Oprah Winfrey entirely supportive of Duke and Duchess of Sussex's royal exit

Oprah Winfrey has urged critics of Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex to keep their opinions to themselves.

The media mogul is friends with the couple and is working with British royal Harry on an upcoming mental health TV series.

But responding to Harry and Meghan's decision to step back as "senior members" of the royal family in footage obtained by TMZ, Oprah insisted that the 35-year-old, the grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, "did what he needed to do for his family" and "thought about it for months".

In the candid clip, which also features Gayle King, she added: "I support them 1,000 per cent. I support them because I believe that when you have thought about this as long as they have, and even in The Queen's statement ? everyone take note ? where The Queen says, 'This has been going on for months.'

"Who doesn't feel what that takes to make that decision, to give up everything you've known in your whole life, to say, 'I am going to choose this new life and what I believe to be the truest vision for myself?'" the 65-year-old continued. "I don't think anybody else has any right to say anything, when a person has sat and thought about what is the best decision I'm gonna make for my family ? and then he makes that decision ? none of us have any right to say anything about that."

Both Oprah and Gayle denied that Harry made the decision without speaking to members of the royal family, with the CBS This Morning host commenting, "There were a lot of conversations," adding that it "wasn't fair" to say that the royal family was "blindsided".

Oprah, who previously denied reports that she and former U.S. President Barack Obama were advising the couple, added, "Everybody's known for months that this was happening."