Prince Harry – live: Spare signals ‘beginning of end’ of monarchy as ITV interview looms

Prince Harry’s memoir and his rolling dispute with the royal family could “mark the beginning of the end of the monarchy”, a biographer of King Charles has suggested.

The book’s release is “not just a celebrity knockabout story”, Catherine Mayer warned, arguing that “the status of a significant institution of state” is ultimately at stake – its peril exacerbated by the “layers of secrecy and obfuscation” surrounding the royals.

Her comments arrived ahead of Prince Harry’s highly anticipated interview with ITV News hitting our screens tonight at 9pm.

The Duke of Sussex took part in an exclusive UK interview with presenter Tom Bradby ahead of the release of his tell-all memoir Spare, which arrives on shelves on Tuesday.

It comes after the duke reportedly claimed in his new book that his brother William “lunged” at him during peace talks with their father after Prince Philip’s funeral, during a row about he and Meghan Markle’s interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Key points

• Prince Harry claims William ‘lunged’ at him after Oprah interview

• Harry accused of making Invictus Games a terrorist target with Taliban claims

• Pen Farthing ‘evacuated from Kabul’ over fears Prince Harry confessions could invite ‘reprisal attacks’

• Prince William is ‘burning’ with anger over Harry’s claims but will ‘never retaliate,’ friends claim

• Harry says he cried only once after mother’s death

Prince Harry memoir includes anecdotes showing ‘tender’ relationship with father, report suggests

19:00 , Emily Atkinson

Alongside some criticisms of his father in his memoir, Prince Harry is also reported to have included numerous anecdotes about King Charles conveying his warmth.

These include revelations that the monarch used to ask his son, who he called “darling boy”, to write rather than call him, as he “loved” the letters Harry sent, and would leave notes under his son’s pillow, sitting on his bed until he fell asleep to ease his fear of the dark, according to the Sunday Telegraph.

A “bemused” King also reportedly empathised with his younger son when photographs of him playing naked billiards appeared in the tabloids, and said that he had also felt “exposed” on many occasions, with the pair speaking all night about their unusual life, the paper reports.

A royal source told the paper: “It would have been odd if Harry had painted anything other than a tender portrait of his father. They were very, very close and it would be impossible to hide that reality if you wanted to write your whole history.”

Prince Harry fallout ‘could mark beginning of the end’ of monarchy, says King Charles biographer

18:30 , Emily Atkinson

Prince Harry’s memoir and the continuous toxicity of the royal family rupture could “mark the beginning of the end of the monarchy”, a biographer of King Charles has suggested.

The book’s release is “not just a celebrity knockabout story”, Catherine Mayer warned, arguing that “the status of a significant institution of state” is ultimately at stake – its peril exacerbated by the “layers of secrecy and obfuscation” surrounding the royals.

A wave of leaked extracts of the Duke of Sussex’s book Spare days ahead of its publication, fuelled by its accidental early release in Spain, crashed over Buckingham Palace this week, laying bare the scale of discontent at the heart of the royal family in often excruciating detail.

Andy Gregory reports:

Prince Harry fallout could mark ‘beginning of the end’ of monarchy, says biographer

King Charles ‘must avoid mountain of resentment’, insider suggests

17:50 , Andy Gregory

Those close to King Charles are claimed to believe that reconciliation is the only way to prevent “open warfare” for years to come.

“The challenge here is not to build a mountain of resentment that cannot be bypassed,” one source told the Sunday Telegraph. “In many ways the Royal family is no different to any other family and it will be their normality, rather than their uniqueness, which offers their greatest chance of reconciliation.

“Although Harry resents the role he was dealt within the institution, it is the fact that they are father and son that will bring them back together.”

Smiling King seen for first time since Harry’s tell-all book published

17:03 , Andy Gregory

A smiling King Charles appeared in good spirits as he was seen for the first time since allegations from Prince Harry’s memoir emerged, stopping to speak with well-wishers outside a service at Castle Rising Chuch in Norfolk this morning.

Smiling King seen for first time since Harry’s tell-all book published

Prince Harry condemned by Caroline Flack’s former agent for sharing details on ‘tainted’ romance

16:14 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has been condemned by Caroline Flack’s former agent for sharing details in his new memoir about his romance with the late star, which he reportedly writes was “tainted” by press intrusion, reports Ellie Harrison.

“She was described in one paper as my ‘bit of rough’, because she once worked in a factory or something,” he continued. “Jesus, I thought, are we really such a country of insufferable snobs?” he reportedly recalls.

They “kept on” seeing each other, Harry wrote, “because we genuinely enjoyed each other’s company, and because we didn’t want to admit defeat at the hands of these arseholes”, but eventually “realised it just wasn’t worth the grief and harassment. Especially for her family.”

Flack’s former agent Alex Mullen, speaking to The Mirror, branded the duke’s actions as “gross” and accused him of using his past relationship to help sell his book, saying: “It’s absolutely gross for Prince Harry to reveal such private details about Caroline Flack.

“The way in which the press spoke about her at that time and the reason they split are both very sad and it’s disgusting he’s brought up old long forgotten slurs she had to suffer in full view of the public around the world.”

Caroline Flack’s former agent condemns ‘gross’ Prince Harry for detailing romance

The ‘country is proud of’ royal family, Rishi Sunak says

15:28 , Andy Gregory

Rishi Sunak has defended the royal family as an institution which the “country is proud of”.

Asked whether the public can still have faith in the institution after claims in the Duke of Sussex’s forthcoming book, the prime minister told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg: “I think the public like me have enormous regard for the royal family, they’re deeply proud of them.

“I certainly am, it’s one of the things I’m most proud of when I think about what it is to be British. When I get to go around the world and champion Britain as an amazing country with so many things that we can be proud of, our institutions including the royal family are one of those.”

Questioned on whether he felt the royals have been damaged by Harry’s allegations, Mr Sunak said: “In general I wouldn’t get into talking about the royal family but it’s something that I’m proud of and I think the country is proud of.

“We saw that last year very movingly multiple times and I’m confident we’ll see it this year with King Charles’s coronation, which will be another fantastic occasion for the country to come together and celebrate something that’s special about Britain.”

King Charles ‘insisted on never complain, never explain response’, palace insider reportedly claims

14:46 , Andy Gregory

A palace insider claiming to have knowlege of past discussions about what Prince Harry’s memoir may contain has claimed that it was King Charles who ultimately insisted on the family responding with its standard “never complain, never explain” strategy.

The source claimed to Page Six: “The King wanted to move ahead with the traditional ‘stiff upper lip’ attitude and follow in the Queen’s famous footsteps of ‘never complain, never explain’, but the Prince of Wales argued that perhaps the family should, in fact, go on the offensive and release a statement, much in the same way he said ‘We are very much not a racist family’, but he was overruled by his father.”

However, an individual reported to be a close friend of Prince William told the Sunday Times that despite being a “sitting duck” in the face of his brother’s claims about him, the heir to the throne had kept quiet “for the good of his family and the country” and would “never retaliate”.

Palace advisers set up de-facto ‘war room’ to plan for fallout from memoir, report claims

13:59 , Andy Gregory

The royal family’s senior advisers set up a de-facto “war room” to deal with any potential fallout from Prince Harry’s memoir, the US publication Page Six has claimed.

Insiders reportedly claim a plan was drawn up to deal whatever revelations emerged from the forthcoming book, with senior staff even discussing the issue at Sandringham over Christmas.

One highly placed palace source told the outlet: “There were undoubtedly fears about what Harry was going to write, and in particular they were worried about the highly personal moments of their lives being retold.”

Opinion | Warring royals should take a long walk with their father

13:12 , Andy Gregory

In his latest Centrist Dad column, our former executive editor Will Gore suggests that there are no winners in the latest royal rumble – except perhaps for arch republicans. He writes:

“Whether or not William grabbed Harry by the collar and pushed him into a dog bowl, as Harry alleges in his eagerly anticipated memoir, the breakdown of their relationship – and the telling of it, both officially and unofficially – isn’t a good look for either of them.

“It’s not quite Game of Thrones territory; more like posh EastEnders. And as it happens, the older the princes get, the more it’s possible to imagine them being played by Ross Kemp and Steve McFadden.

“ ... Perhaps King Charles could try a tactic with his boys that I’ve used with my kids. Take them on such a long walk together that the resentment they feel towards one another is eventually transferred to the idiot parent who forced them on the trek in the first place. It’s definitely worked for me.”

You can read the full piece here:

Warring royals should take a long walk with their father

Prince Harry reveals he used laughing gas during birth of son

12:39 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has reportedly written that he used laughing gas and ate Nando’s chicken to “enhance my calm” during the birth of his son in 2019, reports my colleague Maanya Sachdeva.

In Spare, the Duke of Sussex describes the scene at London’s Portland Hospital on the day Archie was born, recalling how Meghan Markle was “bouncing on a giant purple ball” when she went into labour and how he placed a photograph of his late mother Princess Diana in the delivery room.

According to MailOnline, Harry wrote: “Meg was so calm, I was calm too. But I saw two ways of enhancing my calm. One: Nando’s chicken (brought by our bodyguards). Two: A canister of laughing gas beside Meg’s bed. I took several slow, penetrating hits.”

He also reportedly revealed that, when the nurse came to give his wife laughing gas for the pain, there wasn’t any left. “I could see the thought slowly dawning. ‘Gracious, the husband’s had it all,’” he continued. “‘Sorry,’ I said meekly.”

The duke also reportedly quipped that he “didn’t touch the laughing gas” during the birth of his daughter Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor in 2021 “because there was none”.

Prince Harry reveals he used laughing gas during birth of son

Prince Harry’s memoir could be ‘beginning of end’ of monarchy, Charles’s biographer warns

11:55 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry’s memoir and its fallout could mark “the beginning of the end of the monarchy”, the author of a 2015 biography of King Charles has suggested.

