Mental health charity backed by Meghan and Harry’s Archewell Foundation following Oprah interview

‘We’re grateful to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for this support,’ says Mind

Duchess’ mental health struggles featured heavily in broadcast (Harpo Productions/Joe Pugliese v)

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have donated to a mental health charity in the wake of their headline-grabbing interview with Oprah Winfrey.

In the interview, which aired in the UK on Monday, Meghan said she had had “methodical” thoughts about taking her own life, but claimed that when she approached senior royal officials to get help she was refused support.

Buckingham Palace has since issued a response to the interview on behalf of the Queen, stating: “The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan.”

Now, it has been revealed that Harry and Meghan’s Archewell Foundation has made a donation to Mind, one of the UK’s leading mental health charities.

The organisation confirmed the news in a statement shared on its website.

Kathleen Miles, director of fundraising at Mind, said: “We know that the pandemic has taken its toll on our mental health, with more people than ever coming to Mind for support.”

Ms Miles added that the past year had been “difficult financially” for the whole charity sector due to many fundraising events being cancelled or postponed because of coronavirus.

“We appreciate any donations – no matter how large or small – as they allow us to continue our vital work including helping to prevent suicides by providing information and support to anyone affected by poor mental health,” Mind added.

“Mental health problems can affect anybody, regardless of factors like age, gender, ethnic group or socioeconomic status.

“We’re grateful to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the Archewell Foundation for this support, which will help us continue to make sure everyone with a mental health problem gets both support and respect.”

The donation comes after Mind publicly praised Meghan for speaking openly about her mental health struggles in the Oprah interview.

“We applaud Meghan Markle for speaking out about her experiences of suicidal thoughts,” the charity tweeted.

“We know that opening up in this way can be really difficult, but when high-profile people talk about these experiences, it helps to break down the stigma around mental health issues.”