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Royals 'appalled' by Sussex tell-all amid Philip's health battle

Harry and Meghan's explosive tell-all is set to air next week in the US, but reports suggest the royal family is hoping they will delay the interview in light of Prince Philip's ongoing poor health.

Philip was taken to hospital in London two week ago to be treated for an infection and the 99-year-old was transferred to St Bartholomew’s in London yesterday.

(L-R) Britain's Queen Elizabeth, Britain's Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, Britain's Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Britain's Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall attend a Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey in central London, on March 13, 2017.
Queen Elizabeth II has been Head of the Commonwealth throughout her reign. Organised by the Royal Commonwealth Society, the Service is the largest annual inter-faith gathering in the United Kingdom. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Dominic Lipinski        (Photo credit should read DOMINIC LIPINSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
Reports suggest senior royals are hoping Harry and Meghan will delay their tell-all amid Philip's health battle. Photo: getty Images

The Prince's transfer came the same day two explosive teasers for Harry and Meghan's interview with Oprah Winfrey were released, clips said to have 'appalled' senior members of the family.

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According to The Sun, sources close to senior members said they were 'pretty appalled' with the idea that the interview could go to air while Philip is still in hospital, and on Sunday evening the pair were 'urged' to delay the tell-all until Philip's health improved.

“Why are they doing it?” one baffled source was quoted by the publication.

Harry Meghan Oprah interview tell all
Harry and Meghan have been 'urged' to put the interview on hold. Photo: CBS

It comes as other experts claimed the royals should be 'scared' of the now-two-hour-long special, which they criticised for painting a 'melodramatic' picture of the royal family that could do serious damage to their reputation.

Previews blasted by royal defenders

Criticism has come in off the back of two 30 second previews released on Sunday evening, with the show set to air on March 7.

In the sneak peeks Oprah asks Meghan "were you silent, or were you silenced?" and Harry says he was worried about "history repeating itself".

Meghan Markle Oprah interview tell all
Oprah's suggestion Meghan was 'silenced' was called ridiculous by a biographer. Photo: CBS

In response royal biographer Robert Jobson told The Daily Mail called the clips 'ridiculous'.

"The Queen and the Royal Family are not the Corleone family of Windsor," he is quoted. "There are no hit men or heavies going around silencing people."

He added: "Talk of being "silenced" is just ridiculous. It suits a narrative, I suppose, but at what cost to the Queen, Prince Philip and the Royal Family and our reputation as a country."

Another expert Richard Fitzwilliams called the decision to extend the interview 'scary' news for The Firm.

"An extra 30 minutes could be scary for the Palace," he told the publication. "Was this because Harry and Meghan were angry at having their patronages removed or had it always been planned? The interview with Oprah will determine their future relations with the royal family for the foreseeable future."

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II (3L) stands with her husband Britain's Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (3R), her son Britain's Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (2L) and his wife Britain's Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (L), and her grandson Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (2R) and his wife Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, as they pose photo a photograph ahead of the annual evening reception for members of the Diplomatic Corps at Buckingham Palace, London on December 8, 2016. / AFP / POOL / Dominic Lipinski        (Photo credit should read DOMINIC LIPINSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
Experts suggested the royal family should be 'scared' of the extra-long interview going to air. Photo: Getty Images

In the previews, it's shown that Oprah spoke to Meghan and Harry individually before also addressing them both as a couple.

Though Meghan doesn't say anything in the trailer, there are a few glimpses of her looking less than impressed, specifically when Oprah is seen asking her the question about "being silenced".

"You've said some pretty shocking things here," Oprah says to the pair, later adding: “I just want to make it clear to everybody there is no subject that’s off-limits.”

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