Catherine Mayer, author of The Heart of a King, also suggested that, while the “layers of secrecy and obfuscation” surrounding the royal family are “intended as a defence”, they “will defeat the organisation if they concentrate on the personalities”.

“The whole family is meant to be an idealised reflection of the British people themselves and Harry’s marriage to Meghan made the job much easier,” she told The Observer. “The failure of that project is absolutely catastrophic for the royal family.”

Ms Mayer added: “It is possibly something that will mark the beginning of the end of the monarchy, and that is what we should discuss. It is important, given the lack of trust in the state at the moment and an upsurge in rightwing politics.

“Members of the royal family have become our proxies for anger about racism, misogyny and wealth. This is, after all, an institution that stands for inequality, so there are huge things at stake.”

Prince Harry claims William ‘lunged at him and used secret Diana code phrase’ after Oprah interview

11:13 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has reportedly claimed that his brother William “lunged” at him and “grabbed my shirt” during a confrontation over his and wife Meghan Markle’s Oprah Winfrey interview.

During peace talks with King Charles, which allegedly occurred at Frogmore Cottage after Prince Philip’s funeral in April 2021, Harry writes in his memoir that he was trying to address the bullying allegations against Meghan Markle but that his brother and father “weren’t listening”, The Sun reported.

William was allegedly “really steaming” and shouted at him: “You never came to us. You never came to me”, telling him to take up “with Granny” any grievances he had about the “Megxit” agreement.

Harry reportedly claims William “lunged” and grabbed his shirt, saying “Listen to me, Harold”, and that he loved him and wanted him to be happy, adding: “I swear, I swear on Mummy’s life.”

Harry wrote: “He stopped. I stopped. Pa stopped. He’d gone there. He’d used the secret code, the universal password. Ever since we were boys those three words were to be used only in times of extreme crisis.”

Harry added: “My voice broke as I told him softly: I really don’t think you do.”

Harry claims William ‘lunged at him and used secret Diana code’ after Oprah interview

Prince William called Meghan Markle ‘rude’ during reconciliation attempt over tea and biscuits

10:31 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry’s memoir reportedly confirms that there had been several rows with William and Kate Middleton in 2018 – the year that Vanity Fair first asserted that there was tension between the siblings.

A reconciliation was attempted, after the alleged row between Meghan Markle and Kate during a bridesmaid dress fitting, according to the book – but this too descended into chaos.

Kate and William invited Harry and Meghan over to their flat in Kensington Palace for tea and biscuits to “relax the atmosphere” between the couples. But the conflict escalated, culminating in William calling Meghan “rude” and pointing a finger at her. Meghan told William: “If you don’t mind, keep your finger out of my face,” according to the book.

Harry and Meghan moved away soon after, first to Frogmore Cottage in 2019, to Vancouver in early 2020, and then to Los Angeles in March 2020.

Charles biographer ‘perplexed’ by Prince Harry’s decision to publish memoir

09:42 , Andy Gregory

Broadcaster Jonathan Dimbleby, who has written a biography of King Charles, reportedly his friend of 30 years, has said he was “perplexed” by Harry‘s decision to publish a book.

“I genuinely can’t believe it is merely to make a great deal of money because of the perfectly natural urge to want to protect his family, his wife and his children in a very uncertain future,” said Mr Dimbleby, who interviewed Charles in 1994 when the royal admitted having an affair.

“I think there is much more to that, but if he wants reconciliation, I don’t understand how you do it by, as it were, metaphorically, sitting in your Apache and firing pot shots at people who are not going to fire back, as he must very well know.”

Does Charles have a responsibility to fix the feud between William and Harry?

08:51 , Andy Gregory

Many psychologists recommend the involvement of a parent in resolving a sibling rivalry, and Prince Harry’s memoir reveals that a kind of detente may have already been attempted by King Charles with his plea against “misery”, writes Ben Bryant.

But if he wishes to pursue appeasement, the King will have to make peace with his own unflattering characterisations. The problem is further complicated by the fact that William is his heir, and therefore a kind of favourite (which Prince Harry alludes to in the title of his memoir Spare).

“The father isn’t neutral in that the father has a dog in the fight,” says Kevin Burch, a confidence coach who specialises in young men. Another challenge for Charles,” Burch adds, “is the risk that whatever he says is going to end up in the papers.”

You can read more analysis here:

Does King Charles have a responsibility to fix the feud between William and Harry?

Timeline of the bitter feud between Princes Harry and William

08:10 , Namita Singh

Prince Harry’s new memoir Spare has caused a sensation before it has even been published, not least over a passage describing an altercation with his brother William, illustrating just how far the pair have drifted apart in recent years.

The row is said to have erupted at Nottingham Cottage in the grounds of Kensington Palace in London in 2019, with the Duke of Sussex alleging his sibling had arrived “piping hot” to confront him about his marriage to the American actress Meghan Markle and their running battles with the British press.

After a bitter exchange of views in which William allegedly branded Meghan “difficult”, “rude” and “abrasive” and Harry accused his brother of parroting the media narrative surrounding his relationship, the former allegedly attacked him, according to the younger prince’s account.

More in this report from Joe Sommerlad:

Timeline of the bitter feud between Prince Harry and William

Pen Farthing ‘evacuated from Kabul’ over Prince Harry confessions

07:50 , Namita Singh

A former marine whose charity aims to expatriate animals from Afghanistan claims he has been evacuated from Kabul amid fears Prince Harry’s confession of killing 25 Taliban members could invite “reprisal attacks”.

The Duke of Sussex said in his forthcoming memoir Spare that the killings were like “chess pieces removed from the board”, and that those who had died were “bad people eliminated before they could kill good people”.

Now Pen Farthing, who has been working in the country for some 18 months to get animals from shelters out of Afghanistan, has hit out at the duke’s “badly advised” book.

Tweeting last night, Mr Farthing told his followers of the alleged evacuation from his base.

My colleague Emily Atkinson reports:

Pen Farthing ‘evacuated from Kabul’ as Prince Harry ‘invites reprisal attacks’

Harry’s claims are like that of a B-list celebrity, says Charles biographer

07:30 , Namita Singh

Royal biographer Jonathan Dimbleby has said Prince Harry’s leaked memoir contains revelations one would expect from “a kind of B-list celebrity”.

During an appearance on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Saturday, Dimbleby said he was “perplexed” and “at a loss” over Harry’s memoir, calling the duke a “very troubled man”.

He continued: “I’m concerned, incidentally, that everyone uses the word ‘revelations’.”

Read the details here:

Harry’s claims are like that of a B-list celebrity, says Charles biographer

Harry’s memoir slammed as ‘tragic money-making scam’

07:10 , Namita Singh

Colonel Tim Collins, known for a pre-battle speech he made in Iraq, was one of many the many distinguished personnel to criticise Prince Harry, accusing him of turning against the military - his “other family”.

Earlier in the week Col Collins called the revelations in the book “a tragic money-making scam”.

In his controversial memoir, Spare, Harry wrote that flying six missions during his second tour of duty on the front line in 2012 to 2013 resulted in “the taking of human lives”, of which he was neither proud nor ashamed.

The Daily Telegraph, which obtained a Spanish language copy of the memoir from a bookshop in Spain, earlier reported that Harry said he did not think of those he killed as “people”, but instead as “chess pieces” that had been taken off the board.

“So, my number is 25. It’s not a number that fills me with satisfaction, but nor does it embarrass me,” he wrote.

Prince Harry ‘mocks’ Prince William’s thinning hair

06:50 , Namita Singh

Prince Harry has reportedly taken a swipe at his brother’s hair loss, the latest blow from his tell-all memoir Spare.

In the book, which is due to go on sale in the UK on Monday, the younger royal mentions seeing the Duke of Wales at his grandfather Prince Phillip’s funeral in April 2021.

“I looked at Willy, really looked at him, perhaps for the first time since we were little,” Harry writes, bringing up his “familiar scowl” before describing his brother’s thinning hair as “alarming”.

He noted it was “more advanced than mine” despite only being two years his junior.

Prince Harry allegedly mocks Prince William’s thinning hair

Harry claims his role in William’s wedding was a ‘bare-faced lie’

06:30 , Namita Singh

The Duke of Sussex has called his role as best man at Prince William’s wedding a “bare-faced lie”, according to reports.

Extracts from Harry’s autobiography Spare were published after the book was accidentally put on sale in Spain earlier this week, five days before it was due to be released on 10 January.

In one part of the book, Harry reportedly wrote that he was forced to go along with the “bare-faced lie” that he was William’s best man at his wedding to Kate Middleton in 2011.

More in this report:

Harry claims his involvement in William’s wedding was a ‘bare-faced lie’, reports say

Prince Harry opens up about ‘tainted’ romance with late Caroline Flack

06:10 , Namita Singh

Prince Harry has reportedly opened up about his “tainted” romance with Caroline Flack and reflected on the TV presenter’s death, in his leaked memoir.

Sections from the book have been quoted by the UK press after the memoir was accidentally put on sale on 5 January in Spain. The book was officially supposed to be released next Tuesday (10 January).

These include claims Prince William allegedly physically attacked the Duke of Sussex during a confrontation over Harry’s wife Meghan Markle in 2019.

My colleague Maanya Sachdeva reports:

Prince Harry opens up about ‘tainted’ romance with late Caroline Flack

William keep quiet ‘for good of family and country’

05:50 , Namita Singh

Friends of the pair said that William was keeping quiet about the book “for the good of his family and the country”.

Speaking to the Sunday Times, one friend said: “William is a sitting duck because Harry knows he isn’t going to retaliate. How many shots can you take at a sitting duck?

“It’s cruel, cowardly and so sad for William to keep taking the punches. He’s keeping quiet for the good of his family and the country.”

The same friend adds that William is “burning” on the inside.

Another friend told the paper that William is thinking strategically, as he follows the example of his grandmother, the late Queen Elizabeth II.

“We know how closely he followed his grandmother’s example, and the institutional response may win the day over the personal,” the friend said.

