This Morning's Craig Doyle has called out royal author Omid Scobie over "offensive" and "mean" comments comparing Kate Middleton to a Stepford wife in his explosive new book Endgame.
Omid's book hit headlines this week due to claims about the Royal Family. It also included details of the two members of the Royal Family who made comments about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's son Archie's skin tone before he was born.
Speaking on Thursday's This Morning, Omid said of the attention Endgame was getting: "What's been frustrating is that there's been so much written about the book that isn't true.
"There were things that I'd supposedly said about the Princess of Wales, Kate, for example, that she only smiles, grins in front of the camera. There's not a word in the book that reflects that whatsoever and neither have I ever said it in an interview."
But Craig, who was hosting with Alison Hammond, interrupted: "You did refer to her as a Stepford wife though which is kind of offensive too, isn't it?"
Omid clarified: "I said 'Stepford wife-like'. I think that the book talks about that she's never put a step wrong but also that the role does require that kind of stately detachment and it compares her to the Queen in a very favourable way actually, but of course if you compare that to everyday folk there is a very reserved almost Stepford-like approach to the position."
But Craig, who also described the book as "a hatchet job on the Royal Family", pressed on: "It's kind of mean. It is a hard thing to say or hear about yourself and you can understand why there's been a lot of negative reaction."
Journalist Omid has been branded a "mouthpiece for Harry and Meghan" as his 2020 book Finding Freedom was also seen as favourable towards the Sussexes, but he denied they had been involved in Endgame.
He said: "I'm not their friend, I've never sat down with Meghan privately for interviews. I've never exchanged information with Meghan, I'm not in their private world in any way whatsoever."
But he added that he was "extremely sympathetic for the position that (Meghan) was in" when she joined the Royal Family.
Earlier this week, a Dutch version of Endgame was pulled from shelves as the translation named the royals involved in the Archie racism row, but Omid has denied any involvement in naming them.
He said: "I'm as frustrated as everyone else… I have never submitted a book that had their names in it.
"The reality is, though, is that this is information that is not privy just to me. Journalists across Fleet Street have known those names for a long time, we've all followed a certain code of conduct when it comes to talking about it."
The author also spoke about the backlash he faced following criticism and scrutiny he had been under since Endgame was published on Tuesday.
He said: "I've been operating in a bubble of no emotion for the last 10 days."
Omid continued: "I knew it would be heated and controversial, absolutely. But a lot of this has been simply about me.
"It's been unnecessary information about me, it's been unfair attacks about me, it's been an assassination of my character, my father's been harassed."
As Alison asked him about receiving death threats, he said: "I don't want to make light of those, but death threats are almost the least of my worries. I had tabloid journalists harassing my father last week and the week before."
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