Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey in March 2021 came as a shock to most royal followers. According to a new book, the late Queen wanted to "sleep on" her response after the interview and refused to issue a hasty statement. It also says that courtiers struggled to respond to Oprah's interview because of the myriad of allegations made in the TV special.

Valentine Law, royal correspondent for the new book Courtiers: The Hidden Power Behind the Crown, in her new Sunday Times book, Courtiers: The Hidden Power Behind the Crown, Harry and Meghan, Princess of Wales, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex made a handful of allegations against members of the royal family, which the staff had to deal with, he wrote.

"Courtiers faced another major challenge: how to deal with Oprah's interview," Law writes in his book, according to Insider.

In particular, the book continues, allegations of racism within the royal family were a source of contention.

"The Private Secretary and the Communications Secretary had long debated how to deal with the issue, especially what one of them awkwardly referred to as the 'R-word,'" Law writes.

"The subject came up after a member of the royal family allegedly made a remark about the skin color of Harry and Meghan's future baby.

Staff issued an official statement around 2 p.m. the day after the interview aired in the United States, but Buckingham Palace remained silent.

"Exactly nothing happened after that," Law wrote. The Palace remained completely silent because the Queen had decided she wanted to sleep on it." The queen had no intention of being rushed into urgent statements. She was reminded that the courtiers might lay the groundwork, but the final decision would be made by the royal family"

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Finally, a four-sentence statement was issued the next day just before 5:30 p.m., containing the memorable line, "Though some recollections may differ," which spoke of the disagreement between the Sussexes and other members of the royal family about what happened behind the palace walls.

Her late Majesty's decision to wait to make a statement proved that "the 94-year-old queen was still very much in charge," Law wrote.