Prince Harry's Uncle Charles Spencer Speaks Out About Meghan Markle's Miscarriage

Prince Harry's uncle and the late Princess Diana's brother Earl Charles Spencer has offered his public condolences to his nephew and his wife, Meghan Markle, for her miscarriage.

By Corinne Heller Nov 25, 2020 5:23 PMTags
Watch: Meghan Markle Reveals She Suffered a Miscarriage

Prince Harry's uncle and the late Princess Diana's brother Earl Charles Spencer has offered his public condolences to his nephew and his wife, Meghan Markle, for her miscarriage.

The Duchess of Sussex, 39, revealed in a New York Times op-ed published on Wednesday, Nov. 25, that she had suffered a pregnancy loss in July. She wrote that it happened at home while she was taking care of her and Harry's 18-month-old son, Archie Harrison.

"I can't imagine the agony for any couple losing a child in this way and it's so very, very sad," Diana's brother said on the U.K. show Lorraine. "All thoughts with them today."

E! News has learned that Meghan and Harry shared the news of the miscarriage with their families and that the duchess wanted to share her experience with the public to start the healing process for different types of loss from this whole year. Harry was supportive and they made the decision together to open up about this. E! News has also learned that the two are doing well.

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In her op-ed, Meghan wrote, "Losing a child means carrying an almost unbearable grief, experienced by many but talked about by few. In the pain of our loss, my husband and I discovered that in a room of 100 women, 10 to 20 of them will have suffered from miscarriage. Yet despite the staggering commonality of this pain, the conversation remains taboo, riddled with (unwarranted) shame, and perpetuating a cycle of solitary mourning."

"Some have bravely shared their stories; they have opened the door, knowing that when one person speaks truth, it gives license for all of us to do the same. We have learned that when people ask how any of us are doing, and when they really listen to the answer, with an open heart and mind, the load of grief often becomes lighter — for all of us. In being invited to share our pain, together we take the first steps toward healing."

Harry and his brother Prince William have long been advocates for mental health awareness. Meghan's husband has himself spoken publicly about his grief from losing their mother Diana in 1997 when he was 12, breaking centuries of royal family tradition of avoiding the discussion of personal feelings in the public and in the press.

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Harry and Megan, who gave up their royal duties in March and later moved to California, follow in the footsteps of Diana, who famously opened up about her own mental health struggles, as well as her past turbulent marriage to the dukes' father, Prince Charles, in a controversial 1995 BBC interview.

The interview has made headlines again recently. The Princess of Wales' brother has recently spoken out against the BBC, calling on the network to apologize for alleged forged documents that led him to introduce interviewer Martin Bashir to Diana. Following a backlash, the BBC has said it will commission a "robust" investigation into how the journalist landed the interview.

"This isn't me saying that Diana should or shouldn't have spoken," Diana's brother said on Lorraine. "That was something separate. What I am saying is that in my view, the BBC have very, very serious questions to answer on this and I was shocked and appalled."

"And do you know what, Diana stood up for me a lot as my elder sister when I was a kid and I'm very happy to do this for her," he continued. "And ultimately, if I can get an apology out of the BBC for everything that they did around this, then I will feel semi-vindicated."

Attention surrounding Diana and her struggles has been renewed with the release of season four of the hit Netflix series The Crown earlier this month. The show depicts her and Charles' relationship amid the birth of their sons, the breakdown of their marriage, their respective intra-marital affairs and the rise of the fame of the "People's Princess" around the world.

"I did catch a news clip here of the actress portraying Diana so I do know a little bit," Diana's brother said on Lorraine. "I think it would help The Crown an enormous amount if at the beginning of each episode, it stated that this isn't true but it's based around some real events, because then everyone would understand that this is drama for drama's sake."