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Buckingham Palace’s investigation into bullying claims against Meghan Markle is ongoing, and the results will not be released this week as was previously planned, ET can confirm.
The Times first reported over the weekend that the investigation, which is being conducted by an independent law firm, may delay its verdict until next year. A source tells ET that the bullying investigation underway at Buckingham Place is still continuing. ET has reached out to a rep for Meghan and her husband, Prince Harry, for comment.
“The results of the investigation had been expected to be released this week, but it has been delayed,” the source says.
The source says it is unclear whether the full results of the report will ever be made public to the press, or if the Palace will only release recommendations on how matters like these will be addressed in the future. The source also tells ET that no timetable has been provided on when the findings may be published.
The bullying investigation was launched in March following a report by The Times that published just days before Meghan and Harry’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey was set to air. According to the report, Meghan faced a bully complaint at Kensington Palace back in October 2018, claiming she “drove two personal assistants out of the household and was undermining the confidence of a third staff member.” A spokesperson for Meghan and Harry denied the allegation, calling it a “calculated smear campaign.”
According to an excerpt published by The Times on Saturday from historian Robert Lacey’s updated book, Battle of Brothers: The Inside Story of a Family in Tumult, Harry’s relationship with his older brother, Prince William, was further fractured over the allegations of bullying by Meghan. Lacey claims that the complaint itself led to a “fierce and bitter” argument between William and Harry at the time. ET has reached out to reps for Kensington Palace on behalf of William as well as Harry and Meghan’s rep for comment.
“When Harry flared up in furious defence of his wife, the elder brother persisted,” the excerpt reads. “Harry shut off his phone angrily, so William went to speak to him personally. The prince was horrified by what he had just been told about Meghan’s alleged behaviour, and he wanted to hear what Harry had to say. The showdown between the brothers was fierce and bitter.”
“William threw Harry out,” a friend allegedly told Lacey.
Because of this, Lacey alleges it was William who initiated the separation of his office, or household, from Harry’s. A February 2019 report by The Times said that a household split was on the horizon, following “tension” between William, Harry and their wives. The brothers’ households were officially split in March 2019, with Buckingham Palace saying in a statement at the time that it had been a “long-planned move” following Meghan and Harry’s marriage in 2018.