The phrase “any publicity is good publicity” seems largely wrong in Rupert Murdoch’s case. The ongoing trial that Prince Harry is fighting along with several other high-profile individuals has taken shocking turns. One of them is that Prince William and the royal family allegedly received a “large sum of money” from Rupert Murdoch to settle the 2020 phone hacking incident. The trial drags on as Prince Harry is not willing to settle out of court.
NGN faces scrutiny as trial goes on
News Group Newspapers continues to get embroiled in the case as Prince Harry brings in more and more evidence to support his claims in court. NGN, controlled by the media mogul Rupert Murdoch, has been under constant scrutiny after Harry decided to take the case to court. The Duke of Sussex refused to settle out of court, unlike thousands of victims of the phone hacking case.
Harry’s legal team could disclose certain documents that would cause a considerable amount of harm to NGN’s reputation. A source familiar with the case reportedly told Daily Beast that a few documents acquired by Harry can cause NGN irreparable harm, “News Group Newspapers (NGN) cannot allow some of those documents to see the light of day.”
Rebekah Brooks is Murdoch’s top newspaper executive in the U.K. She has also turned out to be Harry’s target. NGN argued that the hacking and illicit blagging were limited to their Sunday tabloid News of the World. They denied that the same applied to their top-selling daily, The Sun. Rebekah Brooks was the editor for News of the World from 2000 to 2003 and The Sun from 2003 to 2009. The News of the World’s editor Andy Coulson ended up in jail for 18 months for the criminal case of hacking under his editorship. Andy was the editor from 2003 to 2007. Rebekah Brooks escaped as she was declared not guilty even after being on trial for more serious charges.
Prince Harry and the other litigants have now claimed that the hacking was widespread at The Sun during Brooks’ editorship. In the case involving Andy Coulson, Brooke, and her team had convinced the jury that the phone hacking was never brought to her attention, even though she and Coulson had been lovers for 6 years. The source familiar with Prince Harry’s case claims that lawyers have enough evidence to prove that the hacking was done by The Sun too.
The source questioned Rebekah about running the litigation on this case, “She’s exposed, and what’s strange is that she’s running this litigation. It’s unusual for a company to have someone with an interest having a role in deciding the legal strategy. She’s got a conflict of interest. Is it right for a company and its shareholders to allow someone with a conflict of interest to decide how a case is run?”
Journalist Nick Davies has famously labeled Rebekah as “the beating heart of the Devil.” In his book Hack Attack, he narrates an incident from when he worked for The Guardian. Rebekah threatened his editor, saying she would run a story about him having a love child. The editor did not have a love child at all, but it was a part of the doctrine to “monster” critics of the Murdoch empire.
Netflix has started teasing the sixth and final season of The Crown with the first look at the actors playing a young Prince William and Kate Middleton.
The new images feature a photo of a loved-up, fictionalized Prince William and Middleton holding hands at the University of St Andrews in Scotland, where the real-life couple first began their romance.
Two close-up images of the actors in costume were also released. Middleton, who is appearing as a character for the first time in The Crown, will be played by Meg Bellamy.
Meg Bellamy as a young Kate Middleton in Season 6 of ‘The Crown.’.
Netflix
Prince William will be played by newcomer Ed McVey, who was photographed in what appears to be a lavish-looking living room in one of the royal abodes.
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Ed McVey as a university-aged Prince William in ‘The Crown.’.
Netflix
Netflix even included a cheeky behind-the-scenes snap of the actors posing outside the famous Northpoint Cafe where Middleton and Prince William met in 2001.
Ed McVey and Meg Bellamy stand outside the Northpoint Cafe where Prince Harry and Kate Middleton met.
Netflix
Buzz about the casting for Prince William and Middleton has been circling online for many weeks now, beginning when the actors were first seen filming on location at the University of St Andrews. Many social media users shared footage of the production online.
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The Crown follows the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth II, who died in September 2022 at the age of 96, having served 70 years on the throne. The new season, which is quickly creeping up on the era of the modern-day monarchy, will in part follow Prince William as he attempts to blend in at university — and begin a romance with his one-day-wife, Middleton.
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The Crown, especially in recent years, isn’t without its critics. As the dramatized royal story pushes closer and closer to modern times, some have complained the production is too sensationalized.
In an open letter to The Times UK last year, Oscar-winning actor Judi Dench wrote that The Crown presents “an inaccurate and hurtful account of history.”
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“Indeed, the closer the drama comes to our present times, the more freely it seems willing to blur the lines between historical accuracy and crude sensationalism,” wrote Dench.
She worried audiences, particularly overseas, may take The Crown as truth.
At the time, Netflix responded and claimed The Crown “is a fictional dramatisation, imagining what could have happened behind closed doors during a significant decade for the Royal Family – one that has already been scrutinised and well-documented by journalists, biographers and historians.”
An official synopsis of the 10-episode final season reads: “As The Crown enters a new decade, Prince William starts at university in St. Andrew’s, determined to lead as normal a life as possible while he still can. Also beginning life as a university student is Kate Middleton from Berkshire. As the pair meet for the first time on campus, a new romance and a new future for The Crown begins.”
In addition to royal romance, new episodes will portray Diana’s tragic 1997 death, as well as other key historical events that may include 9/11; the queen’s Golden Jubilee, celebrating her 50 years on the throne; and the deaths of Princess Margaret and the Queen Mum in 2002.
Returning royal family cast members include Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth, Jonathan Pryce as Prince Phillip, Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana, Dominic West as Prince Charles, Olivia Williams as Camilla Parker-Bowles, Claudia Harrison as Princess Anne, and Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret. Joining the ensemble are Bertie Carvel as Prime Minister Tony Blair, Salim Daw as Mohamed Al Fayed, and Khalid Abdalla as Dodi Fayed, who was dating Princess Diana and died with her in that fatal Paris crash.
The final season will also chronicle much of Prince William and Prince Harry’s adolescence. Luther Ford will play the adult iteration of Harry, while Flynn Edwards has been cast as the younger version. Meanwhile, Rufus Kampa will take on Prince William in earlier episodes.
Now, The Crown viewers look to the future by delving back into the past. “In Season 6, the arrival of William and Kate and Harry just blows the doors off,” series creator Peter Morgansaid last November. “You want to see them. It happened in the read through. You could just see everyone was looking up and looking at each other across the room. And every time William spoke, it was like, ‘Oh my God, this is just riveting.’”
Kate Middleton will choose one of the most significant outfits of her lifetime next week for King Charles and Queen Camilla’s coronation.
The Princess of Wales dropped a clue about what she’ll be wearing to the May 6 ceremony at Westminster Abbey to TV broadcaster Alison Hammond at a royal engagement in Birmingham last week.
Hammond revealed on the U.K.’s “This Morning” show that she asked Kate what she’ll wear with the suggestion: “I’m feeling like you’re gonna wear blue.”
The Princess of Wales speaks with TV presenter Alison Hammond during a visit to The Rectory in Birmingham on April 20.
JACOB KING via Getty Images
The “Great British Bake Off” host said Kate answered: ”‘There is a hint of blue.’ So I was like, fantastic!”
Hammond snapped a selfie with Prince William and Kate, writing “These two are everything!!”
“Thanks for popping by in Birmingham,” she captioned the photo of the three smiling. “Next time dinner at my place.”
“Always fun Alison, it’s always fun!” the Prince and Princess of Wales’ Instagram account replied in the comments.
William and Kate will attend the coronation alongside their eldest son, Prince George, who has a role as one of Charles’ pages of honor at the service. It’s unclear whether the couple’s younger children, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, will attend.
Prince Harry is set to make the trip across the pond for Charles’ coronation, Buckingham Palace and Archewell havce confirmed to HuffPost. Meghan Markle will remain home in California, as it is the couple’s son Archie’s fourth birthday.
Harry and Meghan were spotted together on Monday at the Los Angeles Lakers game, where cameras caught them laughing and smiling on what appeared to be a date night.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex attend a basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Memphis Grizzlies at Crypto.com arena on April 24.
Prince Harry will be attending his father, King Charles’ coronation ceremony on May 6. Even though the King has reciprocated Harry’s efforts to amend their relationship, experts believe the rest of the royals will give Harry the cold shoulder on his visit to the UK.