“But he is staunchly protective of his own family, and he’s not just going to roll over.”

‘Unable to cry in public because of family’s preference for not showing emotion’

05:30 , Namita Singh

Prince Harry says in the book he thinks that he is unable to cry in public because of his family’s preference for not showing emotion.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Harry writes: “I disliked the touch of those hands. What’s more, I disliked how they made me feel: guilty.

“Why was there all that crying from people when I neither cried nor had cried?

“I wanted to cry, and I had tried, because my mother’s life had been so sad... but I couldn’t... not a drop.

“Perhaps I had learnt too well, had absorbed too thoroughly the family maxim that crying was never an option - never.”

‘Felt mourners tears on hand’

05:10 , Namita Singh

Prince Harry describes feeling the mourners’ tears on his hands when he shook them, following the death of his mother, Princess Diana.

“There were 50,000 bouquets of flowers to our mother and there we were shaking people’s hands, smiling,” he says.

“I’ve seen the videos, right, I looked back over it all. And the wet hands that we were shaking, we couldn’t understand why their hands were wet, but it was all the tears that they were wiping away.

“Everyone thought and felt like they knew our mum, and the two closest people to her, the two most loved people by her, were unable to show any emotion in that moment.”

Harry says he cried only once after mother’s death

04:50 , Namita Singh

The Duke of Sussex has said he only cried once after the death of his mother, and has described feelings of guilt in one of a series of interviews ahead of the publication of his memoir.

In a clip from Harry: The Interview, which will air on ITV at 9pm on Sunday, Harry speaks about being unable to show any emotion when meeting mourners following the death of his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997.

He also admits to feeling “some guilt” when walking among the gathered crowds outside Kensington Palace, saying the only time he cried was at his mother’s burial.

Read the report to find more about he said in the interview:

Harry says he only cried once after mother’s death in first interview on memoir

Harry accused of making Invictus Games a terrorist target with Taliban claims

04:30 , Namita Singh

The Duke of Sussex has been accused of making the Invictus Games a target for extremists by revealing he killed 25 people in Afghanistan.

Admiral Lord West, former head of the Royal Navy, called Harry “very stupid” for giving details of his Taliban kills.

The retired admiral told the Sunday Mirror the Invictus Games – which were due to be held in Dusseldorf, Germany, in 2023 – will now have “serious security issues” because of their direct connection to Harry.

More in this report:

Harry accused of making Invictus Games a terrorist target with Taliban claims

Further revelations ‘unlikely’ to sway views of Britons

04:10 , Namita Singh

Polls suggest many Britons are becoming bored of the whole royal melodrama, and further revelations are unlikely to shake their views, whether sympathy for Harry and Meghan, or for those they criticise.

However Harry’s book was No 1 on Amazon UK’s bestselling books list yesterday, available for pre-order ahead of its release.

Royal commentator Emily Andrews said that given Britain’s current cost of living crisis, there could be limited support for the complaints of a privileged prince residing in a mansion in California.

“They are polarising, Harry and Megan, and I think that this new book by Harry probably won’t change many people’s opinions,” Ms Andrews told Reuters.

“I think this is overkill, it becomes saturation point and people think ‘I don’t want to hear anymore: shut up, go away’.”

No point in ‘staying silent’

03:50 , Namita Singh

Prince Harry’s public thoughts will keep coming, with three more TV interviews due to air. They had been timed for broadcast ahead of the official launch of Harry’s book on Tuesday, and excerpts released ahead of time have shown Harry saying he wanted to give his side of the story.

“I don’t know how staying silent is ever going to make things better,” Harry says in his interview with Britain’s ITV, which will be the first to be shown.

All this comes just four months after Queen Elizabeth died and Charles acceded to the throne.

“So here’s Charles trying to establish himself as the new king and now Harry’s thrown this hand grenade and it’s all coming kind of crashing around him,” royal biographer Tina Brown said.

Since Harry and Meghan left royal duties and moved to California in 2020, they have railed at their treatment by the royals and the palace institution.

Prince Harry set to deliver more broadsides at UK royals in TV interviews

03:24 , Namita Singh

Days after Prince Harry‘s memoir accidentally went on sale early with new allegations of discord and conflict within the British royal family, a series of TV interviews with him will start airing on Sunday with the prospect of yet more damaging attacks on the monarchy.

Harry’s book "Spare", which went on sale in Spain on Thursday five days before its official release, chronicles not only hugely personal details, such as how he lost his virginity and took drugs, but also discloses more intimate private instances of family disharmony.

His elder brother, heir to the throne Prince William, knocked him over in a brawl, and both siblings begged their father King Charles not to marry his second wife, Camilla, now the Queen Consort, the book says.

Commentators say it has plunged the monarchy into its biggest crisis since the days of the royal soap opera in the 1990s around the break-up of Charles’ marriage to his late first wife Princess Diana, William and Harry‘s mother.

Tom Peck: ‘Prince Harry’s real betrayal is showing the royals for who they are'

03:00 , Emily Atkinson

Harry’s revelations show him to be exactly what they have all always been – absolutely nothing special at all, and that won’t do, writes Tom Peck.

Prince Harry’s real betrayal is showing the royals for who they are | Tom Peck

All the explosive revelations and claims from Harry’s leaked book Spare so far

02:00 , Emily Atkinson

Prince Harry has continued his seemingly neverending wave of allegations and revelations about the royal family in his new autobiography.

Leaked before the official release, Spare covers a wide range of subjects from his fractious relationship with brother William to the struggles after his mother Diana’s death in 1997.

With excerpts from the Duke of Sussex’s tell-all book leaked in the run-up to its publication, here are the claims and revelations so far:

All the explosive revelations and claims from Harry’s leaked book Spare so far

Timeline of the bitter feud between Prince Harry and William

01:00 , Emily Atkinson

Prince Harry’s new memoir Spare has caused a sensation before it has even been published, not least over a passage describing an altercation with his brother William, illustrating just how far the pair have drifted apart in recent years.

The row is said to have erupted at Nottingham Cottage in the grounds of Kensington Palace in London in 2019, with the Duke of Sussex alleging his sibling had arrived “piping hot” to confront him about his marriage to the American actress Meghan Markle and their running battles with the British press.

After a bitter exchange of views in which William allegedly branded Ms Markle “difficult”, “rude” and “abrasive” and Harry accused his brother of parroting the media narrative surrounding his relationship, the former allegedly attacked him, according to the younger prince’s account.

Here is my colleague Joe Sommerlad with a timeline of their falling out, largely as told by Harry since his break from the family, with William, the next in line to the British throne, largely preferring to remain silent.

Timeline of the bitter feud between Prince Harry and William

Pen Farthing ‘evacuated from Kabul’ over fears Prince Harry confessions could invite ‘reprisal attacks’

00:00 , Emily Atkinson

A former marine whose charity aims to rescue animals from Afghanistan claims he has been evacuated from Kabul amid fears Prince Harry’s confession of killing 25 Taliban members could invite “reprisal attacks”.

Pen Farthing, who has been working in the country for some 18 months to get animals from shelters out of Afghanistan, has hit out at the duke’s “badly advised” book.

Tweeting last night, Mr Farthing told his followers of the alleged evacuation from his base.

“To the idiots who made dumbass comments in support of #PrinceHarry in my tweet, know I have had to evac from #Kabul tonight in case of potential reprisal attacks on ex-forces people like me in the wake of his badly judged memoir.. the animals suffer not me. You happy?” he wrote.

It came after Mr Farthing had earlier tweeted: “Well I was a Royalist until today…. Cheers #PrinceHarry You have been very badly advised I would probably say. And glad you thought through the security implications of those of us still out in #Afghanistan trying to bring about some good. #idiot #notmyprince.”

Prince William is ‘burning’ with anger over Harry’s claims but will ‘never retaliate,’ friends claim

Saturday 7 January 2023 23:30 , Emily Atkinson

Prince William is “burning” with anger over claims made by Prince Harry in his leaked memoir, but would “never retaliate”, close friends to the Prince of Wales have said.

William’s confidante described him as a “sitting duck” amid the heaping revelations made by the Duke of Sussex in his new book Spare – a memoir dominated by his rivalry with his brother and the death of their mother, Princess Diana in 1997.

The explosive autobiography reveals many strained facets of the princes’ relationship, from bereaved boys and troubled teens, to warring senior royals and eventual “arch-nemeses”.

Read our full report here:

Prince William is ‘burning’ with anger over Harry’s claims but will ‘never retaliate’

All the times Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s 2022 revelations were proved right, or wrong

Saturday 7 January 2023 22:54 , Emily Atkinson

Throughout the past year, the couple has made a number of shocking revelations about their time as senior members of the royal family. Many of these claims made headlines, and even caught the attention of Buckingham Palace on certain occasions – forcing the Palace to issue statements regarding whether or not Harry and Meghan’s claims were unfounded.

From baby Archie’s nursery fire in South Africa to Meghan’s first meeting with Princess Kate, Meredith Clark catalogues some of Harry and Meghan’s most shocking revelations of 2022:

From nursery fire to meeting Kate: Harry and Meghan’s biggest revelations of 2022

Watch: Prince Harry speaks of ‘guilt’ he felt for ‘crying once’ after Diana’s death in new trailer

Saturday 7 January 2023 22:15 , Emily Atkinson

Opinion: ‘The royal family has a choice to make – but it won’t be easy’

Saturday 7 January 2023 21:45 , Emily Atkinson

As a cathartic act of a man deeply resentful of the way he believes his family and the media have treated him and his wife, Prince Harry’s memoir, Spare, has much to commend it.

Read our latest editorial here:

Editorial: The royal family has a choice to make – but it won’t be easy

Prince Harry describes ‘guilt’ following Diana’s death in new ITV interview clip

Saturday 7 January 2023 21:03 , Emily Atkinson

Prince Harry has reflected on being “unable to show any emotion” while greeting mourners after the death of his mother Diana.

