As he promotes a new book detailing his life behind palace walls, Prince Harry accuses his the queen consort, Camilla, of leaking private conversations to the media to boost her reputation.
In interviews aired Sunday and Monday, Prince Harry accused members of his family of “getting into bed with the devil” to gain favorable new tabloid coverage, singling out Camilla’s efforts to repair her image with the British people following her long-running affair with his father, now King Charles III.
“Because of the connections Camilla forged within the British press, she became dangerous,” he told CBS. “On both sides, there was an open willingness to exchange information. And with a Royal family built on hierarchy, and her on her way to being queen consort, there were bound to be people or bodies on the street.”
Harry appeared on ITV in the United Kingdom, CBS “60 Minutes,” and Good Morning America to promote his new book “Spare,” which will be widely released on Tuesday. Some bookshops in the United Kingdom plan to open at midnight to meet the demand for the highly anticipated memoir, which has sparked outrage with reports that it contains details of bitter family resentments, as well as Harry and his wife Meghan’s decision to leave their royal roles and relocate to California.
In the interviews, Harry repeatedly blamed the media for the couple’s problems, also known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, claiming that the coverage contributed to their rift with his brother, Prince William, and his wife, Kate.
“They were always pitting us against each other,” he explained to Good Morning America. “They pit Kate and Meghan up against one another.”
Prince Harry’s legal battles
Harry was also unafraid of launching legal battles against some members of the British media. While his father believes taking on the press is “probably a suicide mission,” Harry describes changing the media landscape in the UK as “my life’s work.”
However, Harry has continued to criticize the royal family.
He reiterated his claim that the royal family was “concerned” about the skin color of his unborn child after he married biracial American actress Meghan Markle. Harry and Meghan first mentioned the incident in a 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, but they have yet to identify the family member who expressed concern.
Harry insisted his family was not racist but that the incident demonstrated unconscious bias. Before meeting Meghan, the prince admitted to CBS that he was “probably bigoted” and that the royal family, which is held to a higher moral standard, needed to “learn and grow” to be “part of the solution rather than part of the problem.”
“Otherwise, unconscious bias becomes racism,” Harry explained to ITV.
“Spare” delves into Harry’s grief over his mother’s death in 1997, as well as his long-simmering resentment at being the royal “spare,” overshadowed by the “heir” — older brother William. He describes an argument and a physical altercation with William, how he lost his virginity, and his use of cocaine and cannabis.
He also claims to have killed 25 Taliban fighters while serving as an Apache helicopter pilot in Afghanistan, which has sparked outrage from both the Taliban and British military veterans.
Camilla the third person
Camilla’s allegations are especially sensitive because of her role in the dissolution of Charles’ marriage to the late Princess Diana, William and Harry’s mother.
Diana once referred to Camilla, who had a long-running affair with Charles, as the “third person” in their marriage. While many public members initially shunned Camilla, she has won fans by participating in various charitable activities and is credited with making Charles appear less stuffy and more in touch with modern Britain.
“I had complex feelings about gaining a stepparent who, I believed, had recently sacrificed me on her PR altar,” Harry writes about his father’s 2005 wedding to Camilla. Nonetheless, he claims he wanted his father to be happy. “In a strange way, I wanted Camilla to be happy. Maybe if she were happy, she’d be less dangerous?”
“Spare” is the latest in a series of public statements made by Harry and Meghan since they left the royal family and relocated to California in 2020, citing what they saw as the media’s racism toward Meghan and a lack of support from the palace. It comes after Winfrey’s interview and a six-part Netflix series that debuted last month.
Harry, 38, describes the couple’s acrimonious split from the royal family in the ghostwritten memoir after their request for a part-time royal role was denied.
The television interviews will almost certainly increase the pressure on the royal family. In addition, Harry will appear on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”
Royal family officials have not commented on any of the allegations, but allies have reacted anonymously.
Spin and distortion
Prince Harry defended the memoir, calling it his attempt to “own my story” after years of “spin and distortion” by others. In an interview with “60 Minutes,” Harry denied that his book was intended to harm his family.
According to Omid Scobie, co-author of “Finding Freedom,” the new book about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Harry is providing the public with a look behind the palace walls they have long desired.
“Of course, there are some drawbacks for those who have been a part of Prince Harry’s journey,” Scobie told the BBC. “We heard some shocking confessions and stories about members of the royal family, especially Camilla and her relationship with the press.”
While Harry hasn’t spoken with his father or brother in a long time, he hopes to reconcile with them. However, he told ITV that “the ball is in their court.”
“They have shown no willingness to reconcile,” he said.
While the saga is damaging to the royal family, it may not be as damaging as people believe and will provide a forum for the global audience to discuss difficult issues such as misogyny and racism, according to Boston University professor Arianne Chernock, an expert in modern British history.
But she was wary of doomsayers who claimed the monarchy was in trouble. After all, the institution has been around for over 1,000 years.
“This is an important part of the royal family’s history,” she said. “Scandal is the exception, not the rule.”
