BUCKINGHAM Palace said Wednesday it would investigate allegations that Meghan Markle, the 39-year-old Duchess of Sussex, bullied several staff members after a British media report cited unnamed royal aides saying a complaint had been made against her in 2018. The Times in the U.K. published an article Tuesday citing sources who said that the complaint claimed the Duchess drove out two personal assistants from her Kensington Palace household and undermined the confidence of a third staff member. The sources also said they approached The Times because they felt the version of the Duchess that had publicly emerged was only partially true and that they were concerned about how matters of bullying had been dealt with. The report said the sources believed the public “should have insight into their side of the story” ahead of the couple’s highly anticipated interview with Oprah Winfrey to air Sunday, their first sit-down appearance since leaving London for North America last year. Buckingham Palace said it was “very concerned” about the allegations outlined in the report. “Accordingly our HR team will look into the circumstances outlined in the article. Members of staff involved at the time, including those who have left the Household, will be invited to participate to see if lessons can be learned,” it said in its statement. “The Royal Household has had a Dignity at Work policy in place for a number of years and does not and will not tolerate bullying or harassment in the workplace.” Markle is accused of occasionally reducing staffers to tears when she lived at Kensington Palace after her May 2018 wedding to Prince Harry. In one alleged incident, the Times reported a royal aide told a colleague “I can’t stop shaking” as they anticipated a confrontation with the Duchess. The U.K. newspaper further reported that two senior palace staff members allegedly were bullied into leaving their posts while a third said they had been personally “humiliated” by the former TV star. On Wednesday, Markle said the reports of bullying were nothing more than a “calculated smear campaign” orchestrated by the palace ahead of her highly anticipated Oprah TV sit-down, set to air in the U.S. on Sunday night. Prince Harry and Meghan announced in January 2020 that they were stepping back as working members of the royal family and moved to North America soon afterward. Buckingham Palace confirmed last month that the couple had agreed with Queen Elizabeth II, Harry’s grandmother, that they would not be returning as working royals. The move sparked talk of a rift between the couple — who is settled in California and expecting their second child — and the British royal family. “Let’s just call this what it is — a calculated smear campaign based on misleading and harmful misinformation. We are disappointed to see this defamatory portrayal of The Duchess of Sussex given credibility by a media outlet,” a spokesperson for the Sussexes said. “It’s no coincidence that distorted several-year-old accusations aimed at undermining The Duchess are being briefed to the British media shortly before she and The Duke are due to speak openly and honestly about their experience of recent years.” “The Duchess is saddened by this latest attack on her character, particularly as someone who has been the target of bullying herself and is deeply committed to supporting those who have experienced pain and trauma. She is determined to continue her work building compassion around the world and will keep striving to set an example for doing what is right and doing what is good.” The spokesperson said the claims made in the Times’ report were “defamatory” and a legal letter of rebuttal had been sent to the media outlet. Harry touched upon the pressures of royal life during a conversation with fellow Briton James Corden for his “Late Late Show” last month. “It was a really difficult environment,” the Duke said. “We all know how the British press can be ... and it was destroying my mental health. I was like, ‘This is toxic,’ so I did what any husband and any father would do: I need to get my family out of here.” Harry and Meghan have been mired in a long-running war of words and lawsuits with a large portion of the tabloid media, fighting multiple legal cases against publications and photo agencies that had printed details of their private lives. Last month, Meghan won a privacy claim against the publishers of the Mail on Sunday after they published a letter she sent her father, and launched a stinging rebuke to “dehumanizing” media organizations after the verdict. She has already made a bombshell claim in her upcoming interview with Oprah Winfrey. The Duchess of Sussex, along with Prince Harry, has been interviewed by Winfrey for a special that CBS plans to air Sunday. The network Wednesday released a 30-second promo featuring a snippet of the conversation that will take place between the former actress and the famed television personality — after releasing earlier preview clips last weekend. “How do you feel about the palace hearing you speak your truth today?” Winfrey asks in the latest clip. “I don’t know how they could expect that after all of this time, we would still just be silent if there is an active role that The Firm is playing in perpetuating falsehoods about us,” Markle says. Markle was appearing to compare the royals to the overbearing law firm that’s the subject of a 1993 novel by American author John Grisham that later become a film starring Tom Cruise. She adds: “If that comes with risk of losing things ... there’s a lot that’s been lost already.” The clip is one of several promos, including one featuring Harry, 36, referring to his mother, the late Princess Diana. “I’m just really relieved and happy to be sitting here, talking to you with my wife by my side,” the royal says in a clip released last weekend. “Because I can’t begin to imagine what it must have been like for her [Princess Diana] going through this process by herself all those years ago.” The prince continued: “It has been unbelievably tough for the two of us [himself and Markle], but at least we had each other.” Harry was, as the clip indicates by highlighting a photo of her, referring to his mother, Princess Diana, who faced sharp scrutiny upon her divorce from Prince Charles and exit from the future monarch’s inner circle. British Royal Family News suggests the Duchess of Sussex was labeled as the “Duchess of Difficult” behind closed doors at Buckingham Palace because of all her multiple and sometimes difficult requests. According to Fox News, royal expert and author Tom Quinn says that while things did start well between Meghan and her royal staff and handlers behind palace doors, it quickly turned sour. While no one knows what really happened, it has been suggested that no one was very pleased with her “American” work ethic. In other words, Meghan reportedly got up at the crack of dawn each day and texted ideas to her assistants — which is something they weren’t used to. That’s when the Duchess of Difficult nickname was born. Born in Los Angeles, the former American actress rose to fame on the television series “Suits” in 2011. She married Prince Harry in 2018. Markle made international headlines when it was revealed in 2016 that she was seriously dating Prince Harry of Great Britain. The two met while Harry was attending the Invictus Games in Toronto, where “Suits” is filmed. Meghan and Harry last year announced they were quitting as royals, saying they wanted to become financially independent. Since then, they have moved to Canada and then the U.S., and signed a string of multi-million pound deals including a rumored US$112 million deal with Netflix.(SD-Agencies) | 