The Duke of Sussex also revealed he only cried “once” after the former Princess of Wales was killed in a car crash in Paris, 25 years ago.

These comments are part of a new teaser clip for Harry’s forthcoming interview with ITV’s Tom Bradby to promote his new memoir Spare.

My colleague Maanya Sachdeva has more:

Prince Harry describes ‘guilt’ following Diana’s death in new ITV interview clip

Princess Diana’s brother called idea of young William and Harry walking behind mother’s coffin ‘a barbarity'

Saturday 7 January 2023 20:10 , Emily Atkinson

Prince Harry has shared details of an alleged row over whether he and his brother Prince William should walk behind their mother’s coffin at her funeral, reports say.

His leaked memoir Spare recalls Princess Diana’s brother Earl Spencer objecting verbally to an idea for the two young princes to flank their mother’s funeral cortege, describing it as “a barbarity”, according to The Telegraph.

But a second plan drawn up to replace the first was rejected by Prince Harry, he claims, which would have required the Prince of Wales, then aged 15, to walk alone behind the coffin.

The Duke of Sussex claims he did not want his brother to undergo the ordeal by himself, the newspaper reports.

Prince Harry opens up about ‘tainted’ romance with late Caroline Flack

Saturday 7 January 2023 19:10 , Emily Atkinson

Prince Harry has reportedly opened up about his “tainted” romance with Caroline Flack and reflected on the TV presenter’s death, in his leaked memoir.

Sections from the book have been quoted by the UK press after the memoir was accidentally put on sale on 5 January in Spain. The book was officially supposed to be released next Tuesday (10 January).

These include claims Prince William allegedly physically attacked the Duke of Sussex during a confrontation over Harry’s wife Meghan Markle in 2019.

My colleague Maanya Sachdeva reports:

Prince Harry opens up about ‘tainted’ romance with late Caroline Flack

King Charles likely to be ‘extremely pained’ by Prince Harry’s book, suggests biographer

Saturday 7 January 2023 18:11 , Andy Gregory

Royal biographer Jonathan Dimbleby has suggested that King Charles will be “extremely pained” by Prince Harry’s forthcoming book.

“I can only imagine he is extremely pained, very frustrated and would be very anxious to bring it to an end,” he told the Today show, “because his concern, as he has demonstrated since he came to the throne impeccably, is to act as head of state for a nation which we all know is in pretty troubled condition.”

Dimbleby has reportedly remained friends with the new King since Charles famously revealed he had been unfaithful to Diana after their marriage broke down during a 1994 ITV interview with him, nearly 30 years ago.

The author of Charles’s biography said he would be “very suprised” if Harry wasn’t invited to his father’s coronation in May because “that would fuel the flames”.

Harry’s claims are like that of a B-list celebrity, says Charles biographer

Saturday 7 January 2023 17:20 , Andy Gregory

Royal biographer Jonathan Dimbleby has said Prince Harry’s leaked memoir contains revelations one would expect from “a kind of B-list celebrity”, reports my colleague Maanya Sachdeva.

Mr Dimbleby told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme he was “perplexed” and “at a loss” over Harry’s memoir, calling the duke a “very troubled man”.

“I’m concerned, incidentally, that everyone uses the word ‘revelations’,” the 78-year-old broadcaster said. “Yes, there are obviously revelations about how he lost his virginity, taking drugs, and how many people he feels he might have shot down from his Apache. But those are the kind of revelations, in part, that you would expect, I suppose, from a B-list celebrity.

What is “much more significant”, Dimbleby continued, are Harry’s “allegations, complaints” against the royal family. “His assertion that this is his side because so far there has only been one side. It seems to me I’ve not heard the other side at all, because the other side is always silent,” Dimbleby said.

Harry’s claims are like that of a B-list celebrity, says Charles biographer

Prince Harry recalls role of late mother’s hair as good luck charm

Saturday 7 January 2023 16:29 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has reportedly recalled how Meghan Markle placed pregnancy tests on his nightstand, next to a box containing a lock of his late mother Princess Diana’s hair, as the couple were trying to concieve their first child.

According to the MailOnline, Harry writes that Meghan took two at-home pregnancy tests in the bathroom of Nottingham Cottage in 2018, and he awoke to find that she had placed the two tests on his nightstand.

Among only “a few things” on the nightstand was a “blue box with my mother’s hair”, he reportedly writes, recalling: “Right, I thought, good. Let’s see what Mummy can do with this situation”.

The couple soon discovered that the tests were positive, and Harry reportedly describes thinking to himself: “Thank you, Mummy.”

Prince Harry addresses ‘Uncle Andrew’ scandal in new book, reports claim

Saturday 7 January 2023 15:36 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has reportedly addressed the scandal involving “Uncle Andrew” in his leaked book Spare.

According to US Weekly, which said it had obtained a copy of the memoir, the Duke of Sussex wrote that he “never imagined” he’d lose palace security after his uncle was permitted to retain it.

In January 2022, Andrew was stripped off his royal title after he was accused of sexual assault by one of Epstein’s trafficking victims, Virginia Guiffre. He previously claimed he had no recollection of ever meeting Giuffre and vehemently denied Giuffre’s allegation.

In his book, Harry reportedly wrote that Meghan worried their family would be left unprotected after they moved to Montecito, California, and he reassured her, saying: “Never. Not in this climate of hate. Not after what happened to my mother [Princess Diana]. Also, not in the wake of my Uncle Andrew.”

“He was embroiled in a shameful scandal, accused of the sexual assault of a young woman and no one had so much suggested that he lose his security. Whatever grievances people had against us, sex crimes weren’t on the list,” he reportedly writes.

The Independent has contacted representatives for Prince Harry, Prince Andrew, and Penguin Random House for comment.

Prince Harry addresses Andrew scandal in new book, reports claim

Princess of Wales turns 41 on day prior to Prince Harry book release

Saturday 7 January 2023 14:44 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry’s forthcoming book will be published on the day after the Princess of Wales’s 41st birthday.

Prince William and his wife have been left “reeling” by the allegations in the book, a senior royal source who reportedly knows the couple told Page Six, adding: “Harry and Meghan do always have a knack of picking their timing.”

Voices | We’re not asking the right question about Harry and Meghan

Saturday 7 January 2023 13:51 , Andy Gregory

In his latest column, our associate editor Sean O’Grady highlights “a question that doesn’t get asked enough”. He writes:

“Let’s say everything the Sussexes say is 100 per cent true. And the global public believes them and sides with them. Well, what’s the point? What do Harry and Meghan actually want? What would make them happy? What would heal the personal rift between them and the Prince and Princess of Wales, and between them and the King and Queen Consort?

“Ironically, according to “sources”, they want an apology for the wrongs they feel were done against them, and a royal summit to discuss the issues, also raised in the racism row about Lady Susan Hussey. If Hussey and her victim, Ngozi Fulani, can have a meeting of reconciliation, how about one for Harry and Megs?

“ ... But I wonder whether what Harry and Meghan really want is much more – a new, revised Megxit deal. Like Brexit, Megxit isn’t working out that well for anyone. When Harry says he wants his father and brother “back”, he is sincere – of course he does. But is he really seeking to renegotiate the terms of Megxit after the passing of the Queen?”

You can read his thinking in full here:

We’re not asking the right question about Harry and Meghan | Sean O’Grady

Sealing their fate: Prince Harry ‘warned his good omen risked bloody demise for coastal dwellers'

Saturday 7 January 2023 12:59 , Andy Gregory

In his memoir, Prince Harry reportedly describes a series of “good omens” he noticed while he and the Duchess of Sussex sought to have their first child – but recalls being warned that one such “magical” indicator risked “luring” Scottish wildlife to a “bloody death”.

During a visit to the Queen Mother’s former home on the north coast of Scotland, the Castle of Mey, Prince Harry talks of coming across a bob of seals – which he began “serenading” but received “nothing” in response, according to the MailOnline.

However, when Meghan started her own song, Harry says that the animals “responded to her” with their own “seal opera”, which he reportedly viewed as a “good omen” and like a “fairytale”, writing: “She really is magic, I thought ... Even the seals know it.”

After jumping into the water and swimming towards the seals in celebration, the royal reportedly writes that the pair returned to the castle, where his father’s Australian chef informed them that parts of the Scottish coast were “infested with Orcas” and that “luring” the seals to the shoreline with their singing had heightened their chances of a “bloody death”.

Prince Harry’s memoir had to be translated from American English, publishing source claims

Saturday 7 January 2023 12:33 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry’s ghostwritten memoir at one point had to be translated from American English into its more British-sounding final form, someone involved in its publication has reportedly claimed.

“It was extraordinary,” the US publishing source told The Times. “A member of the royal family describing everything as ‘awesome’ and using phraseology like: ‘We had gotten ourselves into a difficult situation’ — we had to go through the whole manuscript to make it sound like he was actually English.”

Nevertheless, the source added: “It’s a very well-written book which is both heartfelt and convincing.”

The same source claimed to the paper that Prince Harry had second thoughts about publishing the memoir, shortly after his visit to Britain for the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee (see post below).

Prince Harry ‘had second thoughts’ about book after Platinum Jubilee visit, publishing source claims

Saturday 7 January 2023 12:14 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry briefly decided to cancel the publication of his memoir, two weeks after his visit to Britain last June for the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, a publishing source has claimed – with the team working on Spare supposedly told: “He’s pulled it. He doesn’t want to do it.”

Insiders at Penguin Random House speculated that the royal family had told the Duke of Sussex that if the book were published while Queen Elizabeth was alive there would be “no way back”.

The US publishing source told The Times: “The book was all ready to go but visiting his grandmother he had second thoughts.

“That was such a dark day. Everyone had been working so hard on this project in utmost secrecy — and with the expectation this would turn out to be one of the biggest and most historic books we would ever get to publish.

