Royal family unveils lavish Christmas decorations at Windsor Castle amid race for Omid Scobie

Christmas has arrived at Windsor Castle, where the royal family has presented lavish decorations.

The Berkshire royal residence has been transformed with a 20ft Christmas tree in St George’s Hall, festive garlands and twinkling lights.

This year also marks the 675th anniversary of the Order of the Garter at the top of the Christmas tree.

And the celebratory atmosphere can also be felt in the Waterloo Chamber, where a huge dining table is decorated with statement pieces, including trays of golden pears and fruit.

However, it will be difficult for the family to start getting into the Christmas spirit amid an ongoing racial dispute following the release of Omid Scobie’s book Endgame this week.

The author redoubled his efforts to defend his work on UK television today and refused to take the blame for the racism scandal over the naming of two royals in the Dutch translation, declaring: “I have never submitted a book that had those names.”

The Sussexes’ favorite royal reporter put the blame squarely on the editor in the Netherlands and denied it was part of a “stunt” to spin more money globally.

In an interview with ITV’s This Morning, which began by denying that he is “Meghan’s spokesperson”, Omid offered no mea culpa or apology for the mistake and when asked if he was upset, he said: ‘I’m obviously frustrated. “I wouldn’t say I’m upset about it.”

Scobie also offered no explanation for how the version of Endgame that was pulped in the Netherlands ended up pointing the finger at two members of the Royal Family now accused of asking about the color of Archie’s skin before he was born.

When asked if the Dutch farrago was a “gimmick to sell books” in the face of poor reviews, he said, “I wish that were the case” and that “an investigation is underway.”

“I’ve never submitted a book that had their names in it, so I can only speak about my side,” he said. ‘I wrote and edited the English version of the book with an editor. The license is then granted to other publishers. I don’t speak Italian, German, French, Dutch or any of the other languages ​​it came out in.’

Mr Scobie’s appearance on the This Morning sofa with Craig Doyle and Alison Hammond began with an immediate denial that he was “Meghan’s spokesperson”, “her cheerleader” or simply “a mouthy fan”. He claimed he had been treated “unfairly” and that these pro-Sussex nicknames are all part of “a smear”.

To emphasize his point, he said: ‘I have very little interest in what they (the Sussexes) are doing in California. “Harry and Meghan are irrelevant to the future of the Royal Family.”

But he admitted he had been “understanding”, claiming he had witnessed unfair treatment of the Duchess of Sussex when she was a royal, “so I went on TV and spoke about the racism she faced”.

Denying he was “Meghan’s spokesperson”, he said: “I’m not her friend.” I have never sat down privately with Meghan for an interview or exchanged information with Meghan. I’m not in her private world.’

He also said that he and Endgame had been unfairly criticized. He said: ‘I knew this book would be controversial, whether about race or the Palace’s relationship with the press. I never expected it to be presented fairly.” He said: “There have been unfair attacks against me.”

She said she believed she had been a victim because she was saying “loudly from the beginning” that Meghan suffered from racism. She added that because he is mixed race she has a different perspective on racism than she did, but insisted that he is not just a “loudmouth bigot.”

Mr Scobie was asked how the names had appeared in the Dutch version now taken off the shelves. Piers Morgan said them last night live on television.

He said: “It is still being investigated.” I wrote and edited the English version of the book with a publisher. The license is then granted to other publishers. Obviously I can’t speak Italian, German, French, Dutch or any of the other languages ​​that come out.

“I am as frustrated as anyone else. I make it very clear in this book that I want to comply in every way possible with the laws surrounding this issue. That is why I have been very careful in how it is described in the book and that is why that I have never talked about it beyond what I have said in the public domain before.

‘However, the reality is that this is information that not only I know. Fleet Street journalists have known those names for a long time. We have all followed a certain code of conduct when talking about it. It’s frustrating that what’s happening in the Netherlands has now happened with the book that was obviously immediately rescinded and is now being reprinted, and I’m glad to hear that. But for me I can only talk about the English version of the book that I wrote and produced.’

Scobie told ITV’s This Morning that coverage of Meghan Markle was often “steeped in xenophobia, misogyny and prejudice”.

He said: “I think when Meghan was a working member of the royal family, she was hugely misrepresented in much of the coverage. “A lot of it was steeped in xenophobia, misogyny and prejudice, and I’ve always said that very loudly from the beginning. .

“It’s what has made me a target for a lot of people in terms of someone who is seen as just a fan of hers rather than maybe OK, I’m a mixed-race member of the press pool and I have something different to say to the regard.’

Omid said he had never used the word “racist” in relation to comments about Archie’s skin color, adding that it was described as “unconscious bias.”