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Thomas Markle slams Oprah for 'playing' Meghan and Harry
Thomas Markle has made explosive claims against Oprah, accusing her of ‘playing’ his daughter Meghan and Prince Harry ‘to build her network’.
The 76-year-old spoke with 60 Minutes for his first interview since the birth of his new granddaughter, Lilibet.
Mr Markle has not spoken to the Duchess of Sussex since she married Prince Harry in 2018, and is yet to meet either of their children.
In the new interview on Channel Nine, he made a desperate plea to the couple to bury the hatchet “before it was too late”.
“I’d love to talk to her,” he told reporter Tom Steinfort, before adding he will “never give up hope” for a reconciliation.
“I’ve said I’m sorry about the initial problem, if I’ve said anything today that offended anyone I’m sorry too.”
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The retired Hollywood lighting director first sparked controversy when he was accused of posing for fake paparazzi photos just one week before the royal wedding.
“I apologised a hundred times for it,” he said in the world exclusive interview.
“I'm confused. If I had done something terribly wrong, that would be fine, but I haven’t. I just want an answer.”
He went on to make the comparison that while he’s been shut off, even convicted murderers in prison still get to see their families.
“I’m not an axe murderer. I made one dumb mistake and I’ve been punished for it," he said. "This show they’ve been on, they talk about compassion, there’s no compassion for me, no compassion for my family, and no compassion for the world.”
'She's taking advantage of a very weakened man'
After Harry and Meghan’s bombshell interview with Oprah in March, Mr Markle drove to California from his home in Mexico to hand deliver a note to the TV host asking to be her next interview subject.
Now, he’s slammed Oprah for using the couple to “build her network and build her new shows”.
"I think she's taking advantage of a very weakened man, and getting him to say things that you just shouldn’t be saying on television," he admitted.
"She will disagree of course, and she may even sue me, I don’t care. But the bottom line is she is working Harry."
He went on to say he believed Oprah is the only person that is benefiting from the royal pair’s recent outbursts.
Mr Markle also spoke about his current feelings towards his daughter, who he hasn’t spoken to since two days before her wedding.
“I don’t know of anybody that’s that cold to do this. And now, like I said, Meghan did it to me and Harry’s doing it to his father. That’s a cold thing to do,” he said.
The retiree, who lives only a few hours away from his daughter, hopes the notorious feud ends soon as he believes he won’t be around for much longer.
"July 18, I’ll be 77 years old. Most of the Markle men don’t make it much past 80," he added.
"There’s good chance I might never see my grandchildren."
'A vicious cycle'
Viewers took to Twitter to express their opinion about the interview, with some arguing that Channel Nine shouldn’t be giving Mr Markle any more air time.
"I remember when 60 Minutes used to be cutting edge journalism," one user wrote. "Now they interview people like Thomas Markle. How embarrassing."
Another person tweeted: "This continual back and forth between them is a vicious cycle and has been for a long time. What I saw tonight on 60 Minutes was the same old thing back and forth."
Other people have shown support, saying that Mr Markle made valid points during the TV special.
"Meghan shows compassion for complete strangers all around the world, yet refuses to show the same compassion or forgiveness to her own father? Bizarre," one viewer posted.
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