“And then, just after Harry’s last trip to London, the boss walked in and said: ‘He’s pulled it. He doesn’t want to do it.’ I can’t tell you — it is an enormous and expensive operation getting a book like this ready and everyone involved was devastated.”

Voices | Is it absolutely hypocritical for Prince Harry to feed the media beast?

Saturday 7 January 2023 11:51 , Andy Gregory

Here is the take on Prince Harry’s latest relevations from our sketch writer Tom Peck:

“The front page of the Daily Mail announces, in its ingenious pun on the title of Prince Harry’s autobiography, ‘PLEASE SPARE US!’ before then devoting almost its entire edition to all of the details which it simultaneously claims to wish to be spared from, in a curious attempt to capture what it imagines to be the public mood: that at this point, Prince Harry simply needs to stop talking about himself for money, and most of all, stop throwing the rest of his family under the proverbial bus.

“And maybe they’re right. If you feel you have something important to say, there are ways of saying it that do not necessarily require six hours of Netflix documentary, an autobiography and yet more hyper-extended sit-down interviews. That if the act of making your argument also makes you a hundred million dollars or more, you may find that people do not take your argument altogether seriously.

“It has also been explained so many times now how Prince Harry is the new crown prince of all hypocrites. That if he cares so much about press intrusion, and the safety of his family, then he should simply shut up and not continue feeding the beast he claims to loathe. And that’s also true.

“But in both cases, only up to a point. Prince Harry has a right to speak. Is it absolutely hypocritical to feed the media beast, if the alternative, as far as you’re concerned, is to have the beast come and eat you? (And as far as he is concerned, the beast, don’t forget, killed his mother.)”

Prince Harry’s real betrayal is showing the royals for who they are | Tom Peck

Princess Diana would be ‘sad’ about relationship with Prince William, Harry suggests

Saturday 7 January 2023 11:29 , Andy Gregory

In clips of an interview promoting his book with Good Morning America, Prince Harry has said his late mother Princess Diana would have been “sad” about the fractured relationship between he and his brother William.

“I have felt the presence of my mum more so in the last two years than I have in the last 30,” he told the US show.

Meghan Markle asked Princess Diana for ‘guidance’, Prince Harry writes

Saturday 7 January 2023 11:04 , Andy Gregory

The Duchess of Sussex kneeled and put her palms on the grave of Princess Diana and asked her for “clarity and guidance” on the 20th anniversary of her death, Prince Harry has said.

In his forthcoming memoir Spare, Harry reportedly writes that he and Meghan rowed out to his mother’s final resting place on an island on the Althorp estate in 2017. After some time reflecting, he sensed Meghan wanted to a moment to herself by the site in Northamptonshire.

“When I returned, she was on her knees with her eyes closed and her palms flat against the stone,” Harry wrote, adding that she told him she had asked Diana for “clarity and guidance”, the MailOnline reported.

Harry claims his role in William’s wedding was a ‘bare-faced lie’, reports say

Saturday 7 January 2023 10:52 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry is claimed to have called his role as best man at Prince William’s wedding a “bare-faced lie”, my colleague Maanya Sachdeva reports.

In one part of his memoir, Harry reportedly wrote that he was forced to go along with the “bare-faced lie” that he was William’s best man at his wedding to Kate Middleton in 2011.

According to reports by MailOnline and The Mirror, Harry claimed he was made to “act out” the role at the royal wedding to spare scrutiny into the lives of his brother’s two closest friends James Meade and Thomas Van Straubenzee.

Harry was officially considered the best man, and travelled to Westminster Abbey with his brother and then Prince Charles in a Bentley.

“Willy didn’t want me giving a best man’s speech,” the duke reportedly wrote in his book, adding that it was actually Meade and Straubenzee who gave the traditional speech at William’s wedding reception.

Harry claims his involvement in William’s wedding was a ‘bare-faced lie’, reports say

All the explosive revelations and claims from Harry’s leaked book Spare so far

Saturday 7 January 2023 10:40 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has continued his seemingly neverending wave of allegations and revelations about the royal family in his new autobiography.

Leaked before the official release, Spare covers a wide range of subjects from his fractious relationship with brother William to the struggles after his mother Diana’s death in 1997.

His sex life, drug use and time served in the army are also covered in a memoir that appears to go into uncomfortable levels of detail.

Laura Elston has this round-up of the most explosive claims:

All the explosive revelations and claims from Harry’s leaked book Spare so far

Prince Harry’s military comrades dismayed at ‘unnecessary’ claim of 25 Taliban killings

Saturday 7 January 2023 10:19 , Andy Gregory

One officer, now a colonel, who knew Prince Harry in Afghanistan, recently defended him in remarks to our world affairs editor Kim Sengputa, saying: “Harry served his country in a war – how many of these people popping up now and accusing him of being unpatriotic have done that?

“Many of us feel rather sorry about what’s happening. It’s not just old soldiers who fade away, young ones do so as well. Harry will fade away when this circus is over: we’re losing him, and that’s a shame.”

But he now describes Harry’s comment about killing 25 Talibs as “unnecessary”.

“Everyone knows killing the enemy is something one may have to do in war. One reflects on this privately, there’s no need to broadcast it. It’s a moral thing, but there are also obvious security implications in saying things like this.”

You can read more in this analysis piece:

Dismay of Harry’s military comrades over Taliban killings claim

Prince Harry criticises tabloid for claim Meghan Markle had ‘poisonous’ flower crowns at their wedding

Saturday 7 January 2023 09:54 , Andy Gregory

In his forthcoming book, Prince Harry reportedly addresses claims by a tabloid which accused him and Meghan Markle of putting Princess Charlotte’s “life at risk” by having her wear an allegedly deadly flower crown to their wedding.

Harry recalled the “scandal” that followed in the wake of the article being published and clarified how the flowers aren’t poisonous. He acknowledged that while the flower crowns were designed with lilies of the valley, “which can be poisonous,” those plants can only be deadly if they are eaten.

“Even then, the reaction would be discomfort, conceding to parents, but only in the rarest cases would such a thing be fatal,” he wrote, adding: “Never mind that previous royal brides, including Kate and my mother, had also used lilies of the valley.”

My colleague Amber Raiken has the full story here:

Harry slams tabloid for claim that Meghan Markle had ‘poisonous’ flowers at wedding

Saturday 7 January 2023 09:27 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has revealed that he once believed that his mother, Princess Diana, had faked her own death to escape the press, Page Six reports.

Diana died in a car crash in Paris when Prince Harry was 12 years old, at which point he was staying at Balmoral Castle, my colleague Holly Patrick reports.

The prince reportedly writes in his forthcomign memoir that, during his stay, “suspicion took hold, which then became a firm belief... Her life’s been miserable, she’s been hounded, harassed, lied about, lied to. So she’s staged an accident as a diversion and run away.”

A timeline of the bitter feud between Prince Harry and William

Saturday 7 January 2023 09:01 , Andy Gregory

The claims in Prince Harry’s new book are shocking because he and his brother William were long understood to have been close, having grown up together in the privileged but rarefied atmosphere of the British royal family with all of the pomp, ceremony and press intrusion that entails, writes my colleague Joe Sommerlad.

They were united by sorrow at their parents’ acrimonious and very public divorce and again by the subsequent tragic death of their beloved mother, Princess Diana, in a car crash in Paris in August 1997.

Both went on to attend university, serve in the armed forces, carry out royal duties, marry and father children but their shared experiences do not appear to have been sufficient to keep them together. But their bond has gradually worn away over time to the point where Harry now refers to William as his “arch nemesis”.

Here is a timeline of their falling out, largely as told by Harry since his break with the family, with William, the next in line to the British throne, largely preferring to remain silent:

Timeline of the bitter feud between Prince Harry and William

Former paratrooper describes idea of keeping a kill count ‘abhorrent'

Saturday 7 January 2023 08:38 , Andy Gregory

A former US paratrooper in Afghanistan has described the idea of counting the number of people you have killed in war “absolutely abhorrent”, following Prince Harry’s own claims to have taken the lives of 25 people – whom he likened to “chess pieces” taken off the board.

Writing on Twitter about his experience and of Andrew Fox said: “I love that the British Army doesn’t have a culture of glorifying this stuff. It’s frowned upon in service and it’s frowned upon in the ‘veteran’ community.”

He added: “Human life is sacred. It’s not chess pieces. Taking a human life is horrific and haunts you forever. This s*** will stay with me until my dying day. F*** war. It’s [not] brave or glamorous, you do what you have to. It’s f****** awful for everyone concerned.”

King Charles was jealous of attention received by Prince William and Princess Kate, Harry claims

Saturday 7 January 2023 08:13 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has claimed that his father was jealous of the amount of public attention Prince William and Princess Kate received.

In one translated extract of Harry’s upcoming book in the Daily Telegraph, Harry claims: “Willy did everything he [Charles] wanted, and sometimes he didn’t want him to do much, because my dad and Camilla didn’t like Willy and Kate getting too much publicity.”

One example he reportedly provides as apparent evidence involved the King’s staff making sure the then-Duchess of Cambridge was not photographed holding a tennis racket at a public engagement as “that kind of photo would have pushed Dad and Camilla off every front page”.

“And that couldn’t be tolerated under any circumstances,” Harry reportedly adds.

King Charles feared Meghan Markle would steal his limelight, Prince Harry claims

Saturday 7 January 2023 07:51 , Andy Gregory

The Duke of Sussex has claimed that his father was jealous of his wife, Meghan Markle, fearing the “novel and resplendent” American actor would steal his limelight.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Harry writes in Spare that his father had “experienced that before and he had no interest in letting it happen to him again” – in an apparent allusion to his late mother Princess Diana.

Prior to his engagement to Meghan, Harry claims his father raised the subject of her livelihood and asked if she planned to keep working after their marriage. When he told the now-King he did not believe so, Harry claims the reply was: “Well, my dear son, you already know that we don’t have money to spare.”

