Could bombshell interview be trigger for structural change in Royal family?

This display might just be the same - but which side emerges stronger and taller remains to be seen.

While the vast majority of Britain and America will have discussed this bombshell interview at varying stages between breakfast with the other half, a whatsapp group with your oldest besties or an academic verdict from an expert in political history - maybe we should look forward to what perhaps this moment should mean?

And I say that not thinking Harry and Meghan have pulled a media masterstroke. Far from it. If the couple genuinely wanted to have a quiet life away from the ‘prying’ eyes of the press then I imagine most people would understand and support that. But go and live that life, be independent, love each other, enjoy the family and the world. When you turn it into a bus top tour of LA with James Cordon and then go on Oprah Winfrey it is easy to see why their intentions and integrity have been called into question.

You can’t have it both ways - but what if there was a way to have it the way you wanted?

There is no denying, whatever your views on the Royal family are, that the institution is a massive part of our culture and the make up of the country. It is also a massive money-spinner so I can’t see there being any radical change in constitution coming any time soon.

But, that doesn’t mean that it can’t and shouldn’t be shook up. It has been happening gradually, ironically probably since Diana’s interview with Bashir, and most definitely since her death in 1997.

It took something monumental to trigger that change and here we are again.

Harry was born into a world of structure, service, scrutiny and a hundred other things that may be alien to us. He didn’t ask for that life (although it is worth pointing out that he probably didn’t reject it when it meant trips abroad, VIP lounges in London clubs and not having to worry about the supermarket shopping and how he was going to pay for it).

Maybe there should be an ‘opt-out’ clause (an idea bandied around in said whatsapp group chat) so that young Royals can decide for themselves whether they want to subscribe to that life and use it as a platform for the greater good, and take all that comes with it, or carve out a life of their own choosing and financial making.

Various allegations have been made during this interview which go far deeper than Royal duty and public life, and I hope they are addressed thoroughly, but in essence, this is also a family fall-out. Families, whether mine, yours or theirs have can have complex dynamics and the airing of dirty laundry in the most public of ways seldom benefits anyone.