bitchy | Nicholl: The Windsors believe ‘this is not going to end well’ for Prince Harry

Katie Nicholl returned to Vanity Fair this week to give an exclusive on Prince Harry’s appearances in a London court, in his case against Mirror Group Newspapers. Nicholl has few, if any, sources in the Sussexes’ camp, but she’s proven time and time again that she has excellent sources in Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace. Which makes the VF exclusive kind of interesting – the quotes she has about Harry’s ballsy campaign to change the way the British press operates are all basically repurposed from what Harry has said himself. The added flavor comes from the fact that King Charles and Prince William are clearly monitoring the progression of Harry’s many lawsuits and they’re scared sh-tless. Some highlights:

What Harry hopes to achieve: According to a source close to Harry, the prince feels his lawsuit is “not about seeking payouts or public apologies but about changing the way the tabloid press operates….Harry will stop at nothing. He believes he was hacked and that he has every reason to believe this was the case, given that the Mirror has admitted to historic phone hacking [in other cases]. In his eyes everything leads back to phone hacking.”

How Charles & William feel: Given the high-profile nature of the case and the personal nature of questioning, King Charles and Prince William were both said to be wary about Harry giving evidence. It is understood that Harry’s father had previously advised him not to take on the tabloids but Harry was intent on having his day in court.

Ominous: The fact that he has pursued the case is said to be another factor dividing Prince Harry from his family. “The family believes this is not going to end well,” one source said.

Harry didn’t see his father or brother: Harry’s relationship with his father and brother remains strained and he has not seen them during his fleeting trip to the UK. Harry is expected to leave for California Wednesday evening.

Embarrassing his trash family: The case risks embarrassing the royal family as private information has been revealed about other family members in Harry’s case against News Group Newspapers (NGN). Court documents in April revealed that his brother, Prince William, had accepted “a very large sum of money”—thought to be about 1 million British pounds—from Rupert Murdoch’s NGN after he was a victim of phone hacking.

Worth it: At times he appeared exasperated and even overwhelmed as he endured hours of questioning, but sources close to Harry say it is worth it to the prince, who has said it is his life’s mission to change the media landscape. On Wednesday, he admitted that he was taking legal action “as a way to stop the abuse, intrusion, and hate that was coming towards me and my wife.” A day earlier, he singled out TV presenter and journalist Piers Morgan, who Harry claims has subjected him and his wife, Meghan Markle, to a barrage of abuse and harassment. “Harry is a man on a mission, and he wants to see change,” says a second source who knows him well.

[From Vanity Fair]

At this point, I just read everything as a threat. Honestly, it feels like the British media and the Windsors are on the same page about that too: they want actual harm to come to Prince Harry, they WANT things to “not end well” for him. Of course, they also just want Harry’s many lawsuits to end badly, as in: they want Harry to lose all of his lawsuits. William and Charles want to continue on with the arrangements they already have with the press. They like the status quo. The status quo has gotten them here, to this moment, where the Windsors and the British press can all live in a contented bubble of delusion of their own importance and significance. They all believe that if they simply repeat a thing enough times – “Harry is wrong, Harry is miserable, Harry would love to come back” – then it will become a fact.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.