month.
“’Your grandfather is in the hospital, you know he’s not doing well, is this really the time you have to put out this interview?’” the host continued.
Mr Kilmeade added: “Evidently, it definitely added to his stress.”
In a statement on Friday afternoon, Buckingham Palace announced: “It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen announces the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
“His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle…The Royal Family join with people around the world in mourning his loss.”
The Duke of Edinburgh officially retired from public life in 2017, having spent more than seven decades supporting his wife as her consort in a role which defined his life.