Experts reveal there will be no scope for reconciliation
Ever since the Buckingham Palace spokesperson announced that Prince Harry would attend the coronation without Meghan, people have been wondering if Harry will use this chance as an opportunity to mend his relations with his family. Christopher Andersen, author of the book “The King,” mentioned how he doesn’t think this meeting will prove as a chance for reconciliation between Harry and the Royals. “My guess is that Harry will be treated like something of a pariah and that he is well aware of that,” Andersen said.
He continued, “So, you have to give him credit for being willing to show up anyway. There is a humiliation factor here. Watching the other royals share center stage with the king and queen while he is probably going to be shunted aside – this will likely be painful and incredibly frustrating for Harry. I have a feeling that even Prince Andrew will be afforded better treatment and shown more respect by the crown – that’s how deep the animosity toward the Sussexes runs in royal circles these days.”
Sources have also reported that the members of the royal family have no interest in chit-chatting with Harry “beyond the most basic of greetings.” It was also reported that Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie might be the only ones showing Harry any love.
Anderson continued to explain, “Harry knows that he’s just going to have to follow his grandmother’s ‘keep calm and carry on’ motto. He’ll have to just grit his teeth and get through it. I fully expect Harry to be sidelined and snubbed. We can look forward to lots of photographs of Harry standing alone, looking downcast and grim, even visibly seething.”
Author Cristopher Anderson explained how people might be affectionate towards Harry while keeping in mind that he is Princess Diana’s younger son and how there might be hostility towards the crown because of the anti-monarchist movement. He said, “There will almost certainly be boos from the crowd, but let’s not forget that there is still some lingering affection among the people for Diana’s younger son. And I expect there will be some catcalls aimed in the direction of Andrew, Camilla, and even Charles as well. Like it or not, there is a growing anti-monarchist movement in Great Britain, and they are becoming increasingly vocal.”
Kinsey Schofield, the host of the “To Di For Daily” podcast, has also claimed that it was Charles’ wish that Harry attend the coronation, and Harry is well aware of his duty, which is why we will be seeing the 38-year-old Prince at the historic event.
On Friday morning, King Charles III suited up in his full military uniform to attend the 200th Sovereign’s Parade, the annual ceremony at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst honoring the recently commissioned officer cadets, for the first time since he became monarch last September. During the event, he carried a ceremonial scepter and presented a new banner that will be flown alongside the one representing Queen Elizabeth II. In a speech to 171 officer cadets who completed 44 weeks of intensive training, he emphasized the royal family’s close ties to Sandhurst and military service.
Addressing the cadets and their families, Charles mentioned the emotions he felt when his two sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, both completed the grueling training course in 2006. “Speaking as a father of two alumni of this Academy who remembers their passing out parades, I know they will be full of immense pride in witnessing you on parade,” he said. Both Charles and the late queen were present for the Sovereign’s Parade when Harry and William finished their training.
In the 1970s, Charles served in both the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy, eventually completing training courses at Royal Air Force College Cranwell and Royal Naval College Dartmouth. While speaking to the cadets, he mentioned his own experiences. “Having attended—and survived— two of the other military academies 50 years ago, I think I have some idea of the challenges which are inherent in military training,” he said. “I have experienced the nerves, the exhaustion—even the self-doubt – but, despite such recollections, it is the lifelong friendships which are forged through shared hardship, and the humor that you find in the darkest hours of the coldest, wettest nights, which remain with you.”
Earlier this week, Harry confirmed that he would be present for his father’s coronation on May 6, though he will not be accompanied by Meghan Markle or the couple’s two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. Sources close to the couple told the Times that the couple understood they would have faced criticism whether Meghan attended or not. ““It is important for Harry as the King’s son to show up for his father,” one source told the newspaper. “That seems quite genuine.”
As for Charles, sources told the Telegraph that he is “generally quite forgiving” and is pleased that both his sons will attend the event. “There’s a warmth around the place and a proper rallying around the King, who in turn is showing some serious [emotional intelligence] by ensuring the family is given the opportunity to pull together,” added a friend of Charles.
For the first Easter Sunday since the death of Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles III and Queen Camilla led a large contingent of the royal family for traditional services at St. George Chapel in Windsor. the day marked the first time Prince Louis, who will turn 5 on April 23, attended the service alongside his parents, Prince William and Princess Kate, and his siblings, Prince George and Princess Charlotte. Best known for his scene-stealing facial expressions at last year’s Platinum Jubilee, Louis was more subdued this time around, but he did wear one accessory that gave a little insight into his personality: a navy tie embroidered with small bicycles.
Easter 2023 took place exactly two years after the funeral of Prince Philip was held in the same church, and James, the 15-year-old son of Prince Edward and his wife Sophie, wore a green tie emblazoned with Land Rovers, a favorite car of the late prince. Philip owned an array of Land Rovers throughout his life and he spent nearly two decades designing the green Land Rover hearse that carried him through Windsor Home Park during his funeral. In March, Edward and Sophie became the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, the title that Philip held after his marriage to the late queen, and James is now the Earl of Wessex, the title Edward was given when he married Sophie in 1999.
From left: Prince George of Wales, Prince William, Prince of Wales, Princess Charlotte of Wales, Prince Louis of Wales and Catharine, Princess of Wales attend the Easter Mattins Service at Windsor Castle.Photo by Yui Mok – WPA Pool/Getty Images.
Both Kate and Camilla wore bright royal blue tones, matching with Charles in a more subdued royal blue suit. Kate first wore her Catherine Walker & Co coat dress to the 2022 Commonwealth day service. Unusually, she also wore bright red nail polish. The royal procession into the service also included Prince Andrew, Princess Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank, Princess Beatrice and her husband, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, and Princess Anne.
The sixth and final season of The Crown is currently underway, and two of its most important subjects have finally been revealed. New photos of Ed McVey and Meg Bellamy, who play college-aged versions of Prince William and Kate Middleton, respectively, have surfaced as they film what appears to be the royal couple’s first meeting.
McVey and Bellamy, both relative newcomers, were spotted filming in St Andrews, Scotland, the spot where William and Kate met in 2001 while studying at the University of St Andrews, on March 17. In the photos, McVey’s William inquisitively looks up at Kate as she passes by, hinting that this could be their first moment running into one another.
ST ANDREWS, SCOTLAND – MARCH 17: Actor Ed McVey, as Prince William and actress Meg Bellamy who plays Kate Middleton are seen during filming for the next season of The Crown on March 17, 2023 in St Andrews, Scotland. The sixth series of the drama, based on the real lives of the recent British monarchy, is set in St Andrews where the Prince and Princess of Wales met whilst studying at University. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images
Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images
“When I first met Kate, I knew there was something very special about her, and then I knew there was possibly something I wanted to explore there, but we ended up being friends for a while,” William said during the couple’s 2010 engagement interview with ITV News. “That was a good sort of foundation. I do genuinely believe now that being friends with [each other] is a massive advantage.”
Years before their 2011 wedding at London’s Westminster Abbey, which was watched by some 72 million people, William and Kate “took a break” following graduation. “I at the time wasn’t very happy about it, but actually it made me a stronger person” Kate said during the same interview. “You find out things about yourself that maybe you hadn’t realized—I think you can get quite consumed by a relationship when you’re younger—and I really valued that time for me, as well.”
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s courtship is one of several subjects that will be explored in the final installment of Netflix’s Emmy-winning series on the heels of the splashy fifth season. Most notably, new episodes will chronicle Diana’s tragic 1997 death. Rufus Kampa has been cast as a slightly more junior version of William, who was just 15 years old when his mother died in a car accident. Other storylines may include 9/11; the queen’s Golden Jubilee, celebrating her 50 years on the throne; and the deaths of Princess Margaret and the Queen Mum in 2002.
Returning royal family cast members include Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth, Jonathan Pryce as Prince Phillip, Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana, Dominic West as Prince Charles, Olivia Williams as Camilla Parker-Bowles, and Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret.
