This article was originally published on WHerMoments
When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle first announced they were stepping down from royal duties, it sent shockwaves through the world. If you believe what you read in the media, it stunned the royal family, too. But in the aftermath, one member of the clan opened up about the whole scandal: Sophie, the Countess of Wessex. And since Queen Elizabeth II's passing, with Sophie becoming one of the most respected senior matriarchs of the Royal Family, her opinions are remarkably revealing.
From normalcy to royalty
Like Meghan, Sophie knows all about being a “commoner” marrying into royalty. No, she wasn’t an aristocrat when she met Prince Edward.
In fact, the royals would probably consider her background fairly humble! Her mother had been a secretary and her father a salesman, while she herself worked in PR.
A low-key wedding
But while Meghan and Harry’s relationship has been plastered all over the press, Sophie and Edward went under the radar – at least to begin with. Sophie first encountered her prince back in 1993, and after a long romance finally wedded him six years later.
Their big day wasn’t even broadcast on TV.
A call for privacy
Sophie and Edward badly wanted privacy. That’s pretty hard to come by when you’re a royal!
While the couple were dating, Edward even pleaded with the media to leave Sophie alone – just as Harry would do for Meghan many years later. But that request fell on deaf ears. And Sophie was eventually to find herself embroiled in a major scandal.
The shocking tapes
In April 2001 Sophie woke up to find herself on the front page of a major British newspaper. And it wasn’t for anything good.
She had been tricked by an undercover reporter into making comments about members of the royal family, and some of these statements were pretty unflattering. It may not have been a royal ruckus on the same scale as “Megxit,” but it was pretty close.
Rude remarks
And according to a transcript of what the media called the “Sophie tapes,” the Countess of Wessex hadn’t held back when discussing British political leaders. She had said that politician William Hague “sound[ed] like a puppet” and that former prime minister John Major had “used the royal family terribly badly to cover up a lot of things.”
Yikes.
Sophie vs. Diana
Interestingly, Sophie also compared herself to the late Princess Diana. She said that though people wanted her to be “the new Diana” – the two even looked similar – she hadn’t been up for the challenge.
Sophie said, “I don’t think I could have coped with that level of pressure or expectation.”
Prince Charles’ status
And despite the headlines, Sophie didn’t actually say anything particularly insulting about her in-laws. When asked about the future King Charles, she remarked, "He’s a man who has always been ahead of his years."
"He was damned as a complete quack. People laughed at him for his views on architecture, but now they’re starting to take notice." Yep, she actually defended the guy.
A royal affair
Mind you, Sophie was more indiscreet when it came to the matter of Charles and Camilla. She mused, "It’s a very difficult situation."
"On the one hand, there’s no reason why she shouldn’t be accepted [into the royal family] because he’s divorced and she’s divorced. But then again, you’ve got issues of the monarch being the head of the Church. I think it’s hard, especially while... the Queen Mother is alive."
The worst possible news
At the time, it was a scandal to rival anything from Harry and Meghan. And after the transcripts of the conversation were published in full, the British newspaper The Guardian rammed home just how damaging the whole thing was.
“It is the worst possible news after the worst possible week for the royal family,” the paper explained.
Different allegations
The royal family did attempt some damage control on Sophie’s behalf. Despite headlines claiming that both Queen Elizabeth and Edward were angry with the young royal, Buckingham Palace chose instead to deny, deny, deny.
Apparently, the story being reported on was “selective, distorted and, in several cases, flatly untrue.”
A retreat from the spotlight
The whole incident may have taught Sophie a sharp, painful lesson about being indiscreet. You see, ever since then, she’s very much kept her private thoughts to herself – well, mostly.
And nowadays, she’s one of the most low-key members of the whole institution. She’s certainly much less famous than Harry and Meghan.
A hard worker
Sophie’s transformed her public image, in fact, by turning to philanthropy. She’s the patron of more than 70 different organizations, including charities aiming to prevent blindness.
And there may be a personal link there. Sophie and Edward’s daughter Louise was born with a condition called esotropia, which gave her a squint in childhood.