The US publication Page Six reports that Harry wrote: “Pa might have dreaded the rising cost of maintaining us, but what he really couldn’t stomach was someone new dominating the monarchy, grabbing the limelight, someone shiny and new coming in and overshadowing him.”

Prince Harry claims King Charles feared Meghan would steal his limelight

Prince Harry says some outlets ‘hunted his DNA to verify’ James Hewitt claims

Saturday 7 January 2023 07:25 , Andy Gregory

Here’s more detail on our current headline story – the news that Prince Harry has used his forthcoming book to address longstanding rumours that his real father is Major James Hewitt, with whom his late mother Princess Diana had a five-year affair in the 1980s.

“.... The rumour going around at the time that my real father was one of my mother’s ex-lovers: Major James Hewitt”, Prince Harry reportedly writes in Spare. “One cause of the rumour was Major Hewitt’s red hair, but another was sadism.

“Tabloid readers loved the idea that Prince Charles’s youngest son was not Prince Charles’s son. They never got tired of that ‘joke’, for some reason.”

The Duke of Sussex wonders whether this rumour was used to paint him as a “laughing stock” – noting that it didn’t seem to matter that his mother hadn’t met Major Hewitt “until long after I was born.”

Harry claims that sections of the media went as far as “hunting my DNA to verify it”, remarking that he believed after “torturing” Princess Diana into hiding that “soon they would come for me.”

The former Major previously remarked in a 2002 interview with the Sunday Mirror that “there really is no possibility whatsoever that I am Harry’s father” as he “was already walking by the time my relationship with Diana began”.

My colleague Eleanor Noyce has the full report:

Prince Harry memoir finally addresses rumour that James Hewitt is his real father

Alison Hammond and Carol Vorderman in hysterics as they discuss Prince Harry’s virginity story from memoir

Saturday 7 January 2023 07:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Alison Hammond and Carol Vorderman were left in uncontrollable fits of laughter while discussing the story of Prince Harry losing his virginity.

The Duke of Sussex recalls the escapade in his forthcoming memoir Spare, which is due for release on Tuesday (10 January) but leaked after it was accidentally released five days early in Spain.

One of the most shocking stories in the book is the story of the first time Harry had sex, with the royal claiming he lost his virginity to an older woman in a field behind a “very busy pub”.

Isobel Lewis has more:

Alison Hammond and Carol Vorderman in hysterics during Prince Harry virginity talk

‘Idiot’: Londoners react to Prince Harry’s book

Saturday 7 January 2023 06:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Londoners have given their two cents on Prince Harry’s much-anticipated memoir, Spare, as excerpts bring about bombshell revelations.

Newspapers shared details from the book after it was released in Spain on Thursday, January 5, leaving the British public stunned.

The prince wrote about how he lost his virginity in a field behind a pub, his drug use, and how many Taliban fighters he killed.

This video gives a glimpse of how the book has gone down with the public, with some saying Harry has caused “irreversible” damage.

Mary-Kate Findon reports:

‘Idiot’: Londoners react to Prince Harry’s book

If Harry really wants his family back, he’d be smart to stop talking so much

Saturday 7 January 2023 05:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Oh, Prince Harry. Finally, the time has come when I feel sorry for everyone’s favourite jet-hopping, mansion-dwelling, dirty laundry-dragging royal.

To be clear, this is not because I worry about the quality of his life now that he has firmly established himself across the pond in sunny Montecito. Nor is it because I’m concerned that he and Meghan might struggle to get any work done at their vast two-seater desk.

Or because they’re too busy texting Beyoncé again. No. It’s because I fear that after all of this media face time, Harry is going to wind up without the one thing he wants most in the world: his family.

Olivia Petter weighs in:

If Harry really wants his family back, he’d be smart to stop talking so much

The detail in the Harry and William revelations everyone is missing

Saturday 7 January 2023 04:00 , Eleanor Noyce

In his forthcoming memoir Spare, Prince Harry claims Prince William attacked him during an argument at the younger brother’s Nottingham Cottage home in 2019. The first person the Duke of Sussex called after the physical fight was not his wife – who was the main subject of the brothers’ alleged squabble – but his therapist.

In an extract from the royal’s book, which is due for release on 10 January, Harry writes that his older brother grabbed him by the collar, ripped his necklace off and “knocked” him to the ground. The argument began when William allegedly called Meghan “difficult”, “rude” and “abrasive”, and escalated when Harry fell onto the dog’s bowl with the broken pieces cutting into his back.

After William left his brother’s home, looking “regretful” as Harry recalls, the duke writes that he didn’t immediately tell Meghan, but called his therapist after the altercation. It wasn’t until his wife noticed “scrapes and bruises” on his back that he told her of the attack.

Meredith Clark reports:

The detail in the Harry and William revelations everyone is missing

Prince Harry’s memoir Spare half-price at major bookshops four days before official release

Saturday 7 January 2023 03:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Prince Harry’s autobiography Spare is already being offered at half price days before it is released.

The Duke of Sussex’s tell-all memoir, which has been ghostwritten by Pulitzer Prize winner JR Moehringer, hits the shelves on Tuesday (10 January).

However, large parts of the book have leaked ahead of release after a Spanish-language version accidentally went on sale five days before it was meant to.

Isobel Lewis reports:

Prince Harry’s memoir Spare half-price four days before official release

Harry, no... Why Spare is a step too far even for this royals fan

Saturday 7 January 2023 02:00 , Eleanor Noyce

It’s the biggest book release of the year, so why is ‘Spare’ making this royal watcher want to run and hide? Jessie Thompson writes:

Wait. Say that again. They call each other Willy and Harold? Harry’s necklace was ripped?! He was injured by a dog bowl!?!?! The explosive account of a fight between Prince Harry and Prince William, from Harry’s forthcoming memoir Spare, contains the kind of intimate, incidental details that usually make me giddily incredulous.

I’m the type of casual royal watcher who has vague political opinions about inherited privilege but will neck a new Tina Brown book like it’s a tasty mojito. I watch new seasons of The Crown in a single sitting. I have even googled “Princess Margaret wearing sunglasses young”. Basically, I’m here for the drama.

So I find myself in an unusual position. Harry’s book is undoubtedly the biggest and most anticipated book release of 2023, offering a no-holds-barred look into the reality of his royal life. And yet… the thought of actually reading it? Oh god. Now I’m not actually sure that I want to.

Harry, no... Why Spare is a step too far even for this royals fan

Prince Harry claims King Charles resented Meghan for 'overshadowing' him

Saturday 7 January 2023 01:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Prince Harry has claimed that King Charles III resented Meghan for “overshadowing” more senior members of the royal family.

In his much-anticipated upcoming memoir, Spare, the prince says the now-King pulled financial support from the couple for personal reasons.

“Pa might have dreaded the rising cost of maintaining us, but what he really couldn’t stomach was someone new dominating the monarchy, grabbing the limelight, someone shiny and new coming in and overshadowing him,” he wrote.

Mary-Kate Findon has more:

Prince Harry claims King Charles resented Meghan for 'overshadowing' him

How to watch Prince Harry’s ITV interview with Tom Bradby

Saturday 7 January 2023 00:01 , Eleanor Noyce

Prince Harry’s highly anticipated interview with ITV News is hitting our screens this weekend.

The Duke of Sussex took part in an exclusive UK interview with presenter Tom Bradby ahead of the release of his tell-all memoir Spare, which arrives on shelves on Tuesday (10 January).

However, the book leaked on Thursday (5 January) after it was accidentally released in Spain five days early.

Isobel Lewis has more:

How to watch Prince Harry’s ITV interview with Tom Bradby

Prince Harry’s military comrades dismayed at ‘unnecessary’ claim of 25 Taliban killings

Friday 6 January 2023 23:00 , Eleanor Noyce

“There are obvious security implications in saying things like this”, a colonel tells Kim Sengupta.

Prince Harry served bravely and well with the military in Afghanistan. One questions why he chose to announce that he had killed 25 Taliban fighters; it was not just distasteful but also raises the security risk for him and his family.

The Duke of Sussex does not glory in the deaths in his leaked memoir, Spare. But talking about those he killed from an Apache helicopter-gunship not as “people” but as “chess pieces” that “had to be taken off the board” sounds crass. It may be a mindset he needed to get into for combat, but saying this publicly about a fallen enemy, however much one may be against what they stand for, was the wrong thing to do.

Dismay of Harry’s military comrades over Taliban killings claim

Warring royals should take a long walk with their father

Friday 6 January 2023 22:50 , Eleanor Noyce

Warring royals should take a long walk with their father, writes Will Gore.

Poor Princes William and Harry. Two brothers, once so close, now torn apart by... well, that depends on whose narrative you choose to believe.

It sometimes feels as if everyone has to pick a side in affairs such as these. It’s rather like the breakdown of a celebrity marriage: are you with Jennifer or Brad; Angelina or Brad? And even in the most clear-cut of cases, you can always find contrary voices who will merrily place the blame on an innocent party.

I’d like to think there is actually a sizeable, silent majority who aren’t spending their hours getting frothy at the mouth about “Harry’s outrageous behaviour!” or about “William’s despicable conduct!”. There may even be a few people out there who couldn’t give two hoots about the whole saga. Perish the thought!

Read more:

The detail in the Harry and William revelations everyone is missing

Friday 6 January 2023 22:20 , Eleanor Noyce

Meredith Clark writes:

In his forthcoming memoir Spare, Prince Harry claims Prince William attacked him during an argument at the younger brother’s Nottingham Cottage home in 2019. The first person the Duke of Sussex called after the physical fight was not his wife – who was the main subject of the brothers’ alleged squabble – but his therapist.

In an extract from the royal’s book, which is due for release on 10 January, Harry writes that his older brother grabbed him by the collar, ripped his necklace off and “knocked” him to the ground. The argument began when William allegedly called Meghan “difficult”, “rude” and “abrasive”, and escalated when Harry fell onto the dog’s bowl with the broken pieces cutting into his back.

