Documentary Host Knew 'Everything Wasn't Entirely Rosy' With Prince Harry & Meghan Markle While Filming In Africa

Times are tough for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, and we’re all just starting to see how tough, in fact.

Tom Bradby‘s revealing new documentary Harry & Meghan: An African Journey first aired this past weekend on ITV in the United Kingdom, bringing viewers a very new side of the royal couple. And the doc caused so much of a stir in Britain, it was rushed to air on ABC in the States on Wednesday night, too — with good reason for it.

Bradby went on GMA Wednesday morning to promote the documentary’s US airing, but early on in the interview things turned from promotional to serious. A longtime vet covering the royal family — Bradby did an earlier documentary on Harry’s charitable work back in 2016, for example — the journo was nevertheless surprised by the story that was in front of him… and not in a good way.

The TV host and presenter admitted as much, saying (below):

“I went intending to make a documentary that was always going to be about their work in Africa and then a little bit about where they are at in life and I knew that everything wasn’t entirely rosy behind the scenes—that’s true. But, all the same, I sort of had intended to turn up probably doing a more conventional journalistic job maybe.

I told them beforehand I was going to have to put some pretty pointed questions, but I think the reality I’d found was just a couple that just seemed a bit bruised and vulnerable. I think with mental health and all the rest of it, you have to be very careful what words you use, but that was the story I found and it seemed the right journalistic thing to do to try and tell that story as empathetically as I could.”

Wow…

We’re already well aware of that heartbreaking clip of Meghan nearly breaking down on camera when Bradby asks how she’s doing; clearly, that’s part of what he’s talking about here with “mental health and all the rest of it.”

And though his quote is a bit of a word jumble, what you’re reading is clearly a journalist shocked to find out how much negative media attention has affected the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. And he’s far from the only one surprised by it all.

You can watch Bradby discuss that, and more, in these GMA interview clips (below) about the couple:

.@ABC NEWS EXCLUSIVE: @tombradby on his interviews with Harry and Meghan: “I knew that everything wasn’t entirely rosy behind the scenes.” https://t.co/ggGqWoK5Aq pic.twitter.com/1uULTScN57

— Good Morning America (@GMA) October 23, 2019

.@tombradby on his powerful interview with Prince Harry and Meghan: “Harry and Meghan have just decided to play things differently.” https://t.co/ggGqWoK5Aq pic.twitter.com/6Jv2BoQ3wf

— Good Morning America (@GMA) October 23, 2019