The Crown’s final season will be released amidst turmoil within the monarchy, including the release of Prince Harry’s bombshell memoir Spare and the death of Queen Elizabeth II. When the monarch died, the series paused production in honor of her. Series creator Peter Morgan also issued this statement about his show’s real-life inspiration: “The Crown is a love letter to her and I’ve nothing to add for now, just silence and respect.”
Last year, Kate Middleton got a few new titles, including the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall. But at a St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Aldershot on Friday, Prince William revealed another new name when he called her “Colonel Catherine.” In December, she took over for William as the regiment’s colonel after King Charles III named him the new Colonel of the Welsh Guards.
In a speech at the event, William referenced the handover and his history at the event. “On this, my 13th and final St. Patrick’s Day as colonel, not only am I saddened that I’ll likely fail once again to finish a pint of Guinness… but I am also sad that I won’t in future see more of you, the families, whose unwavering support enables these outstanding men and women to do what they do,” he said. “I may be stepping aside, but in Colonel Catherine, you have a committed, focused, and already incredibly loyal 11th colonel.”
Kate, wearing a turquoise suit by Catherine Walker, also gave some remarks about her new duty. “I really couldn’t be prouder to stand in front of you here today. It really is a true honor to be your Colonel. I am here to listen to you, to support you, and to champion you in all you do – this is a responsibility I do not take lightly,” she said. “I look forward to spending more time with you and your families, seeing your commitment to duty and service in all you do.”
During the event, she also wore a piece of familiar shamrock brooch that represents the royal regiment. According to jewelry expert Maxwell Stone of Steven Stone, the brooch is usually loaned to a royal woman by the Irish Guards. “Believed to have been designed by Cartier, the piece is made from 18 carat yellow gold and features a tiny, single emerald at the center of the textured leaves,” he said. “Previously worn by the Queen Mother and Princess Anne, Kate has worn the brooch on several visits to Northern Ireland, as well as to St. Patrick’s Day celebrations.”
Catherine, Princess of Wales meets personnel on exercise during her visit to the Irish Guards on Salisbury Plain, on March 8, 2023 in Salisbury, England. By Steve Reigate/WPA Pool/Getty Images.
On March 8, Kate went on her first official engagement as the regiment’s colonel when visited a training center in Salisbury Plain. She even donned a camo suit and joined in the training in the snow. Photos of the engagement were posted to the couple’s Instagram account with a caption reading, “The work of the Irish Guards is as wide-ranging as it is exemplary, from training park rangers on counter-poaching in East Africa to de-mining training for Ukrainian Armed Forces. Fantastic to be with ‘The Micks’ today seeing their hard work (whatever the weather!)”
The Princess of Wales followed her appearance at the award show alongside her husband Prince William with a solo trip to the Oxford House Nursing Home in Slough in Berkshire, England on Tuesday. Once there, the royal met with both staff and residents to learn how the care center is prioritizing the needs of its patients. As it was Mardi Gras, also known as Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day in the UK, Kate also joined some of the nursing home residents in cooking up a stack. However, her pancake-flipping skills proved to be a little bit rusty as her first attempt got stuck to her frying pan and she had to use a spatula to scrape it off before she could flip it over. “I’m sorry,” the princess told her fellow chefs with a laugh in a video shared on Twitter by The Sun‘s Matt Wilkinson. “I haven’t done you justice,” she added.
While she may have struggled with her flip technique, the royal reassured Sheila, one of the residents there, that pancakes have become a signature part of her family’s holiday celebrations. “I either get pancakes stuck on the floor or on the ceiling, but the children are very well and we will be making our own pancakes this evening with the children,” she said, according to a tweet from Isabella Perrin from the Bucks Free Press. While Kate may have downplayed her prowess in the kitchen, in the past Prince William has raved that his wife is a “very good” cook. During a visit to the Together as One charity in January, the royal joined a cooking class teaching young people how to make easy, nutritious meals that won’t break their household budget. During the lesson, the royal was asked about his culinary expertise, to which he replied, “I do a bit of cooking, not much though. Catherine’s very good though.” However, he does have one speciality. “I do a mean steak,” he said, but, “My sauces come out quite dry or lumpy—I’ve got to work on those!”
The royal couple also previously revealed that they spent much of their time in quarantine doing some baking with their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. During a stop at family-owned bakery Smiths The Bakers in King’s Lynn in June 2020, the Prince of Wales revealed, “The children have been attacking the kitchen and it’s just been an explosion of flour and chocolate everywhere.” And it’s not just his three children who were using all that time indoors to hone their skills. William admitted that he’s “done a little bit of baking” as well, and “Catherine’s been doing quite a bit of baking.” He concluded that with all the baked goods being consumed in their home, he was worried “about the waistline of the nation.”
The Prince and Princess of Wales made quite the entrance on the red carpet, with William dressed to the nines in black velvet tuxedo, and Kate in a reworked Alexander McQueen one-shoulder gown and statement black opera gloves. She accessorized the look with large, statement making rose gold earrings and a small black clutch. Kate first wore the Grecian-style gown for the 2019 BAFTAs, with floral detailing on the shoulder.
The couple were all smiles on the carpet, walking side-by-side as they chatted and waved to onlookers before making their way into the awards show.
Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images Photo by Lia Toby/BAFTA/Getty Images for BAFTA
As President of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, William was there to watch the awards before he and Kate met the night’s winners and EE Rising Star nominees.
Photo by Scott Garfitt/BAFTA via Getty Images
The last time the royal couple attended the British film awards was in 2020, prior to the pandemic and Prince Philip’s death, both of which prevented them from attending in the years since. During that year’s ceremony, the two spotted laughing at a joke about Prince Harry made by Best Supporting Actor winner Brad Pitt.
Although the “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” star was not there in person, he still made a memorable impact when his co-star Margot Robbie took the stage to accept his award and read a speech he had written.
“Hey, Britain, heard you just became single, welcome to the club,” she read aloud, before ending Pitt’s speech with a reference to Harry and Meghan Markle‘s exit from the royal family. “He says that he is going to name this Harry because he is really excited about bringing it back to the States with him.”
The camera then cut to William and Kate, who appeared to be tickled by the comment as Robbie exited the stage.
Earlier in the night, Rebel Wilson failed to get the same reaction after she made an awkward reference to both Harry and their disgraced uncle, Prince Andrew. “It is really great to be here at the Royal Andrew… uh, Royal Harry, no, at this Royal Palace place,” she quipped while William and Kate remained neutral after being spotted on camera.
The 2023 BAFTAs, meanwhile, are being hosted by Richard E. Grant. Alison Hammond is interviewing the presenters and winners backstage at the BAFTA Studio. The ceremony is available to stream in the U.S. on BritBox.
It’s easy to say that everyone knows how important childhood is, and Kate’s speeches occasionally trade in platitudes that feel obvious. But in 5 Big Questions, a 2020 project that surveyed Britons about their attitudes about early childhood, Kate and her team found that only 31% of parents understood that the time from zero to five is the most important for brain development. Even though exposure to language and other stimuli is essential during this period, the US and UK both tend to leave parents without guaranteed childcare and educational support until children qualify for reception or kindergarten programs.
Britain’s Catherine, Princess of Wales interacts with children making face masks during her visit to Foxcubs Nursery in Luton, north of London on January 18, 2023, as part of her ongoing work to elevate the importance of early childhood to lifelong outcomes. By JUSTIN TALLIS/Getty Images.
This disconnect seems to be part of what Kate is targeting with her work on child development. “During our very early childhood, our brains develop at an amazing rate—faster than any other time of our lives. Our experiences, relationships, and surroundings at that young age shape the rest of our lives,” she wrote in a January open letter. “But as a society, we currently spend much more of our time and energy on later life. I am absolutely determined that this long-term campaign is going to change that.”
Ipsos UK’s chief executive, Kelly Beaver, who worked with Kate and her team on 5 Big Questions and a follow-up survey project last year, told Vanity Fair that she was surprised by how many people they were able to reach with the Royal Foundation’s assistance. “Going into work with the foundation I didn’t really understand the scale of impact that you could have. I remember them telling me that we will get a huge response to this, and I thought, ‘Well, we’ve done lots of public consultations before. I think you need to manage your expectations,’” she said. “Little did I know. As soon as we put out a date, they immediately built a range of partnerships with organizations to make sure that it reached the general public—partnerships with supermarkets and influencers of all sorts.”
