This escalating spat between the royals and Harry and Meghan is much bigger than just a fight over a baby name. 

It is a sign, I reckon, that the Royal family are not just annoyed with these two, but actually prepared to give them a dose of their own medicine. 

So this is how the thing’s unfolded: 

Friday, Harry and Meghan’s baby daughter arrives.

Sunday, they announce the name: they’ve commandeered the Queen’s childhood nickname Lilibet.

Monday reports emerge – clearly planted by them – that they’d asked the Queen’s permission.

But Wednesday, the BBC claims that’s not true and quotes source who say they never asked the Queen if they could use the name.

Within hours, Harry and Meghan accuse the BBC of defamation, warn any other media against repeating this and double down on their claim.

And then – and this is important – media call the palace, and the palace refuses to back up Harry and Meghan’s story, refuses to confirm their story. 

The royal family is deliberately hanging these two out to dry. 

It’s a nickname.  Yes, it’s weird nicking your grandmother’s pet name (which really only her husband used in the end) for your child, but it’s not such a big crime that the palace needed to brief the BBC that they hadn’t asked.

And it’s not such a big crime that the palace would hold the line on it when other media called. 

Surely, the easiest thing to do would be for the palace to back these two up and make the story go away. 

Unless you don’t want the story to go away. Why would the palace want that? 

Well, maybe because it undermines the credibility of the pair.  If they can’t tell the truth about whether they asked granny to could borrow her nickname, then were they actually telling the about all the other stuff?

Like when they told the world there was a racist in the royal family who asked what colour the first baby’s skin might be? 

Could be handy, couldn’t it, for punters like us in the Commonwealth and around the world to start doubting the truth of their statements. 

Plus it could also be a warning to them to shut up about the royal family.  They are trading hard on being royals: talking about what a bad father Charles was, talking about the last time they Zoom called granny, talking about what she bought Archie for Christmas.  If I was them I’d take the hint that they can’t rely on the royals to back up any stories.  

So this spat is more than just a spat about a name, it’s could well be a sign that they are going to pay for their ongoing criticism of the royal family.