Omid Scobie RECAP: Endgame author denies he's Harry and Meghan's friend or a 'Sussex mouthpiece' on This Morning amid 'racist royal' row

Colleagues of the two 'experienced' Dutch translators of Omid Scobie's book have said it is 'unthinkable' the women added the names of the two 'royal racists' into the transcript themselves.

Saskia Peeters and Nellie Keukelaar-van Rijsbergern are named in the preface to the book Endgame which was withdrawn from sale in Holland after two members of the Royal Family were named in the racism scandal.

Read the full story from MailOnline reporter Paul Thompson, who is in Amsterdam:

Let's just have a reminder about what happened during Omid Scobie's interview on ITV's This Morning.

The author was accused of being behind a 'stunt to sell books' but claimed never to have named the two race row royals in his expose.

This Morning co-host Craig Doyle quizzed Mr Scobie about Endgame, saying it seemed 'bizarre' to the public two members of the monarchy, accused of racism by commentators, had been identified in the Dutch version of his book.

Copies of Mr Scobie's book were pulled from the shelves in the Netherlands on publication day on Tuesday after two members of the royal family alleged to have raised 'concerns' about the skin colour of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's son were named in it. The names were widely shared on social media.

Mr Doyle asked his guest how the names appeared in the Dutch version of Endgame: 'That just seems bizarre to everybody out there because you don't accidentally put in a name, and you can't put it down to mistranslation, can you? It does feel like a stunt to sell books - which I understand.'

Mr Scobie said he wrote the English language version of his book but does not speak the other languages it was translated into, 'so the only time you hear about the book is once it's come out in the public domain. I'm as frustrated as everyone else'.

He claimed: 'The reality, though, is that this is information that is not privy just to me, journalists across Fleet Street have known those names for a long time. I have never submitted a book that had their names in it, so I can only talk about my version.'

As the Omid Scobie row rumbles on, Christmas has arrived at Windsor Castle where the Royal Family have unveiled lavish decorations.

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

Read the full story and see the pictures on MailOnline today:

Also today, the Prince and Princess of Wales welcomed the future Queen and King of Sweden to Windsor Castle this morning. Read the full story on MailOnline here:

We've just been sent some photos of Omid Scobie on the sofa at the ITV Studios in London today as he appeared on This Morning.

ITV have just posted a story about the Omid Scobie interview on This Morning, saying: 'Brace yourself for some royal revelations.' Click below for more:

Omid Scobie appeared on ITV's This Morning to defend Endgame and the scandal with its Dutch translation, declaring: 'I never submitted a book that had those names in it'. Here's the full story from MailOnline chief reporter Martin Robinson:

Two members of the royal family alleged to have raised 'concerns' about the skin colour of the Harry and Meghan's son were named in Omid Scobie’s new book.

The Dutch version of Endgame was pulled from shelves on Tuesday, the day of publication, after early reviewers spotted it mentioned an individual who was said to have questioned Archie's skin tone before he was born.

Yesterday the name of a second member of the monarchy, alleged to have made the same comment, also appearance to have been found in the pages of the Dutch edition, titled Final Battle.

The version being sold in English-speaking countries does not name the two people, with Mr Scobie stating: 'Laws in the United Kingdom prevent me from reporting who they were.'

But the names are widely featured and discussed on social media and are likely to circulate further in the coming days.

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

He said: 'I do think when Meghan was a working member of the royal family she was massively mispresented in a lot of the coverage. A lot of it was steeped in xenophobia, misogyny and prejudice, and I've always said that very loudly from the start.

'It's the thing that has made me a target for many people in terms of someone who is just seen as like some mouthy fan of her rather than perhaps OK, I'm a mixed race member of the press pack and I've got something different to say about it.'

Here is a video of Omid Scobie talking on ITV's This Morning about the apparent naming of the two alleged 'royal racists' in the Dutch translation of Endgame:

Here are the full quotes from Omid Scobie on the Dutch translation.

Asked if it was a 'stunt to sell books', he told ITV's This Morning: 'I wish it was the case.'

He was then asked what happened, and said: 'It's still being investigated now. I wrote and edited the English version of the book with one publisher. That then gets licensed to other publishers. I obviously can't speak Italian, German, French, Dutch or any of the other languages that come out. So the only time you hear about the book is once it's come out in the public domain.

'I'm as frustrated as anyone else. I make it very clear in this book that I in every way possible want to adhere to the laws surrounding this subject. It's why I've been very careful in how it's described in the book and it's why I've never spoken about it beyond what I've said in the public domain before.

'The reality is though is that this is information that is not privy just to me. Journalists across Fleet Street have known those names for a long time. We've all followed a certain code of conduct when it comes to talking about it. It's frustrating that now what's going on in the Netherlands with the book that was obviously immediately rescinded and is now being reprinted has happened, and I'm glad to hear so. But for me I can only talk about the English version of the book that I wrote and produced.'