For their first international trip as the Prince and Princess of Wales, Prince William and Kate visited Boston in December to attend the Earthshot Prize ceremony and discuss solutions for climate change, which has emerged as one of the future king’s main issues. Though Kate watched as he delivered his opening speech, she did get one opportunity to be the center of the spotlight during the trip. While William met with President Joe Biden, Kate was across the city at Harvard, where she met with the private university’s president, Lawrence Bacow, his wife, Adele Fleet Bacow, and several experts at the school’s prestigious Center on the Developing Child. Research that came from the center helped underpin the Royal Foundation’s first report on early childhood education in the UK, and the center’s ideas about brain development and plasticity seem to have shaped Kate’s personal understanding of the issues, so they had plenty to talk about.
Royal women have long had a philanthropic association with women and children, but before now it was not the type of work that would guarantee an audience with the president of Harvard. In the early 19th century, that meant Queen Adelaide using her royal largesse to fund schools, hospitals, and orphanages, while sending out individual donations to destitute or ill people who wrote her letters. For the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret, it meant filling their working days with visits to children’s hospitals or places like Barnardo’s, a charity for vulnerable children where Margaret served as a patron.
On the surface, Kate is still doing traditional Windsor-style engagements, but she is suiting them to her skills—knowing her briefing books, exuding a quiet confidence, making people feel comfortable—and the needs of modern media. For the last century, royal spouses have had to walk a fine line between being their spouse’s supporting act while also building a portfolio large enough to justify their royal role. Kate, the first university graduate to hold the title of Princess of Wales, has spent the last half-decade building up the type of résumé that would allow her to feel at home in a room full of experts.
For Princess Diana, the royal role entailed using her charisma to make someone’s day, while also bringing attention to social issues in the press. Though Diana did occasionally wear a Harvard sweater in the streets of London, she didn’t often visit with university professors or research scientists in academic settings as a focus of her work. That said, Kate is following the playbook that Diana established for making sure her work had an impact. Princess Diana began her time as a royal pursuing more traditional patronage roles for organizations connected to Wales, children, and music. According to Tina Brown, teenage trips to volunteer at a local mental hospital were formative for her, and eventually she gravitated toward hospital visits and fundraising once she became a mother herself.
After a few years away from the BAFTA red carpet, Prince William and Kate Middleton will be present at the Royal Festival Hall to celebrate the best in British TV and film on February 19. Variety reports that the couple’s attendance was confirmed only in the last few days, adding that they will watch the show from the audience before meeting with performers and winners backstage. This year’s nominees include Cate Blanchett, who is a member of the Earthshot Prize board alongside William.
He and Kate have been a regular presence on the BAFTA red carpet for the last decade, but their last appearance at the ceremony took place in February 2020, when Brad Pitt told a joke about Prince Harry that elicited a laugh from the royal couple. Though an in-person event was held in 2021, William dropped out after the death of Prince Philip, and in 2022, he declined to attend due to “diary constraints.”
William took over as the president of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts in 2010, and in the years since, he has used his speeches at their events to discuss the value of mentorship and diversity in the industry. In April 2022, he and Kate hired the organization’s longtime CEO, Amanda Berry, to serve as the head of the Royal Foundation, the registered charity that oversees their philanthropic ventures. Last month, Kate visited the BAFTA headquarters to launch a short film for her new early years campaign, Shaping Us.
The news comes just days after a source close to the royal household told People that William is still upset with his brother after the revelations in the memoir, Spare. “William is the one who is most upset and needs time to calm down,” the source said.
Prince William and Princess Kate helped their local community this week by volunteering at a food bank.
On Thursday, the Prince and Princess of Wales traveled to the Windsor Foodshare—not far from their new home of Adelaide Cottage—to draw attention to the challenges people face during these more difficult winter months. Once there, the couple helped other volunteers sort food donations and get packages ready to be picked up later that day. However, it seems that one royal was slightly more gifted at divvying up the food stuffs and preparing those shipments than the other. Sarah Kember, the manager of Windsor Foodshare, jokingly told People, “They did alright,” before adding, “One was better than the other, but I won’t say which.” It seems that William may have been taking his duties a little more seriously than his wife considering at once point he interrupted the princess to say, “Excuse me, too much nattering going on over here!” causing the group she was chatting with to erupt in laughter.
While helping out, William and Kate also pushed around shopping carts, filling them up with produce to bag up for these families in need. Kember added, “They were just so friendly. We found them so open and putting us at ease. They were comfortable in everything they were doing. They’re such a lovely couple.” The manager continued, “They wanted to be involved, they wanted to be hands-on and not just come and see what we were doing. They asked, ‘Can we physically get involved and do stuff?’ I’m more than happy for more hands to help.” The pair also teased that they could return in the near future. Kember said, “They’ve been invited, and if I’m short of volunteers, I know where to go!”
The royal couple was there to help Windsor Foodshare commemorate its 10th anniversary. The organization provides short-term weekly help in the form of non-perishable foods, as well as bread, eggs, fresh fruit, and vegetables, to any local household in need. Once a month, the food bank also provides toiletries and cleaning products, as well as running a home delivery service for people whose mobility is impaired or for those who do not have access to transportation.
William and Kate also met with those responsible for running the organization and were informed of the food bank’s key principles, which include treating any potential clients as equals and not judging their circumstances. The charity’s clients are typically referred to them from a wide range of place, including schools, doctors, social services, churches, and community wardens. And although the neighborhood surrounding Windsor Castle may be relatively well-off, Windsor Foodshare informed the royals that the rising cost of living has recently caused a sharp up-tick in the number of people using their services. Last year, the charity helped feed over 7,000 local residents, an increase of 18% from the year prior.
Prince Harry has angered many inside the palace with the disclosures in his memoir, Spare, but his decision to include a conversation between Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton in the run-up to Harry and Meghan’s wedding could be the most controversial. In describing the now-infamous bridesmaid’s dress incident, Harry included a few terse words from Kate about how Princess Charlotte cried over her ill-fitting dress, along with a few responses from Meghan looking for a solution.
Last week, sources close to Prince William told Vanity Fair that he was angry that Harry had turned on Kate, whom he was once close with, and for revealing that Charlotte was in tears. This week, a royal insider told Us Weekly that Buckingham Palace “does not love” that the private messages have been made public. “They claim it’s just part of the story, and in any event, it’s egregious of Harry to publish these abbreviated excerpts,” the insider continued, adding that the texts “clearly show that there are two sides” to every story. “Harry feels strongly it’s important to get the true account of what happened out there.”
It’s worth noting that in Spare, Harry doesn’t say he is sharing any text messages verbatim, only the fact that Kate and Meghan had texted about the issue with the dresses. Then, he writes, “They set up a time to speak that afternoon.” The words that follow, which some outlets have quoted as text messages, are actually snippets from the conversation that Harry subsequently implies he didn’t witness. The confusion seems to stem from a Page Six report from the day before the book was released, and a subsequent Daily Mail graphic that recreated them onto an iPhone to illustrate the story.
Still, it’s clear that Harry is unveiling the details of private conversations, which has been the main driver of criticism against him. Now, conversation about the bridesmaid incident is growing exponentially. We even got some input from Ajay Mirpuri, the tailor on standby to alter the dresses, who told the Daily Mail that he didn’t see a fight but did fix all six dresses. Obviously, thrumming underneath the outcry about certain segments of the book is a real frustration that we’re litigating all of this again. Let’s call this “bridesmaid-incident fatigue.”
It’s understandable to feel tired of this by now. It all happened a long time ago, and Meghan and Harry will be celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary in May. The world didn’t first hear hints about the incident until six months after their wedding, and Vanity Fair’s first article about the controversy ran over 1,500 days ago, in November 2018. In his interview with ITV’s Tom Bradby earlier this month, Harry had a fairly straightforward reason for rehashing it again. “There’s been over 25 versions of that story now,” he said, but for years, they weren’t disputed by the palace. “My understanding is the reason they didn’t want to come out and say it wasn’t true would therefore lead to, Well, if it wasn’t that, was it the other way round? When, in fact, you didn’t need to confess that it was the other way round.”
