Meghan Tells Harry to ‘Take Advantage of Situation’ and Talk to Royals in Unearthed Clip: ‘Do It Tonight’
It's been five years since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left royal life behind and set off for California. Yet, their dramatic exit continues to grab headlines. A new Channel 5 documentary has recently reignited the conversation about the events leading up to their exit, with lip reader Nicola Hickling deciphering a tense exchange between the Sussexes. According to her, Markle allegedly told Harry to ‘take advantage of the situation’ during a 2018 Service of Remembrance.
In the Channel 5 documentary, Lip-Reading The Royals: The Secret Conversations, Hickling uncovered tense conversations between Harry and Markle during the centenary of Armistice Day service on November 11, 2018. She claimed that the Duchess leaned in and allegedly whispered to Harry, "Take advantage of the situation." Harry reportedly replied, "Today? Sweet." The lip reader further alleged that Markle ‘directed’ the conversation. "She says to him, 'Do it tonight'. And she looks away as if she's visualizing a scenario unfolding, perhaps, and she's processing what she just said." Hickling claimed that Harry then turned to his wife and said, "You do realize that this is the end?"
Hickling’s claims suggest that Markle was perhaps urging Harry to have the necessary difficult conversations surrounding their life in the Firm. Although the Sussexes didn’t step down until two years later, Markle, within the royal fold, was already growing uneasy in 2018. Even before she married the Duke, tensions had surfaced between her, Prince William, and Kate Middleton.
The first was the infamous bridesmaid dress row, during which Markle claimed that Middleton allegedly made her cry over the fittings for Princess Charlotte’s dress. The second, as per Harry’s memoir, was a dispute over Markle’s tiara. He claimed that the late Queen Elizabeth did not permit her to wear one of Princess Diana’s tiaras for their wedding.
Given this background, it's safe to assume that the Sussexes might have reached their boiling point just months after their fairytale wedding during the Remembrance Service. Moreover, Markle had good reason to nudge Harry to talk to the royals, considering it was not so easy for her to do so due to strict royal protocols. This was underscored during the Sussexes' 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview, where the Duchess pointedly remarked that she felt isolated, silenced, and unprotected by the royal institution. She said, "I went to the Institution and I said I needed to go somewhere to get help… and I was told that I couldn’t, that it wouldn’t be good for the Institution."
Ultimately, Harry and Markle stepped down as senior royals in 2020 and took their then-one-year-old son, Prince Archie, with them. They left with their heads held high to reclaim their sanity and independence from the relentless media scrutiny.