Advertisement
Omid Scobie has escaped the drama surrounding Endgame and jetted into Los Angeles, heading straight for a luxury West Hollywood hotel for burgers and cocktails, MailOnline can reveal today. The journalist and royal author, 42, flew out of Britain amid ongoing questions about the Dutch version of his new book naming two royals accused of discussing Archie’s skin colour before he was born. After leaving LAX airport, sharing a picture as he approached customs, Mr Scobie ate at the Sunset Tower Hotel, beloved by Hollywood stars for decades with Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, Marilyn Monroe, Michael Caine, Quincy Jones, Roger Moore and Zsa Zsa Gabor regulars at the art deco establishment.
His LA trip came amid claims his UK agent did send a draft manuscript of Endgame naming the two ‘royal racists’ to be translated into Dutch. If true, the revelation exposes Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s ‘cheerleader-in-chief’s’ insistence that he ‘never submitted a book that had those names in it’. It is not known who Scobie dined with at the hotel, 90 minutes drive from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s multi-million dollar Montecito mansion. Harry and Meghan have yet to comment on Endgame. The Dutch translation has caused the Royal Family consternation after King Charles and the Princess of Wales were named as the senior royals who allegedly discussed Archie’s skin tone.
Despite the silence from the couple, sources close to the duchess insisted that Meghan Markle and members of Team Sussex did not hand Omid Scobie her letter to King Charles about the two so-called ‘royal racists’. The usually privacy-conscious couple have been urged to sue Mr Scobie over the Dutch translation at the heart of the scandal. A source told The Times that United Talent Agency had earlier sent a draft version of the book to publisher Xander Uitgevers which contained the names. However, a final proof of the 400-page tome was later sent but it is understood the translator had been working from an earlier draft. It comes as it emerged Buckingham Palace is mulling whether to take legal action after King Charles and the Princess of Wales were named as the senior royals who allegedly remarked about Archie’s skin colour before he was born.
Mr Scobie, 42, has refused to apologise to Charles and Kate Middleton for the embarrassing mishap which resulted in the explosive book being hooked from the shelves in the Netherlands. The under-fire author has shrugged off criticism claiming the names were ‘known for a long time’ while putting the blame at the Dutch publisher’s door declaring: ‘I never submitted a book that had those names in it.’
Yet Dutch translator Saskia Peeters (pictured) insisted Charles and Kate’s names were in the book. Speaking to MailOnline from her home in Arnhem on Thursday, she said: ‘As a translator, I translate what is in front of me. The names of the royals were there in black and white. I did not add them. I just did what I was paid to do and that was translate the book from English into Dutch.’ The second translator, Nellie Keukelaar-van Rijsbergern, then told The Sun: ‘We are professionals and we’ve done this for years, both of us. It’s unfair.’
Mr Scobie’s initially blamed a ‘translation error’. Anke Roelen, managing director of the publisher Xander, said a rectified edition of the book would be back on shelves on December 8 and simply blamed ‘an error’ for it being pulled. Mr Scobie’s excuse was mocked by Piers Morgan during a diatribe against the Sussexes’ favoured journalist. The former Good Morning Britain host went on to reveal that Charles and Kate were named in the book during his Talk TV show Piers Morgan: Uncensored. Morgan added, however, that he did not believe the allegations of ‘racist comments’. He said: ‘Because I don’t believe any racist comments were ever made by any of the Royal Family, and until there is actual evidence of those comments being made, I will never believe it.’
Mr Scobie, appearing on BBC’s flagship Newsnight programme, said he was ‘hurt’ and ‘frustrated’ by the week’s events. But he refused to apologise to the royals concerned, saying: ‘It’s not for me to apologise because I still want to know what’s happened.’ Buckingham Palace officials will meet with aides to Prince William this week for critical talks in how to deal with the fallout from accusations of racism. The gathering of the two households will see them discuss all how to respond, with ‘time and care’ to be taken before any decisions are made, one source told the Sunday Telegraph. All options are believed to be ‘on the table’, including legal action.
Charles, who flew back to the UK after several days at he COP28 environment summit in Dubai last week, is said to be taking the furore surrounding the book ‘very seriously’. It is reported that during the week Charles will discuss the situation with senior advisers, while also carrying out his duties with aides telling the Mirror it will be ‘business as usual’ with royals to be seen as ‘rising above’ the row. A source close to the Palace told the Sunday Telegraph: ‘Discussions [have been] had and we’ll continue those discussions this week, but not in a crisis talks manner… Decisions [will be] made with care and time and professionalism rather than rushed over a weekend.’
Meanwhile, the Mail understands that Buckingham Palace is investigating who at their end could have seen the letters between the King and Meghan Markle in which the names were allegedly mentioned. However, it is confident the leak has not come from within, believing only a ‘tiny handful’ of people have ever seen them. Harry and Meghan, meanwhile, have not commented publicly on the scandal. In another blow to the couple, the pair have been excluded from the high society wedding of his childhood friend Hugh Grosvenor. The Duke of Westminster, is said to have wanted to invite the Sussexes but decided against it to avoid clashes on his big day amid soaring tensions between the royals following the release of Mr Scobie’s book.
Mr Scobie has been accused of acting as a ‘mouthpiece’ for the Sussexes, an allegation he has denied, writing on X, formerly Twitter: ‘I’m not ‘Meg’s pal’. Sources close to the Duchess of Sussex, who allegedly wrote down the names of the two family members in letters to King Charles, have insisted too that she ‘never intended for them to be publicly identified’. The scandal – which Mr Scobie has been forced to insist was not a publicity stunt – has kept Endgame in the headlines for more than a week as excerpts were published in the days before its release in a French magazine.
Want more stories like this from the Daily Mail? Visit our profile page here and hit the follow button above for more of the news you need.