In the book, Harry expands on his motivations for sharing the story, and based on his explanation, there’s a case to be made that the bridesmaids incident is actually the crucial moment for understanding why Harry is so angry at his family, specifically William, King Charles III, and Queen Consort Camilla. It’s less about the substance of the incident itself—of course, it’s not at all vital to know about Charlotte’s original reaction to the dress—but about who knew it happened and how it got out.
In Spare, Harry first tells the story of the initial conversation, then says that later he “arrived home and found Meg on the floor sobbing,” adding that Kate visited the next day “with flowers and a card that said she was sorry.” He returns to the event later, after the original story that mentioned it ran in The Telegraph. Harry writes that Meghan hadn’t read the story but she did hear about it, and it upset her that the story claimed that she made Kate cry when the opposite was true. “As long as I live,” he writes, “I’ll never forget the tone of her voice as she looked me in the eye and said: Haz, I made her cry? I made HER cry?”
After the official release of Prince Harry‘s explosive memoir Spare earlier this week and the high-octane press cycle surrounding it, the royal family returned to business as usual on Thursday.
King Charles took a trip to Aberdeenshire, Scotland to pay a visit to the Aboyne and Mid Deeside Community Shed, located not too far from the monarch’s Birkhall home. This community space hosts workshops, art events, craft nights, and other events aimed at promoting the well-being of the surrounding area. The organization also hopes to combat rural isolation by offering a place where people can meet and build relationships with one another. For the visit, King Charles donned a traditional green kilt which he paired with a matching striped tie and brown tweed blazer and vest to tour the community center and meet with some of the well-wishers gathered outside.
The monarch wasn’t the only one who returned to business as usual on Thursday, Prince William and Princess Kate also stepped out for their first official event of the year in Liverpool, England. The royal couple ventured out to bring attention to the important work being done by healthcare and mental health support services in the city and personally thank them for their continued care of the public. William and Kate started off their trip with a visit to the new Royal Liverpool University Hospital where they waved to the crowds awaiting them there, but did not answer any questions from reporters related to Prince Harry’s memoir.
The Royal Liverpool University Hospital just opened in October 2022, replacing the previous facility that had served the city for 40 years. This new complex has 640 beds, including 40 critical care beds earmarked specifically for patients in the intensive care and high-dependency units, making it the biggest hospital in the UK to provide all patients with single en-suite bedrooms. It also houses many specialist services with a focus on complex planned care. Some of the staff there were meeting Prince William for a second time as he’d previously chatted with members of the hospital’s critical care team over a video call three years ago in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
While there has been no official comment on the release of Spare and the stories it contains, according to sources, the royal family is said to be in shock at the extent to which Harry has divulged private family details and conversations in his book. William is reportedly so angry that he can’t speak to his brother. Charles, meanwhile, is said to be “deeply hurt,” according to a family friend who spoke to Vanity Fair. That same insider added that Queen Consort Camilla is “astounded” by Harry’s allegations that she planted stories in the press to rehabilitate her own image at the expense of him and Meghan.
Prince Harry has given the world access to his own life like no royal ever has before – and not just through his new memoir Spare.
The Duke of Sussex has gone on a bombshell-filled media tour to promote his autobiography, from an intense 90 minutes with ITV to a tequila-fuelled more light-hearted appearance on “The Late Show.”
Here’s a round-up of some of the most insightful things the royal said.
Prince Harry, left, speaking during an interview with ITV’s Tom Bradby for the programme Harry: The Interview.
1. Harry accused some royals of ‘getting into bed with the devil’
“After many, many years of lies being told about me and my family, there comes a point where again, going back to the relationship between certain members of the family and the tabloid press, those certain members have decided to get into bed with the devil,” the Duke claimed.
“If you need to do that, or you want to do that, you choose to do that – well, that is a choice. That’s up to you.
“But the moment that rehabilitation comes at the detriment of others – me, other members of my family – then that’s where I draw the line.”
2. Harry denies that he ever suggested the Royal Family was racist
When Bradby noted that the Duke of Sussex had “accused members of your family of racism” in the Winfrey interview, Harry pushed back.
“No, I didn’t. The British press said that,” Harry said. “Did Meghan ever mention that they’re racist?”
Bradby mentioned Meghan’s revelation that “there were troubling comments about Archie’s skin colour”.
“There was concern about his skin colour,” Harry replied.
“Right. Wouldn’t you describe that as essentially racist?” Bradby followed up.
“I wouldn’t,” Harry said. “Not having lived within that family.”
“The difference between racism and unconscious bias, the two things are different,” he continued. “But once it’s been acknowledged, or pointed out to you as an individual, or as an institution, that you have unconscious bias, you therefore have an opportunity to learn and grow from that in order so that you are part of the solution rather than part of the problem. Otherwise, unconscious bias then moves into the category of racism.”
3. Harry wants Charles and William ‘back’
Harry says he wants “a family, not an institution”, and says “they’ve shown absolutely no willingness to reconcile”.
He also talks about King Charles and Prince William. “I would like to get my father back,” he says. “I would like to have my brother back.”
But, Harry added, “At the moment, I don’t recognise them,” he said of his father and brother, noting: “As much as they probably don’t recognise me.”
4. William ordered Harry to shave his beard off for his wedding
The Duke revealed that his older sibling had ordered him to go clean shaven for his 2018 wedding.
He explained: “I think there’s a level of competition there. I remembered that William had a beard himself and that Granny, and other people, the ones to tell him – told him that he had to shave it off.”
He said the difference was that the beard was “a shield to my anxiety” – but that he thought William still “found it hard that other people told him to shave it off”.
5. Harry and Meghan ‘love’ Lady Susan Hussey
Hussey, a former royal aide, was criticised last year for making racist comments towards charity boss Ngozi Fulani at the Palace, and subsequently stepped down.
Harry touched on the incident in his interview and said he was “very happy” that the Palace had organised a reconciliatory meeting between the two parties, as he and Meghan “love Susan Hussey”.
He added: “And I also know that what she meant – she never meant any hard at all. But the response from the British press, and from people online because of the stories that they wrote was horrendous.”
He said he and Meghan had only ever wanted the same kind of “accountability” from the royals – but pointed out the Palace had not even introduced the diversity tsar they had promised to back in 2021.
“I’ve always been open to wanting to help them understand their part in it, and especially when you are the monarchy – you have a responsibility, and quite rightly people hold you to a higher standard than others.”
6. Harry’s fury over Jeremy Clarkson’s column – and the Palace’s inaction
Clarkson faced a widespread backlash in December when he wrote in an opinion column for The Sun that he “hates” the Duchess of Sussex on a “cellular level”.
Speaking to ITV, the Duke of Sussex brought up the piece of his own accord while discussing “accountability”.
Harry said: “Not only was what he said horrific, and is hurtful and cruel towards my wife, but it also encourages other people around the UK, and around the world – men particularly – to think that it’s acceptable to treat women that way.
“To use my stepmother’s words recently as well, there is a global pandemic of violence against women.”
He also said he was frustrated by the royals’ silence, while his wife continues to receive criticism from the press. He said: “The world is asking for some form of comment from the monarchy but the silence is deafening. To put it mildly.
“Everything to do with my wife, after six years, they haven’t said a single thing.”
7. Harry defends writing about his family
On why now felt like the right time to write his memoir, Harry told Bradby: “38 years of having my story told by so many different people with intentional spin and distortion felt like a good time to own my story and be able to tell it for myself.
“You know, I don’t, I don’t think that if I was still part of the institution that I would have been given this chance to.
“So, I’m actually really grateful that I’ve had the opportunity to tell my story because it’s my story to tell.”
Asked what his brother would have to say after reading Spare, Harry continued: “He’d probably say all sorts of different things.
“But you know, for the last however many years, let’s just focus on the last six years, the level of planting and leaking from other members of the family means that in my mind they have written countless books – certainly millions of words have been dedicated to trying to trash my wife and myself to the point of where I had to leave my country.”
