Prince Harry has denied making a statement criticising media coverage of his then-girlfriend Meghan Markle because he was afraid she would dump him.

In 2016, he issued an enraged statement criticising media coverage of Meghan, his girlfriend at the time.

The Duke of Sussex claimed she was “the victim of a wave of abuse and harassment.”

According to The Times, Harry directed his office to issue the media-blasting statement out of fear that Meghan would leave him.

However, the couple has denied this through their media spokesman.

Jason Knauf, Harry’s communications secretary, is said to have made the comments criticising the undertones of the previously published comment pieces.

A report claimed he was “freaking out” about being dumped by Meghan, which the Suessexes categorically denied. They have since left the UK to start a new life in Los Angeles with their two children.

According to a source quoted by the New York Times: “It did feel like if the palace couldn’t stand up and support his girlfriend in the face of some of that disgusting coverage… who in their right mind would ever consider entering into a relationship [with him] in the future?

“He was irritated by some of the coverage.

Since then, the royal couple has welcomed two children: a son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, in May 2019, and a daughter, Lilibet, in June 2021.

The couple announced their intention to leave the royal family in 2020 and now reside in California.