Midday Friday, the BBC aired their full 30-minute interview with Prince Harry following the loss of his British security appeal. In the months and years to come, the interview will be referenced alongside the Oprah interview and Spare as one of the smartest things Harry has done to get his story and his side out there. You can tell that Harry’s words struck a nerve because Buckingham Palace has been in furious damage-control mode ever since. Throughout the weekend, you could see in real time as BP’s spin team tried out various talking points through the royal rota WhatsApp. One talking point issued on Sunday was an old one: positioning Harry as “deluded,” crazy and paranoid. Meanwhile, we’re not supposed to notice the gaping silence on many of the issues raised by Harry, namely that Clarence House and Buckingham Palace ordered the withdrawal of the Sussexes’ security in 2020, and that they signaled to other governments to leave the Sussexes unprotected.
The Duke of Sussex has “simply lost touch with reality” by giving a “scorched earth” interview to the BBC, it has been claimed. A palace insider has alleged that the King’s aides view the Duke’s interview on Friday as proof that he “doesn’t get the message”.
The insider said: “Harry has simply lost touch with reality. The man doesn’t get the message.
“His father has avoided all his efforts for the last few years to speak on the phone or try to get messages to him through various circles. This TV moment shows his desperation and refusal to accept any responsibility for attacks on the Royals, attempts to undermine the institution and vicious claims about racism and bullying. One of Charles’ team labelled him ‘deluded’ for thinking a media interview, quite clearly poking at his father and brother, could force any talks.”They added: “If Harry reckoned going ‘scorched earth’ was a clever move, he was foolish.”
The insider also said the “irony” of the Duke using the media to seemingly criticise the Royal Family was not lost on the palace. “The very arena of the media, which he has bemoaned for years, is the same platform he utilises to seemingly hurt his father, by saying things like ‘Charles may not be long for this world’ as well as other disrespectful accusations. The irony is not wasted on anyone within courtier circles and senior Royals,” the source added.
This is telling: Harry “doesn’t get the message.” So the palace admits that this whole security debacle has been about sending a message to Harry, and that they have been in control of his security situation the entire time? Yeah, Harry got the message. The message being: we don’t care if you’re harmed or put in mortal danger, in fact, we want you to be harmed and put in danger. The message being: stop trying to see your father, he does not care about you or your children. The message was received loud and clear, which is why Harry jumped on camera so quickly. They’re also trying to paint Harry as crazy and paranoid, which is exactly the same play they ran against his mother.
Meanwhile, it’s going to be a busy day in London with all of the VE-Day 80th anniversary events happening. After Buckingham Palace’s rota WhatsApp went apesh-t all weekend, they ended the briefing spree on Sunday with a different message:
The royal family are hoping for no more distractions as they put on a united front to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day this week, after the Duke of Sussex told the BBC that his father would not speak to him. It is understood that Buckingham Palace officials hope that “nothing will detract or distract from celebrating with full cheer and proud hearts that precious victory and those brave souls, on this most special and poignant of anniversaries”.
Hoping to put the comments from his younger son behind him, the King will be joined by the Queen and other members of the royal family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on Monday to watch a flypast to commemorate the end of the Second World War.
Notable absences on the palace balcony, of course, will be Harry, who left his royal role five years ago, and the Duke of York, who was forced to step down in 2019 over his friendship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The King is now said to be determined not to allow the monarchy to be overshadowed by Harry and Andrew, who have been dubbed the “Dukes of Hazzard” by courtiers.
A Palace aide said: “The King, Queen and other members of the royal family are much looking forward to all the week’s VE Day events, when they will unite with the rest of the nation — and those across the Commonwealth and wider world — in celebrating, commemorating and giving thanks to the wartime generation whose selfless devotion, duty and service should stand as an enduring example to us all.”
Another version of “how dare Harry steal the thunder of the Greatest Generation.” Harry wasn’t the one who spent 60-plus hours screaming, crying and throwing up to the royal rota, trying to “spin” Charles’s terrible behavior.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images, BBC screengrabs.