8. Harry rejects claims he has burnt his bridges
Bradby put to Harry that he’d not so much “burned bridges” with his family as “taken a flamethrower to them”, although that’s now how the Duke saw it.
“Silence only allows the abuser to abuse. I’m not sure how honesty is burning bridges,” he replied.
9. Harry is still hopeful of a family reconciliation
“I genuinely believe, and I hope, that reconciliation between my family and us will have a ripple effect across the entire world,” he said. “Maybe that’s lofty, maybe that’s naïve, whatever. But I genuinely feel that.
“And knowing the monarchy as I know it from something that I was brought up in, for me it’s always been about uniting people.”
However, he added: “They’ve shown absolutely no willingness to reconcile up until this point.”
10. Harry said the royals ‘stereotyped’ Meghan
Harry said William and Kate never got on with Meghan “from the get-go”, and that there was “a lot” of stereotyping her as a “divorced biracial American actress”.
Anderson Cooper: 60 Minutes, CBS
Harry sat down with Anderson Cooper for the show, 60 Minutes
CBS Photo Archive via Getty Images
11. Harry says he was ‘probably bigoted’ before meeting Meghan
The Duke was touching on the struggles many newcomers to the royal family face when he said: “What Meghan had to go through, in some part, was similar to what Kate and Camilla went through.”
However, he added that the women faced “very different circumstances”.
“But then you add in the race element, which was what the press – the British press – jumped on straightaway. I went into this incredibly naive.
“I had no idea the British press were so bigoted. How I was probably bigoted before the relationship with Meghan.”
“You think you were bigoted before the relationship with Meghan?” Cooper pressed.
“I don’t know,” Harry answered. “Put it this way – I didn’t see what I now see.”
12. Harry didn’t believe Diana was actually dead ‘for a long time’
He said for “many many years” he did not believe she had actually died, adding: “I refused to accept she was gone.”
13. Harry claimed again that Palace leak royal stories
Harry spoke about leaks to the press and the royal family’s motto of “never complain, never explain”, while claiming that some royal correspondents are “spoon-fed information” to write stories.
“At the bottom of it, they will say that they’ve reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment. But the whole story is Buckingham Palace commenting,” he told Cooper. “So when we’re being told for the last six years, ‘We can’t put a statement out to protect you’ – but you do it for other members of the family. There becomes a point when silence is betrayal.”
14. He has no plans to return as a full-time member of the royal family
The Duke of Sussex also gave a firm “no” when Cooper asked in a separate clip if he would ever return as a full-time member of the royal family.
15. Harry admits he has not spoken to Camilla, Charles or William recently
Harry said that he and Camilla “haven’t spoken for a long time”.
Asked if he was texting William, Harry replied: “Currently, no. But I look forward to – I look forward to us being able to find peace.”
“How long has it been since you spoke?” Cooper said.
“A while,” the Duke of Sussex answered.
He gave a similar answer when asked about communication with his father. “We aren’t – we haven’t spoken for quite a while. Um, no, not recently.”
16. He gave a confusing depiction of his relationship with Camilla
Talking about her supposed closeness with the media, he said: “She was the villain. She was the third person in their marriage. She needed to rehabilitate her image.
“That made her dangerous because of the connections she was forging within the British press. And there was open willingness on both sides to trade information.”
However, he also said: “I love every member of my family, despite the differences. So, when I see her, we’re perfectly pleasant with each other,” he said with a smile. “She’s my stepmother. I don’t look at her as an evil stepmother.”
“I see someone who has married into this institution and done everything that she can to improve her reputation and her own image, for her own sake,” he continued.
17. Harry says he and Meghan will apologise for any wrongdoing
When Cooper asked if the “rupture” between Harry and Meghan and the rest of the royal family could be healed, the Duke answered “absolutely”.
“The ball is very much in their court,” he explained. “Meghan and I have continued to say that we will openly apologise for anything that we did wrong, but every time we ask that question, no one’s telling us the specifics or anything. There needs to be a constructive conversation, one that can happen in private that doesn’t get leaked.”
18. The Duke dismissed the idea of giving up royal titles
“Why not renounce your titles as Duke and Duchess?” Cooper also asked Harry directly.
“And what difference would that make?” Harry retorted.
19. Harry was not invited to share the plane which took royals to see Queen before her death
Harry arrived several hours after his relatives in Scotland, where the Queen died, despite also being in the south of England when his family left to see the dying matriarch.
He claimed: “I asked my brother – I said, ‘What are your plans? How are you and Kate getting up there?’ And then, a couple of hours later, you know, all of the family members that live within the Windsor and Ascot area were jumping on a plane together, a plane with 12, 14, maybe 16 seats.
Prince Harry: In His Own Words with Michael Strahan, ABC
Prince Harry during an interview with “Good Morning America” co-host Michael Strahan in Los Angeles.
20. Queen was not angry about him leaving royal life
The Queen never told Harry she was angry about him changing role, according to the royal.
He said he thought she was “sad” about it, but “it was never a surprise to anybody, least of all to her”.
“She knew what was going on. She knew how hard it was. She never said to me that she was angry. I think she was sad that it got to that point.”
21. Diana would be ‘heartbroken’ if she knew about the brothers’ rift
“I think she would be heartbroken about the fact that William, his office were part of these [negative] stories,” he said. “I think she’d be looking at it long-term to know that there are certain things that we need to go through to be able to heal the relationship.”
22. Harry admitted partial responsibility to relationship breakdown with William
Strahan asked if Harry had any responsibility for the breakdown of the relationship with his brother. The Duke of Sussex replied: “Without question, I’m sure.”
“But what people don’t know is the efforts I’ve gone to to resolve this privately,” he continued. “Both with my brother and with my father.”
23. Harry refutes the idea that the book would make rift worse
“I thought about it long and hard, and as far as I see it the divide couldn’t be greater before this book.”
23. Harry’s not ‘angry any more’
The royal said: “I am exactly where I am supposed to be.” But he admitted that not reconciling with his family would be “very sad”.
If that were the case, Harry said, he would focus on his life and family in California.
24. Sussexes would support the Commonwealth
Harry ruled out the possibility of returning to the UK as a working royal, explaining: “Even if there was an agreement or an arrangement between me and my family, there is that third party that is going to do everything they can to make sure that that isn’t possible.”
That was presumably an allusion to the UK press.
He added: “If there was something in the future where we can continue to support the Commonwealth, then that’s of course on the table.”
He also revealed that he made a “hybrid” proposal for Sussexes to split time between Canada and UK but there was no compromise. He said this was “really sad because I still to this day believe that this was entirely possible”.
25. Harry said he was speaking out to help protect other royal children
He said his role in the line of succession was “used against me for a long part of my life”, and that he worries about other “young kids” still in the institution.
“There are some people, especially in the UK, who have been led to believe that because you are a member of the royal family, somehow everyone owns you or has a stake in you,” he said.
“And that’s a message that has been purely pushed out by the British tabloids, and it creates real problems within that family and that relationship.”
Harry added: “Of course, there has to be some sort of relationship, but where it’s got too now is incredibly unhealthy.”
He said he hoped he could help future generations. “I also worry about other young kids within that family if this continues,” he said.
26. Harry refuted claims he sees Camilla as ‘evil stepmother’
He said: “I love every member of my family… so when I see her we’re perfectly pleasant with each other.
“She’s my stepmother. I don’t see her as an evil stepmother, I think she’s someone who married into this institution and done everything she can to improve her own reputation, her own image, for her own sake.”
27. Harry rejected hypocrisy claims
Strahan pointed out: “There are going to be people who say ‘Why don’t they either be in or get out, because if you get out there’s no hypocrisy’.”
Harry said: “I can’t ever get out and I’m incredibly aware of my position.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the life that I’ve had and continue to live.
“But there’s no version of me being ever able to get out of this. I was stunned that my family would allow security to be taken away, especially at the most vulnerable point for us.”
He added that writing the book was his only way to protect his family by correcting mistruths: “I fully accept that writing a book is feeding the beast anyway.”
28. Harry ‘genuinely’ believes in the monarchy still
But, he called for it to be reformed and modernised, saying: “I think the same process that I went through regarding my own unconscious bias would be hugely beneficial to them.