After William left his brother’s home, looking “regretful” as Harry recalls, the duke writes that he didn’t immediately tell Meghan, but called his therapist after the altercation. It wasn’t until his wife noticed “scrapes and bruises” on his back that he told her of the attack.

The detail in the Harry and William revelations everyone is missing

All the revelations so far from Harry’s leaked book Spare

Friday 6 January 2023 21:50 , Eleanor Noyce

With excerpts from the Duke of Sussex’s tell-all book leaked in the run-up to its publication, here are the claims and revelations so far.

All the revelations so far from Harry’s leaked book Spare

Why Harry has really gone and done it this time

Friday 6 January 2023 21:20 , Eleanor Noyce

Who’d have thought The Windsors would become an aristocratic version of The Jeremy Kyle Show?

Well, anyone, to be honest; the crown’s been slipping for years already. Long before Harry started snitching on his big brother, the royal family’s public exposés, scandals, betrayals, disclosures and petty humiliations have turned the conditions that created the late Queen’s infamous “annus horrriblis” of 1992 into business as usual.

After all, there’s only so much they can blame on Haz. Ranging from the Carry On sauciness of Fergie’s tabloid tickling toe-job in the early nineties to the truly tawdry Andrew and his sordid friendship with the notorious paedophile Jeffrey Epstein more recently, the royal family have racked up decades of muck without any help from Harry. The royal linen may be luxurious, but it’s caked in filth, and it’s been hanging out for all to see for years already – we’ve just grown used to the sight.

Katie Edwards reports:

Opinion: Why Harry has really gone and done it this time

How to watch Prince Harry’s ITV interview with Tom Bradby

Friday 6 January 2023 20:50 , Eleanor Noyce

Prince Harry’s highly anticipated interview with ITV News is hitting our screens this weekend.

The Duke of Sussex took part in an exclusive UK interview with presenter Tom Bradby ahead of the release of his tell-all memoir Spare, which arrives on shelves on Tuesday (10 January).

However, the book leaked on Thursday (5 January) after it was accidentally released in Spain five days early.

Isobel Lewis has more:

How to watch Prince Harry’s ITV interview with Tom Bradby

“Prince Harry’s done more than most for this country”, friend and Royal Marines veteran remarks

Friday 6 January 2023 20:20 , Eleanor Noyce

A Royal Marines veteran and longstanding friend of Prince Harry has spoken out following the leaked passages from his upcoming memoir Spare.

“I think he’s said a lot, enough overall for us to work out how he feels about his family,” Ben McBean, who knows the Duke of Sussex from their time together in the armed forces, told Sky News. “He’s got enough money in the bank, he’s got a beautiful family, go and enjoy the rest of your life and just chill.”

“Right now, it’s not really going down too well. It’s sad because he’s such a good guy as well. What he’s done in the military has been overlooked and he’s done more than most for this country”, he added.

Cressida Bonas shares first photograph of baby son as Prince Harry opens up about romance

Friday 6 January 2023 19:50 , Eleanor Noyce

Prince Harry’s ex-girlfriend Cressida Bonas has shared the first picture of her baby boy amid the release of the Duke of Sussex’s tell-all memoir.

On Thursday (5 January), Bonas – who dated the royal from 2012 to 2014 – shared a photo to Instagram of her embracing her newborn and sausage dog.

“Welcoming 2023 with these 2 treasures,” she captioned the photo. “Happy new year everybody.”

The post was shared after Prince Harry’s forthcoming autobiography Spare leaked ahead of its release on 10 January.

Ellie Muir reports:

Cressida Bonas shares first photo of baby son as Prince Harry opens up about romance

"I whispered that I hoped she was happy”, recalls Harry of seeing his grandmother Queen Elizabeth on her death bed

Friday 6 January 2023 19:20 , Eleanor Noyce

Prince Harry has described the last time he saw his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, following her death in September 2022.

In Spare, the Duke of Sussex describes travelling to Balmoral Castle in Scotland. He discovered via the BBC News website after his flight landed that Her Majesty had died.

Princess Anne welcomed him into the castle and took him up to his grandmother’s room.

“I advanced with uncertainty and saw her. I stayed still, watching her carefully for a good while,” he pens.

“I whispered that I hoped she was happy and that she was with grandfather now.

“I said that I admired her for having carried out her duties until the end - the jubilee, the welcoming of the new prime minister.”

Prince Harry has ‘turned against military family’ by revealing Afghanistan kills, ex-colonel says

Friday 6 January 2023 18:50 , Eleanor Noyce

The Duke of Sussex has now turned against his “other family, the military” after revealing he killed 25 people in Afghanistan, a retired British Army colonel has said.

Colonel Tim Collins, known for a pre-battle speech he made in Iraq, said Harry’s conduct is “not how we behave in the army”.

It comes as the duke faces an intense backlash after writing about his time in Afghanistan in his controversial memoir, Spare.

Harry wrote that flying six missions during his second tour of duty on the front line in 2012 to 2013 resulted in “the taking of human lives”, of which he was neither proud nor ashamed.

Rebecca Speare-Cole reports:

Prince Harry has ‘turned against military family’ by revealing Afghanistan kills

Taliban taunts ‘big mouth loser’ Prince Harry after he claims 25 kills in Afghanistan

Friday 6 January 2023 18:20 , Eleanor Noyce

The Taliban have criticised Prince Harry after he said he killed 25 people in Afghanistan while serving in the military.

The Duke of Sussex said the killings were like “chess pieces removed from the board,” in his forthcoming memoir Spare. “Bad people eliminated before they could kill Good people.

“My number is 25. It’s not a number that fills me with satisfaction, but nor does it embarrass me.”

Read more:

Taliban taunts ‘big mouth loser’ Prince Harry as he claims 25 kills in Afghanistan

"Those photos set off a frenzy”: Prince Harry reflects on his relationship with Caroline Flack

Friday 6 January 2023 17:54 , Eleanor Noyce

In his forthcoming memoir, Prince Harry recalls his relationship with the late TV presenter Caroline Flack.

Detailing how he felt they had to stop seeing each other because of pressure from the press, the pair visited a restaurant together in 2009. The press found out and hunted them down, with Harry remarking that “those photos set off a frenzy.”

“Within hours a horde of journalists was camped outside Flack’s parents’ house, her friends’ houses and her grandmother’s house…”, Harry writes.

“We kept seeing each other from time to time but we never felt free again. We kept going because we genuinely enjoyed each other’s company and because we didn’t want to admit defeat at the hands of those imbeciles.

“But the relationship was tainted, irredeemably, and in the end we decided it just wasn’t worth the grief and harassment. Especially to her family. We said goodbye. Goodbye and good luck.”

Caroline Flack died in 2020. She won Strictly Come Dancing and hosted The X Factor and Love Island.

Titillating but tedious: Prince Harry’s betrayal is showing the royals for who they really are

Friday 6 January 2023 17:50 , Eleanor Noyce

And so it should transpire that a young, moderately handsome and not especially bright young man has a) lost his virginity in regrettable fashion b) dabbled in recreational drugs c) had a moderately violent row with a brother of about the same age and d) done what was expected of him in the armed forces.

Woah woah woah. Clear out all the front pages. This is jawdropping stuff. Surely all of these entirely plausible incidents can’t be real. Scrape my pieces up off the floor. I am blown away.

The front page of the Daily Mail announces, in its ingenious pun on the title of Prince Harry’s autobiography, PLEASE SPARE US! before then devoting almost its entire edition to all of the details which it simultaneously claims to wish to be spared from, in a curious attempt to capture what it imagines to be the public mood: that at this point, Prince Harry simply needs to stop talking about himself for money, and most of all, stop throwing the rest of his family under the proverbial bus.

Tom Peck writes:

Prince Harry’s betrayal is showing the royals for who they really are | Tom Peck

Prince Harry says he 'gobbled mushroom chocolates' at Courteney Cox's house

Friday 6 January 2023 17:20 , Eleanor Noyce

The Duke of Sussex has recalled a time when he “gobbled” magic mushrooms at Courteney Cox’s house in his autobiography, Spare.

In an extract seen by US Weekly, Prince Harry wrote that he went to the Friends actor’s house after a party.

Harry said that, as a Friends “fanatic,” the idea of crashing at Cox’s house was “highly amusing.”

The duke recalled that he spotted “a huge box of black diamond mushroom chocolates” at the house.

“My mate and I grabbed several, gobbled them, washed them down with tequila,” he wrote.

Holly Patrick reports:

Prince Harry says he 'gobbled mushroom chocolates' at Courteney Cox's house

Prince Harry claims King Charles resented Meghan for 'overshadowing' him

Friday 6 January 2023 16:50 , Eleanor Noyce

Prince Harry has claimed that King Charles III resented Meghan for “overshadowing” more senior members of the royal family.

In his much-anticipated upcoming memoir, Spare, the prince says the now-King pulled financial support from the couple for personal reasons.

“Pa might have dreaded the rising cost of maintaining us, but what he really couldn’t stomach was someone new dominating the monarchy, grabbing the limelight, someone shiny and new coming in and overshadowing him,” he wrote.

Mary-Kate Findon has more:

Prince Harry claims King Charles resented Meghan for 'overshadowing' him

Alison Hammond and Carol Vorderman in hysterics as they discuss Prince Harry’s virginity story from memoir

Friday 6 January 2023 16:21 , Andy Gregory

Alison Hammond and Carol Vorderman were left in uncontrollable fits of laughter while discussing the story of Prince Harry losing his virginity.

The royal claims in the book that he lost his virginity to an older woman in a field behind a “very busy pub”, referring to the incident as “a humiliating episode with an older woman who liked macho horses and who treated me like a young stallion”, adding: “I mounted her quickly, after which she spanked my ass and sent me away.”

The subject was raised during Friday’s episode (6 January) of This Morning, with hosts Hammond and Dermot O’Leary joined by Gyles Brandreth and Vorderman to discuss the book – resulting in hysterical laughter.

