British Royal Family

Did The Sun publish a video claiming Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle sold Princess Diana's iconic revenge dress to Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska for $2.9 million in April 2025? No, that's not true: There is no such story or video on The Sun's website or social media. The quote from "Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams" in the video was cut…

Did King Charles III give official notice that he has revoked U.S. independence, effective immediately, will reign as monarch and that "The nincompoop you've elected as President will go to gaol", as social media posts claim? No, that's not true: There was no official statement to that effect from the British monarch. No such statement appeared on Buckingham Palace social…

Did the BBC publish an article about King Charles III being in "critical condition" on March 18, 2025? No, that's not true: Neither live nor archived versions of the BBC website contained that report. Buckingham Palace did not make the purported announcement on that day. The claim was spread on X by a self-described "troll account". The claim appeared in…

Did Prince William ascend to the British throne following the death of his father King Charles III and expel Queen Camilla from the royal family? No, that's not true: There is no news of King Charles' passing at the time of writing, and the royals' website shows that William remains Prince of Wales on November 18, 2024. The site where…

Did Meghan Markle say she would leave the U.S. in response to Donald Trump's election, as a post on Facebook implies? No, that's not true: Lead Stories could not find proof that the wife of Prince Harry said that. Commentators have only speculated on the possibility that she might want to leave the U.S. following Trump's election. The claim appeared…

Did Donald Trump demand on March 19, 2024, that Prince Harry leave the United States? No, that's not true: In an interview posted online that day, the GOP presidential nominee said only that his administration would take "appropriate action" if shown findings that the prince had "lied" in his U.S. visa application about drug use. Trump switched to a different…

Did a source close to the British royal family say that Catherine, Princess of Wales, was "sacrificed" or "murdered," and then "replaced" with a "body double"? No, that's not true: The article that made the claim was published by a website known for spreading false claims and is not corroborated by any evidence. The article didn't include any direct quotes…

Does a viral image show the national flag of the United Kingdom, also known as the Union Jack, "flying at half-mast at some Government Buildings" in the UK in March 2024? No, that's not true: The photo was taken in 2022. It captured the lowered flag after the death of Queen Elizabeth II. The claim appeared in a post (archived…

Are Pope Francis, the late Queen Elizabeth II and U.S. President Joe Biden members of the same family? No, that's not true: There is no evidence supporting this online rumor, which recycles a 24-year-old conspiracy theory. The claim appeared in a post on Instagram on October 14, 2022. The caption says: I KNOW SOME WEIRD SHIT WHEN I SEE SOME…

Is Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, the American wife of Britain's Prince Harry, "a clone or robot"? No, that's not true: The videos repeating this claim borrowed footage from the 2018 Madam Tussaud's live figures events, when actors put on latex masks to impersonate the real couple. The claim about the former Meghan Markle resurfaced in a TikTok video (archived here)…