Queen Elizabeth of England is a remarkable woman – no-one doubts that.  But just how much can one woman take.  Whatever ails her husband the Duke of Edinburgh, at 99-years-old he is clearly in a life-threatening moment. The Queen must be beside herself, she can’t even visit him in hospital.

The Duke is nearer death than at any time in his long and distinguished life. Prince Charles left a recent hospital visit to him in tears. Not a time you would think for his wayward son Prince Harry to open his heart airing new grievances in a bombshell prime-time interview with TV queen Oprah Winfrey.

The fact that ad breaks are being sold for eye-watering 7-figure sums only makes the whole thing even more grubby. “Royals for Rent” – everything The Queen has fought against.  And what horrendous timing.

Prince William is said to be furious – kept in the dark, embarrassed by his brother’s Hollywood love affair, his mother’s memory hi-jacked by his brother as Harry yet again trots out the “Death of Diana” line.

And that’s just part one.  Harry’s wife Meghan is next up with Oprah – God knows what she will come out with, but it won’t be kind to the Royals. Stand by for more “racist royals” accusations, the system trying to squash a feisty woman of colour, a free-thinker who challenged the old ways. A racist Press hounding her every thought. Or that’s what she would have us think.

CBS will broadcast the show in the USA on Sunday refusing to change the timing, with Oprah and her TV partners making many millions flogging the show round the world – oblivious to calls to behave in good taste.  ITV are supposedly paying £1M for the UK rights to be shown on Monday.  Wow.

The charmless money-grabbing Sussexes have become a by-word for greed and poor taste.  If this programme airs at the very moment the Duke of Edinburgh dies I doubt if Harry could ever show his face back in the UK ever again. He would do well to use covid as an excuse to dodge the funeral.

Steve Sampson, Journalist, is former Assistant, Northern and Scottish Editor of The Sun newspaper, and a Director of Trinity Mirror publications. He was a launch presenter of Radio5 Live, founder of First Press Publishing and contributes to the BBC. Based in Scotland, he is an investor/owner across a series of digital initiatives, and a media adviser. His list “Diplomacy” as a speciality.