My colleague Isobel Lewis has the details here:

Alison Hammond and Carol Vorderman in hysterics during Prince Harry virginity talk

Meghan Markle ‘placed hands on Diana’s grave and asked for guidance’ on 20th anniversary of her death

Friday 6 January 2023 16:12 , Eleanor Noyce

In forthcoming memoir Spare, Prince Harry has detailed the moment Meghan Markle placed her hands on Diana’s grave and “asked her for clarity and guidance.”

Rowing out to Princess Diana’s final resting place on an island on the Althorp estate in 2017, the couple were visiting to mark the 20th anniversary of her death.

After some time reflecting together, Harry gave Meghan a few moments alone.

“When I returned, she was on her knees with her eyes closed and her palms flat against the stone,” Harry wrote, remarking that she told him she had asked Diana for “clarity and guidance”, the MailOnline reported.

Opinion | Harry, no... Why Spare is a step too far even for this royals fan

Friday 6 January 2023 16:05 , Andy Gregory

In this feature, our arts editor Jessie Thompson writes:

Wait. Say that again. They call each other Willy and Harold? Harry’s necklace was ripped?! He was injured by a dog bowl!?!?! The explosive account of a fight between Prince Harry and Prince William, from Harry’s forthcoming memoir Spare, contains the kind of intimate, incidental details that usually make me giddily incredulous.

I’m the type of casual royal watcher who has vague political opinions about inherited privilege but will neck a new Tina Brown book like it’s a tasty mojito. I watch new seasons of The Crown in a single sitting. I have even googled “Princess Margaret wearing sunglasses young”.

Basically, I’m here for the drama. So I find myself in an unusual position. Harry’s book is undoubtedly the biggest and most anticipated book release of 2023, offering a no-holds-barred look into the reality of his royal life. And yet… the thought of actually reading it? Oh god. Now I’m not actually sure that I want to.

Harry, no... Why Spare is a step too far even for this royals fan

Voices | Harry’s military claims point to one thing – an enduring sense of trauma

Friday 6 January 2023 15:20 , Andy Gregory

Amid criticism of Prince Harry’s admissions about his time in Afghanistan, former British Army Captain Mike Crofts notes that “discussing kill counts openly often suggests that someone is processing a large amount of trauma linked to their service and possibly before it”.

He adds: “Despite the misjudged oversharing of his service, veterans still need to stand by Harry and offer him support when he needs it in future. Lets get beyond the hysteria of what is in fact just a very sad tale.

“Beyond Harry, this episode should be a call for all veterans everywhere to reach out and check in with those they served with. We all carry trauma in different ways and a kind ear and forgiveness is sometimes what people need most.”

You can read his full analysis for Independent Voices here:

Opinion: Prince Harry’s military claims point to one thing

Prince Harry reveals late Queen played a role in Chelsy Davy breakup

Friday 6 January 2023 14:57 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has claimed that the late Queen Elizabeth II’s opinion on his ex-girlfriend, Chelsy Davy, played a role in their breakup, my colleague Meredith Clark reports.

In an excerpt from the Duke of Sussex’s forthcoming book, obtained by Page Six, Prince Harry reflected on his on-again, off-again romance with the Zimbabwean businesswoman, whom he dated from 2004 to 2011.

“I loved Chels’ ease, that she wasn’t complicated,” he is reported as saying. “She didn’t care what anyone thought. She wore miniskirts and high-heeled boots, danced however she wanted, drank tequila like me, and all of this made me really happy. I couldn’t help what my grandmother thought about it. Or the people. And the last thing I wanted was for Chels to change to please them.”

Harry, 38, also admitted that he “wasn’t sure” at the time whether Davy, now 37, was “the one” for him, saying: “The whole world isn’t made to put up with constant scrutiny, and I don’t know if Chels could bear it, and I couldn’t ask her to.”

Prince Harry reveals late Queen played a part in Chelsy Davy breakup

Prince Harry’s Afghanistan remarks ‘could incite violence against British soldiers’

Friday 6 January 2023 14:35 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry’s comments about personally having viewed Taliban fighters he killed as “chess pieces” taken “off the board” could “incite” people to attempt attacks against British soldiers anywhere in the world, a retired British Army officer has warned.

“This has tarnished his own reputation and it also has damaged – if people believe it, and many will believe it – the reputation of the British Army, unjustly,” Colonel Richard Kemp told Sky News. “Because the characterisation that he makes in this book is simply not true – it’s in fact the opposite of the truth.

“Those people who want to kill British soldiers or former soldiers, they know that the British Army killed many more than 25, but it brings it into sharp focus ... I think this will incite some people to maybe attempt to attack against British soldiers anywhere in the world”

He added: “I wouldn’t overplay that aspect – I think the impact on his own personal security is greater, but I don’t think we can ignore that.”

Prince Harry’s memoir Spare half-price at major bookshops four days before official release

Friday 6 January 2023 14:12 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry’s autobiography Spare is already being offered at half price days before it is released on 10 January.

The book’s RRP is £28, but four days before its official release, the memoir is being offered for half price if you pre-order in store and online.

This includes major UK bookshops Waterstones and WHSmith, the latter of which is opening some stores at midnight on Tuesday for Spare’s release.

My colleague Isobel Lewis has more details:

Prince Harry’s memoir Spare half-price four days before official release

Ex-security official would have ‘advised Harry against’ Afghanistan disclosures

Friday 6 January 2023 13:51 , Andy Gregory

Lord Kim Darroch, former National Security Adviser, has said that “he would have advised against” Prince Harry discussing the number of people he killed while serving in Afghanistan.

Lord Darroch said he “slightly” shared the security concerns military experts have raised after Harry’s comments, telling Sky News: “You have to respect all of those who fought in Afghanistan.

“I went there a number of times when I was National Security Adviser. It’s a really tough environment, it was a really dangerous war, we lost more than 500 British servicemen. I respect and appreciate all those who fought there.

“Personally if I’d been advising the prince, I would have advised against the kind of detail that he goes into there. But it’s out there now and I believe it was a just war and therefore what he has written about how he justified to himself what he was doing, I can understand and appreciate that.

“In terms of the detail, I personally wouldn’t have gone there, but it’s done now.”

Prince Harry has ‘turned against military family’ by revealing Afghanistan kills

King Charles ‘isn’t a hugger’, says Paul Burrell

Friday 6 January 2023 13:32 , Andy Gregory

The late Princess Diana’s butler Paul Burrell has said he “understands” Prince Harry’s recollections of his father’s response in the wake of his mother’s death, claiming that the monarch “isn’t a hugger”.

“When he talks about his father touching his knee at Balmoral and not hugging him, I understand that because Charles isn’t a hugger and the royals don’t hug,” he told ITV’s Lorraine show.

The royals are “not good at giving comfort, and that’s what Harry’s trying to tell you”, he said, adding: “They’re not like us, they’re very different.”

Paul Burrell claims Prince Harry has done ‘tremendous damage’ to monarchy

Friday 6 January 2023 13:14 , Andy Gregory

Paul Burrell, who worked as Princess Diana’s butler 25 years ago, is back in front of the cameras and speaking to ITV’s Lorraine Kelly this morning.

Claiming to describe his late boss’s son as “a very angry, hurt young man”, who is “still living those moments of when he lost his mother”, Burrell went on to accuse Prince Harry of doing “tremendous damage to the system, which is the monarchy”.

“Diana supported the monarchy, she was proud of her boys, proud that they were royal princes, proud they were part of the royal family … and she would not agree with Harry pulling the rug from underneath his brother’s feet as he’s on his way to be king, and she would want them to be together,” he claimed.

The fallout has been “a lot of hurt people and it has to stop”, he added, “because if it keeps escalating like this there will never be a reconciliation”.

Prince William didn’t want Harry and Meghan Markle to marry in Westminster Abbey, book reportedly claims

Friday 6 January 2023 12:52 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry has reportedly claimed that his brother William was against the idea of his marriage to Meghan Markle taking place in Westminster Abbey – where he himself had married Kaate Middleton seven years prior.

According to Page Six, Harry also claims in his forthcoming book that William also didn’t want to pair to choose St Paul’s Cathedral, where Princess Diana and King Charles married in 1981, because it was reportedly “too grand”.

Prince Harry claims Prince William warned him not to propose to Meghan Markle

Friday 6 January 2023 12:29 , Andy Gregory

Prince Harry says that Prince William warned him not to propose to Meghan Markle out of fear the couple’s relationship was moving “too fast”, reports Ellie Muir.

According to Page Six, the Duke of Sussex claims in his upcoming memoir that William squashed the idea that Harry and Meghan would “become a foursome” with him and Kate because she was “an American actress after all”.

After telling William that he felt like their late mother, Princess Diana, helped him “find” Markle, Harry reportedly claims that William “took a step back” and told his younger brother that he was “taking things a bit too far”.

Prince Harry claims Prince William warned him not to propose to Meghan Markle

Rishi Sunak sidesteps questions on Prince Harry’s Afghanistan claims

Friday 6 January 2023 12:05 , Andy Gregory

Rishi Sunak has declined to comment after the Duke of Sussex claimed to have killed 25 people as a helicopter pilot in Afghanistan.

Asked if such a claim was wise, the Prime Minister told broadcasters: "I wouldn't comment on matters to do with the royal family.

"I would just say I am enormously grateful to our armed forces for the incredible job they do in keeping us all safe. We're all very fortunate for their service."

New Prince Harry ITV interview trailer teases alleged William attack and talk of ‘a fair amount of drugs’

Friday 6 January 2023 11:47 , Andy Gregory

My collegaue Nicole Vassell has this report on ITV’s new trailer this morning for its forthcoming interview with Prince Harry, due to be broadcast on Sunday, two days ahead of the publication of his new book.

New Prince Harry ITV interview trailer teases alleged William attack

Click here to read the full blog on The Independent's website