“It’s not racism, but unconscious bias if not confronted, if not acknowledged, if not learned and grown from, that can then move into racism.”
People magazine cover
29. Diana is his ‘guardian angel’
“I struggled for years to accept or even speak about my mother’s death. I was unable to process that she was gone. I’m not sure anyone can ever truly have closure when they lose a parent, or anyone for that matter, especially when that grief may be the only thing left of them,” he told People.
“The healing process has allowed me to get to a place where I now feel the presence of my mum more than ever before. She’s with me all the time – my guardian angel.”
30. He wants his kids to have a relationship with the royals
“I’ve said before that I’ve wanted a family, not an institution – so of course, I would love nothing more than for our children to have relationships with members of my family, and they do with some, which brings me great joy,” he said.
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, CBS
Harry with host Stephen Colbert during a taping of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”.
31. Prince Harry blasts ‘dangerous lie’ he ‘boasted’ about Taliban killings
Harry slammed reports that he “somehow boasted about the number of people that I killed in Afghanistan” and called it “the most dangerous lie”.
“If I heard anyone boasting about that kind of thing, I would be angry. But it’s a lie. And hopefully now that the book is out, people will be able to see the context. It’s really troubling and very disturbing that they can get away with it. They had the context. It wasn’t like, ‘Here’s just one line.’”
Harry told Colbert that “the reason why I decided to share this in my book” was to “reduce the number of suicides” in the soldier and veteran communities.
Harry claimed this was a dangerous lie because it makes you “an increased target”, alleging this was a “choice” the media made.
32. Harry ‘fact-checks’ The Crown
The royal confirmed that he watched both “the older stuff and the more recent stuff” aired on the dramatised Netflix series.
Asked if he did any fact-checking, he said: “Yes, I do, actually. Which, by the way, is another reason why it’s so important that history has it right.”
33. Harry believes royals are trying to ‘undermine’ his book
Colbert asked Harry if he believed there was an “active campaign by the rest of your family, by the royal house…to undermine this book”.
The royal replied: “Of course, mainly by the British press.”
Colbert pushed the question again, this time adding if the UK media was “aided and abetted by the Palace”.
He said: “Yes, again, of course. This is the other side of the story, right?
“After 38 years, they have told their side of the story. This is the other side of the story, and there’s a lot in there that, perhaps, makes people feel uncomfortable and scared.”
34. If Diana were still alive, he and William would be in a different place
Harry claimed that if his mother were still alive, his relationship with his brother would be different.
He said: “It’s impossible to say where we would be now, where those relationships would be now, but there is no way that the distance between my brother and I would be the same.”
It is a silence Prince Harry has described in his book as “deafening” but the Royal Family is sticking to a tried and true format as it continues to come under fire in Spare, Harry’s highly anticipated memoir released today.
As queues formed outside central London bookshops ahead of the midnight release, Buckingham Palace was still refusing to comment on the bombshell allegations in Harry’s new book and announced that the king will resume official duties after the holidays with a visit to a community project in Aberdeenshire on Thursday.
There has been no comment on Spare’s release in which Harry writes about how his father was not cut out for solo parenting, that he was never able to grieve his mother’s death, how he and Prince William have been on separate paths since Diana died and his no holds barred account of the rift with his brother. Quoting (from his recollection) private conversations between himself, his brother William and their father King Charles, the extent of the familial rift which caused the late Queen so much distress is laid bare in the 407 pages of Spare.
Harry details physical brawls between him and William and explains that the heir to the throne could not understand Harry’s decision to leave the royal family. He also recounts the now infamous fall out between Meghan and Princess Kate over Princess Charlotte’s bridesmaid dress, revealing that Kate texted Meghan to say that her daughter was in tears because her dress did not fit her and that Kate insisted Meghan had new dresses made days before the wedding.
A seemingly innocuous anecdote about lip gloss also highlights the froideur between Kate and Meghan for the very first time.
The royal family is said to be in shock at the extent to which Harry has divulged private family details and conversations in his book. William is said to be so angry that he cannot speak to his brother while Charles is understood to be “deeply hurt,” according to a family friend. Meanwhile Queen Consort Camilla, who has perhaps suffered the most personal attack, was said by the same source to be “astounded” by Harry’s allegations which include damaging claims that she planted stories in the press to rehabilitate her own image and that the family briefed against him and Meghan.
In the book, Harry writes that while he loves his stepmother and was relieved she was not the “wicked stepmother” he feared she would be, there was a time when he considered Camilla “dangerous” “leaving bodies in the street” as Harry claims, she sought marriage to Prince Charles and ultimately the Crown. During an interview on 60 Minutes on Sunday, he told Anderson Cooper that Camilla was the “third person in the marriage” and he considered her “the villain.”
Insisting that he is now “at peace” with the fact that they are married, Harry also told interviewer Tom Bradby he is happier than ever.
However, The Times recently reported that Harry told publishers he wanted to pull the book after returning to England for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations and seeing how frail his grandmother was. After the Queen died in September, the book was back on.
As Harry continues to promote Spare, the repercussions of his devastating memoir are now becoming apparent. Despite telling Bradby that he hoped for a reconciliation with his family, even suggesting there could be work for him to do in the Commonwealth, he then told Cooper he didn’t think it was “ever going to be possible” to resume his role as a working royal adding that he has not spoken to his father, brother or stepmother “for quite a while.”
Prince Harry is giving an update on his relationship with his father King Charles III and his brother Prince William.
The Duke of Sussex told Anderson Cooper in an interview for “60 Minutes” that he’s currently not in communication with his brother via text, and that he hasn’t spoken to his dad in a “while,” ITV reported.
Cooper questioned, “Do you speak to William now, do you text?”
“Currently, no, but I look forward to us being able to find peace,” Harry responded.
“If we can get to the point of reconciliation, that will have a ripple effect across the world,” Harry told “Good Morning America” co-anchor Michael Strahan in a new interview about his memoir “Spare.” “I genuinely believe that, and that’s kind of what is pushing me. And if that doesn’t happen, then that’s very sad.”
In the wake of their departure, Harry told Strahan he does not believe the details he shares in “Spare” can make things any worse with his family.
Michael Strahan interviews Prince Harry in Los Angeles Jan. 3, 2023.
Richard Harbaugh/ABC
“I have thought about it long and hard,” Harry said. “And as far as I see it, the divide couldn’t be greater before this book.”
William, ‘beloved brother and arch nemesis’
To the outside world Harry, 38, and William, 40, always appeared close, seemingly bonded by the death of their mother Princess Diana when Harry was just 12 and William was 15.
Harry told Strahan that privately, there was more to the brothers’ story. In his memoir, Harry refers to William as his “beloved brother and arch nemesis” and recalls verbal and even physical disputes between them.
“There has always been this competition between us weirdly,” Harry said. “Again, I think it really plays into, or is played, by the heir/spare.”
Prince William and brother Prince Harry attend the Beaufort Polo Club, June 22, 2002, in Tetbury, England.
Tim Graham/Getty Images
When asked whether he thought William was jealous of his position as the spare, Harry said yes.
“But I have more freedom than he does, right?” Harry said. “So his life is planned out for him. I have more flexibility to be able to choose the life that I wanted.”
Harry said that while the typical path for the spare is to sit “in the monarch’s shadow,” he wanted to carve a different path.
As Harry moved further down that path and eventually married Meghan, he claims William broke a longstanding “pact” between the brothers to not let their offices fight or brief the press against each other.
In “Spare,” Harry claims members of the royal institution fed stories to the press and refused to set the record straight on false reports, especially about Meghan, thereby shifting the negative spotlight on her in order to protect other royals.
Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry leave after attending the Grenfell Tower National Memorial Service at St Paul’s Cathedral on Dec. 14, 2017 in London.
Pool/Getty Images, FILE
“The people that he employed broke that,” Harry said of his self-described pact with William. “But again, within the family, it’s hard because you are led to believe that if you don’t play the game, that you will be destroyed. And again, I’m the one who’s proving that that is true, right? Chose not to play the game, but they’re trying to destroy me.”
