A British broadcasting icon has highlighted five reasons he believes Meghan Markle “never stood a chance” as a member of the royal family.

The Duchess of Sussex became part of ‘The Firm’ when she married Prince Harry in May 2018.

But less than two years later, the pair had quit royal life and moved across the Atlantic.

Their subsequent attacks on other members of the royal family have resulted in a seemingly unbridgeable rift between them and Harry’s family,

especially King Charles and Prince William, both of whom have been badly hurt by the 40-year-old’s claims.

Now, former ITV newsreader Sir Trevor McDonald has spoken out, calling the loss of the Sussexes a “great shame”. But he reckons Meghan, 43, was not given the opportunity to thrive within the strict boundaries of the monarchy.

Speaking to Saga magazine, he said she “never stood a chance – she is a foreigner: an American, a divorcee, a former actress – and black”. He added: “Meghan could have brought a new dimension to the monarchy. She was never given a chance to prove herself.”

On Harry, Sir Trevor, 85, said: “It’s a great shame Prince Harry is no longer part of the working monarchy. We cannot afford to lose someone so young, so full of energy and so imbued with the charitable instincts that are at the core of our Royal Family.

“Having met him three or four times over the years, I found him unfailingly friendly, honest and genuine. I was struck by the similarity to his mother, the late Princess Diana.”

Meghan herself has previously made claims of racism within the royal family. She alleged that two senior royals asked what colour her and Harry’s first child Prince Archie would be before he was born in 2019, a comment she claims left her upset.

But Harry has sought to play down the incident, saying in an interview to plug his bombshell 2023 memoir Spare, that it was merely an example of “unconscious bias”. Asked if he viewed the comment as racist, he said: “I wouldn’t, not having lived within that family.”