Asked if he was 'upset' by it, Mr Scobie said: 'I had never submitted a book that had their names in it, so I can only talk about my version. I'm obviously frustrated, I wouldn't say I'm upset about it because to be honest I'd been working in a bubble of no emotion for the last ten days. But I'm frustrated about it just like I am many of the other things I've seen written or said about this book.'

Here's a video of Omid Scobie appearing on ITV's This Morning today:

Omid Scobie claims that when Meghan was a working member of the royal family she was 'misrepresented' in coverage which was partly down to 'xenophobia'.

Omid Scobie told This Morning that he 'wanted to live in a world where we can scrutinise the royal family' in the same way that politicians are held to account.

Omid Scobie said a lot of the coverage had been 'unnecessary information about me'.

Omid Scobie is now being asked about the Dutch translation which appeared to name the two alleged 'royal racists'.

Asked if it was a stunt, he said: 'I wish it was the case.'

He added: 'I wrote and edited the English version of the book with one publisher. That then gets licensed to other publishers.'

Mr Scobie also said: 'I'm as frustrated as everyone else.'

Omid Scobie said he had never used the 'racist' word in relation to the comments over Archie's skin colour, adding that it was described as 'unconscious bias'.

Omid Scobie says he 'can't run away' from the narrative of being called 'Meghan's mouthpiece', and denies he is the Sussexes' 'cheerleader'.

Omid Scobie said he is 'not their friend' in relation to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, adding: 'I'm not in their private world.'

Omid Scobie says he 'knew this book would be contoversial' and it 'obviously goes into areas that often royal correspondents often shy away from'.

He added that he 'never expected it to be presented fairly by newspapers' and it was also 'frustrating' to see so much written about the book 'that just wasn't true'.

Omid Scobie is on the sofa for ITV's This Morning - here we go...

ITV's This Morning is presented by Craig Doyle and Alison Hammond today. The show has just begun with a bagpipes performance to celebrate St Andrew's Day.

This Morning has now begun on ITV. We are expecting Omid Scobie to appear at some point between now and 12.30pm.

In this column on MailOnline, NANA AKUA writes:

Everyone wanted to know the identity of the supposed 'royal racists' – who allegedly asked about the skin colour of Harry and Meghan's yet-to-be-born son Archie – after they were 'inadvertently' outed by the Sussexes' apparent mouthpiece Omid Scobie in his new book, Endgame.

But everyone has been asking the wrong question. What people should be considering is whether it's racist at all to wonder out loud about the skin tone of an unborn baby. As the black mother of two mixed-race children, I can tell you one of the few things my ex-partner and I agreed on before our son's birth was his name: Ivory.

I would laugh with my friends and family: 'What if he comes out really dark? The very opposite to what his name suggests!' We'd have loved him the same no matter how he looked – we were just curious.

Read the full column by clicking below:

Buckingham Palace is today ‘considering all options’ over the royal race row stoked by Omid Scobie’s ‘poisonous’ new book on the monarchy.

Well-placed sources have told the Daily Mail while King Charles is determined to focus on important state business in Dubai, where he is holding bilateral meetings ahead of giving a keynote opening speech at the Cop28 summit on Friday, aides are seriously looking at how they should, if at all, respond.

Click here for the full story from the Daily Mail's royal editor Rebecca English.

This Morning has been filmed in White City, West London, where ITV sublets a studio space from BBC Studioworks in the Television Centre.

Omid Scobie has just been photographed arriving at ITV Studios in London today ahead of his appearance on This Morning to discuss his new book Endgame.

Follow the Daily Mail's royal editor Rebecca English on X today for live updates on the latest news as the row surrounding Omid Scobie's Endgame continues.

Piers Morgan has named the two senior royals who Omid Scobie claimed had 'concerns' over Prince Archie's skin colour on UK television last night.

Buckingham Palace is understood to be 'utterly dismayed' by Morgan identifying them on his Talk TV show. Here is the full story on MailOnline:

This Morning has posted a tweet confirming that Omid Scobie will be appearing on the sofa for the ITV show today. It is not known exactly when he will be speaking.

King Charles III has brushed off the ongoing royal race row stoked by Omid Scobie’s new book by focusing on his work.

In Dubai to give a keynote COP28 speech, he met with Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu today.

Asked how he was, His Majesty said: ‘I’m all right very much, just about. Having had a rather ancient birthday recently recovering from the shock of that!’

Here is the full story on MailOnline this morning:

Good morning and welcome to MailOnline's liveblog as we await the appearance of Endgame author Omid Scobie on ITV's This Morning from 10am today.

Stay with us throughout the day for live updates on the fallout from his new book.