Starting a friendship
Oh, and when Meghan joined the royal family, Sophie was all set to swoop in and show her the ropes. "The Queen has earmarked Sophie as a royal mentor for Meghan."
"The two spent time together at Royal Ascot last year and are understood to get along well," Grazia magazine reported in 2019. Perhaps Sophie even knows a few of Meghan’s secrets...
A support system
Meghan needed an ally in the family, and Sophie seemed like a good candidate. After all, as Grazia explained, "The pair share similar backgrounds."
"Sophie, like Meghan, gave up a successful career to marry into the royal family so is in a position to help Meghan." Basically, the countess knew what Meghan was going through!
Living the quiet life
And the Queen was said to have approved, too. A supposed “family friend” of the royals said, "The Queen likes the idea of Sophie being an unofficial mentor to Meghan."
"Sophie is often at Windsor taking the kids riding on the Queen’s horses and playing at the castle. It’s a quiet lifestyle – very much the kind Harry and Meghan want for their little one." Before they jetted off to LA, anyway. But what help did Sophie give to Meghan?
Words of advice
Well, another insider — apparently a buddy of Sophie’s — claimed to The Sun, "I think [Sophie] would... simply suggest that Meghan slow down. There’s no rush.”
Those words of wisdom would come from the countess’ experience “as a former expert on public relations, and as someone who found her early days as a royal bride testing to negotiate.” But there was more.
An insider’s thoughts
The friend believed that Sophie would tell Meghan, "Don’t become too focused on being a modernizer. You’re not going to be able to save the planet all in one go or change the way the royals operate. Concentrate more on Windsor, less on Hollywood."
Oops! But there’s a good reason why Meghan may have rejected that advice.
Friends or just acquaintances?
You see, the Sun source implied that Sophie and Meghan weren’t actually all that close. They said, "Sophie was one of the first to invite Meghan, on her own, to Bagshot for tea."
"They got on perfectly well, but Sophie could feel they were never going to become the best of friends." And that makes it unlikely Meghan told Sophie all about Megxit.
The shocking exit
Yep, we’re talking about Meghan and Harry’s decision to branch out on their own. At the beginning of 2020, the pair said in a joint statement, “We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen.”
And, allegedly, that came as much of a surprise to the royals as it did to us common folk.
Disappointed family members
Not even the Queen had been informed of the plan! Well, according to one reporter, anyway.
As the bombshell news hit, the BBC’s royal correspondent Jonny Dymond tweeted, “BBC understands that no other member of the royal family was consulted before Harry and Meghan issued their personal statement tonight. The Palace is understood to be ‘disappointed.’” We bet that’s an understatement.
Sophie takes the stage
The royal family appeared to quickly make changes behind the scenes — changes that apparently involved Sophie getting more of the spotlight. In June 2020 People magazine noted, “With a combination of volunteering behind the scenes and taking her place alongside Kate Middleton, Sophie has been garnering praise for her quiet discretion and dependability.”
Was the stage being set for Sophie to become the new Meghan instead?
What will she say?
That discretion would be tested, in any case, when Sophie sat down with The Sunday Times in August 2020. It had of course been many months since Harry and Meghan had made their exit, but any royal breaking their silence on the incident was still big news.
So, how did Sophie feel about the scandal? And would there soon be another royal feud to rival William and Harry?
No words of anger
Well, if anyone was expecting Sophie to be furious with Harry and Meghan, they were in for a disappointment. Instead, the Countess of Wessex offered a very diplomatic statement, a move the family has come to expect of Sophie as they navigated such heavy losses of late.
She told the Sunday Times journalist Christina Lamb, “I just hope they will be happy.”
Becoming royal
Sophie added, "We all try to help any new members of the family." And she compared Meghan’s experiences to her own, saying, "Remember I’d had five years to adjust."
"For our six-month engagement, I was even staying at Buckingham Palace. Not that you necessarily know how it will pan out."
A full schedule
Regarding whether she might take on more work now that Meghan and Harry were out, Sophie said, “We’ve all got our own little portfolios. I don’t see anything changing, but if we’re asked to do more… I don’t know because it hasn’t really happened.”