Watch Michael Strahan’s interview with Prince Harry on Monday, Jan. 9, at 7 a.m. EST on “Good Morning America” and the special, “Prince Harry: In His Own Words | Michael Strahan Reporting” at 8:30 p.m. EST on ABC News Live.
In one example, Harry claims palace officials failed to correct tabloid stories alleging Meghan made William’s wife Kate, the Princess of Wales, cry in the run-up to the Sussexes’ 2018 wedding. Harry writes in “Spare,” and Meghan has said in a previous interview, that it was Kate who upset Meghan and later apologized.
“[The press] pitched the Waleses, which Kate and William are now, against the Sussexes, me and my wife. They always pitched us against each other,” Harry said. “They pitched Kate and Meghan against each other.”
PHOTO: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, July 10, 2018 in London.
Anwar Hussein/WireImage via Getty Images, FILE
When asked whether press reports of Kate and Meghan fighting disrupted the women’s relationship, Harry replied, “Without question.”
“If you read [the press coverage], it very much feeds into how you function, operate, and behave. Without question,” Harry said. “But the moment you don’t read it, you can live a truly authentic life.”
Harry said he believes the British press continues to try to “drive a wedge” between him and William, but hopes that he can reconcile with his brother.
“I hope that we will be joined at the hip again,” he said. “Because, you know, if there’s something that will terrify the British press more than anything, it’s William and I being aligned.”
Harry said he “without question” shoulders some of the responsibility for the breakdown of his relationship with William. But he added, “What people don’t know is the efforts that I’ve gone to [in order] to resolve this privately, both with my brother and with my father.”
Prince William and Prince Harry look at a statue they commissioned of their mother Diana in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace, on what would have been her 60th birthday, July 1, 2021, in London.
WPA Pool/Getty Images
Neither Kensington Palace — William and Kate’s office — nor Buckingham Palace, the office of Charles and Camilla, the Queen Consort, have commented on the claims Harry makes in “Spare.”
ABC News reached out to Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace for response to Harry’s remarks in our interview. Kensington Palace declined to comment and Buckingham Palace has yet to respond.
Harry describes how his and Meghan’s hope for a different royal life collapsed
According to Harry, intense press coverage and security concerns played a large part in his and Meghan’s quest to carve out different royal roles for themselves that would allow them to split their time between Canada and the U.K. while still serving the monarchy.
When the proposal was brought to the royal family, Harry said there was “zero compromise.” He added that an agreed-upon 12-month transition period completely fell apart when his own family’s security was pulled.
“I was stunned that my family would allow security to be taken away, especially at the most vulnerable point for us,” said Harry, who was living with Meghan and their son Archie in Vancouver Island, Canada, at the time. “And maybe they didn’t understand the concerns that I had. I mean, I listed them. I laid them out.”
When asked whether he thought his family didn’t understand his security concerns, or didn’t care, Harry replied, “I think probably a little bit of both.”
Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Queen Elizabeth II, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge watch the RAF flypast on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, as members of the Royal Family attend events to mark the centenary of the RAF, July 10, 2018 in London, England.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images, FILE
Harry expressed that neither he nor Meghan wanted to leave their senior royal roles, saying, “We were based in Windsor. That was where we genuinely thought we were going to spend the rest of our lives.”
Describing his and Meghan’s ideal life, he said they wanted to continue to represent the monarchy but to do so mainly outside of the U.K. so that their work wouldn’t go through what he called “the filter of the tabloids.”
“We were trying to find a different way to work, but for one reason or another, despite the fact that it already exists within the family, we weren’t allowed to do things slightly differently,” Harry said. “To still perform and work and support and represent the monarchy, but to be financially independent, to remove the supposed public interest, which the tabloids had used repeatedly to invade every single element of our life.”
A return to the U.K. and a working royal role?
Though Harry’s memoir “Spare,” rips open his view of the royal institution and his family, he said he thinks telling his story what is needed to make peace.
“I don’t think that we can ever have peace with my family unless the truth is out there,” he told Strahan. “There’s a lot that I can forgive, but there needs to be conversations in order for reconciliation, and part of that has to be accountability.”
Michael Strahan interviews Prince Harry in Los Angeles Jan. 3, 2023
ABC News
Harry said he also hopes to have a candid, private conversation with family members.
“I just hope that there’s a way that we can have a conversation that is trusted within that conversation that isn’t then spilled to the British press,” he said. “That’s where I am.”
When describing how he chose the personal, behind-the-scenes details he shares in “Spare,” Harry said he thought more about the family he has created with Meghan.
“As [with] everybody who has a large family, a family that you’ve been born into, there becomes a point when the family that you’ve created … becomes the priority over the family that you were born into,” said Harry, who wed Meghan in 2018. “So, not to say it wasn’t hard. It was very hard. But that was my thinking and the process in which I went through.”
Catherine, Princess of Wales, Prince William, Prince of Wales, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex on the long Walk at Windsor Castle arrive to view flowers and tributes to HM Queen Elizabeth on Sept. 10, 2022 in Windsor, England.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
According to Harry, the queen never told him she was angry with him for wanting to change his royal role, but he believes she was “sad” his situation had reached that point.
“I had many, many conversations with her both in the U.K. over the years and in the run-up to the point of this change, so it was never a surprise to anybody, least of all her,” Harry said. “She knew what was going on. She knew how hard it was. I don’t know whether she was in a position to be able to change it.”
When asked whether he saw himself, Meghan and their children ever returning to the U.K. and becoming working royals again, Harry said he doesn’t think so.
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex attend the 2022 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Ripple of Hope Gala at New York Hilton on Dec. 6, 2022, in New York.
Mike Coppola/Getty Images for Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Ripple of Hope Gala
“Even if there was an agreement or an arrangement between me and my family, there is that third party that is going to do everything they can to make sure that that isn’t possible,” Harry said, referring to the British press. “Not stopping us from necessarily going back, but making it unsurvivable, and that’s really sad because that is essentially breaking the relationship between us.”
He added, “If there was something in the future where we can continue to support the Commonwealth, then that’s of course on the table, but there’s so much that needs to happen between now and then, and so much that can happen.”
Harry says he’s speaking out to help protect other generations of royals
The Duke of Sussex said he “genuinely” believes the British monarchy should continue, and that there is a place for it in the 21st century as long as it modernizes.
“I think the same process that I went through regarding my own unconscious bias would be hugely beneficial to them,” he said. “It’s not racism, but unconscious bias if not confronted, if not acknowledged, if not learned and grown from, that can then move into racism. And the way that I understand it is that we all want to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem.”
Harry said the royals missed a “huge missed opportunity” in modernizing the monarchy through what Meghan represented as a biracial woman.
“It’s what she said to me from right from the beginning, representation,” Harry said of his wife. “And I, as a privileged white man, didn’t really understand what she was talking about.”
With his memoir, Harry said a large part of his drive to speak out stems from a hope to “change the media landscape” in the U.K., giving less status to tabloid newspapers.
“In this instance, the most popular, most read and therefore most influential newspapers in our country are tabloids,” he said. “That affects the country. That affects the construct of the country.”
Cover of the book ‘Spare’ by Prince Harry.
Random House
Harry described also wanting to more specifically change what he described as a “codependency” between U.K. tabloids and the royal family.
“There are some people, especially in the U.K., who have been led to believe that because you are a member of the royal family, somehow everyone owns you or has a stake in you,” he said. “And that’s a message that has been purely pushed out by the British tabloids, and it creates real problems within that family and that relationship.”
Harry added, “Of course, there has to be some sort of relationship, but where it’s got to now is incredibly unhealthy.”
Believing that the monarchy should continue, Harry said he hopes his efforts can help his own two children as well as current and future generations of royals.
“I also worry about other young kids within that family if this continues,” he said, referring to the royal family. “Because who’s to say that someone else doesn’t fill my shoes and that their partner, whether it’s a husband or a wife or boyfriend or a girlfriend, doesn’t get treated exactly the same as Meghan did?”
Watch Michael Strahan’s interview with Prince Harry on Monday, Jan. 9, at 7 a.m. EST on “Good Morning America” and the special, “Prince Harry: In His Own Words | Michael Strahan Reporting” at 8:30 p.m. EST on ABC News Live.
