Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex to support Mind after Piers Morgan furore

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry are to give financial support to the charity that defended her during a bitter row with Piers Morgan over her admission to having had suicidal thoughts.

The Duke and Duchess's Archewell Foundation has named the mental health charity Mind as among a number of new causes it will be supporting, along with campaigners for racial justice.

It made the announcement on Friday, less than a week after the couple’s extraordinary interview with Oprah Winfrey was broadcast, in which the Duchess revealed that she had suffered from suicidal thoughts when she was a working royal.

Following the interview’s broadcast Mr Morgan told Good Morning Britain viewers that he "didn't believe a word" of what she told the US chat show host, including her claim that she received no support from Buckingham Palace when experiencing suicidal feelings.

After being told of his comments the Duchess lodged a formal complaint with ITV, telling the broadcaster that she was concerned they could have a detrimental effect on others who were experiencing their own mental health problems.

She was supported by Mind, a partner with ITV on its Britain Get Talking campaign, who said that it was "disappointed and concerned to see Piers Morgan's comments on not believing Meghan's experiences about suicidal thoughts".

The charity added: "It's vital that, when people reach out for support or share their experiences of ill mental health, they are treated with dignity, respect and empathy."

On receiving her email, ITV bosses asked Mr Morgan to apologise to the Duchess during Tuesday's show but he refused, as revealed in The Telegraph last week.

The former Daily Mirror editor then quit the show after storming off the set following a row with weather presenter Alex Beresford over his earlier comments

During the interview, the Duchess told Ms Winfrey she had felt suicidal while in the Royal family and claimed she received no help after telling staff about her suffering.

Mind praised her bravery, stating: "We applaud Meghan Markle for speaking out about her experiences of suicidal thoughts. 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."

The couple also claimed they had suffered racist comments from a member of the Royal family who had expressed concern over what colour the skin of their as yet unborn child Archie might be.

In its update the Archewell foundation said it would also be providing support to Colour of Change, which describes itself as the US's "largest online racial justice organisation".

It works to improve criminal justice, voting freedom and economic justice, stating: "We cannot end racism in one area without tackling it in all areas."

Support is also being given to The PressPad Charitable Foundation and URL Media.

The PressPad Charitable Foundation works to improve diversity within the media by "lowering the financial barrier for young people who want to become journalists".

Social enterprise PressPad stated: "We are delighted to announce that we have just registered a sister charity, The PressPad Charitable Foundation, and are thrilled that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their Archewell Foundation will be among our first donors.

"We're excited by such positive action after difficult yet important moments of reckoning for the UK media.”

It added: “We're proud to say our values of action, compassion and community align with the Archewell Foundation. Thanks to everyone who spoke their truth."

URL Media describes itself as a "multi-platform network of high-performing Black and Brown media organisations" and was launched in January, offering “an alternative to business as usual".