She added, “I am pretty busy already, so I’m not sure how much more I can do.” But the royal drama was far from over.
The big interview
Remember that Oprah interview? Harry and Meghan dropped some pretty big allegations about the royal family.
Meghan and Harry said there had been racist comments about Archie, although they would not pinpoint the person responsible. Harry, meanwhile, claimed that Charles wasn’t even answering his phone calls anymore.
A tabloid invention
One thing Meghan mentioned was how difficult she had found it dealing with the media. She said in the interview that one much-reported story about her – that she’d made Kate Middleton cry – hadn’t actually happened.
Meghan had actually been the one crying, she claimed, but no one had ever corrected the story. That was despite the fact that “everyone in the institution knew it wasn’t true.”
Feeling trapped
Yep, Harry and Meghan really didn’t like the “institution.” And while the duchess emphasized that they loved their relatives as family, Harry was more scathing.
He said that for all his life he’d been “trapped within the system, like the rest of [his] family.” Speaking of Charles and William, he continued, “My father and my brother, they are trapped. They don’t get to leave.” Pretty strong words.
Important questions
And the press was naturally very curious to know what the wider royal family made of the Oprah interview. Did they feel betrayed?
Hurt? Angry? A reporter asked Charles about Harry’s allegations not long after the interview had aired. The future King didn’t give a reply, though. He simply carried on walking. Perhaps he was waiting for the formal response from Buckingham Palace.
The Queen's statement
Yes, you won’t be surprised to know that the Palace hit back — graciously, of course. A statement on behalf of the Queen read, "The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan."
"The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately. Harry, Meghan, and Archie will always be much-loved family members."
A saddening event
But tragic events would soon overshadow all the interview furor. The first blow came in April 2020, when Prince Philip, the Queen’s husband of over 60 years, passed away.
And regardless of the existing tensions, the royals had to mourn together at the funeral. In front of the eyes of the world, they had to put on a united front.
Philip’s funeral
Harry attended the funeral, though Meghan’s pregnancy stopped her from taking the flight from LA. And the Duke of Sussex was spotted by cameras talking to William, which gave some hope that the rift between them was healing.
It looked like all was fine again! Well, maybe. The Mail on Sunday claimed that other royals had been cold to Harry — and they apparently included Sophie.
A lack of sympathy?
According to an anonymous source who spoke to the paper, “There is a deep sense of protection towards the Queen and resentment towards Harry. There is little sympathy for him after what he and Meghan said on Oprah.”
But the Countess of Wessex soon indicated that this wasn’t entirely true.
“What interview?”
Just a couple of months later, you see, Sophie and Edward sat down with royal commentator Camilla Tominey for The Daily Telegraph. And when Tominey asked them if they’d seen the Oprah interview, they responded by laughing the question off.
Edward said, “Oprah who?” while Sophie joked, “Yes, what interview?”
Family matters
Then Sophie spoke more seriously, saying, “We are still a family no matter what happens, [and] we always will be.” Tominey also noted during the interview, “The countess is careful to point out how ‘nice’ it was to have a lengthy chat with Harry at Windsor Castle after the [funeral] service.”
New prospects
Sophie and Edward spoke about taking on more work now that Harry and Meghan were in LA. Sophie said, "We’ve plodded along doing what we’re doing, hopefully doing it well."
"And then all of a sudden there’s a bit of a hiatus, and things have changed a bit."
Filling a gap
The countess went on, “Naturally, the media are looking for people to fill the so-called void. If people want to pay more attention to what we’re doing, then great.”
And with the recent passing of Queen Elizabeth II, Sophie, who was always one of the Queen's favorite relatives, is garnering even more attention from royal observers all over the globe.
Trusted and relied upon
As a “senior royal aide” told The Sun in 2019, “[Sophie] is trusted and relied on by the Queen in a way I couldn’t say applied to the Duchess of Cambridge or the Duchess of Cornwall. She is like another daughter to Her Majesty.
They are that close.” So in the uncertain times following the beloved royal's passing, Sophie has stepped up to stabilize and support the rest of the family.