Richard Kay, a friend of the late Princess Diana and current Editor at large for the Daily Mail, has suggested that Prince Harry‘s recent appearance on the Jimmy Fallon show is not something his brother, Prince William, would have done. Speaking on the publication’s Palace Confidential podcast, Richard responded to a question about the roles members of the Royal Family should serve.
He commented on Harry‘s current image in both Africa and the USA, stating: “Harry is treading this very difficult line between celebrity and royalty still…he looked very dignified in Lesotho but it’s a country he’s got a lot of connection with. But back in America, he’s still tried to play the royal jester, the joker when he goes on these talk shows.”
He added: “I think his brother would never do anything like that or if he did it would be much more controlled. I suspect that Harry is still desperately searching for some kind of role.”
Richard also discussed whether members of the Royal Family were statesmen or stateswomen, or served another function. He mused: “I have this issue about whether members of the Royal Family are statesmen, they’re not statesmen or stateswomen, they’re ceremonial figures, that’s all they are.”
His comments followed Prince Harry‘s appearance on The Tonight Show hosted by Jimmy Fallon, where the Duke of Sussex, 40, navigated a haunted maze with the popular TV host, reports the Express.
In the video, Prince Harry is seen swearing and sprinting as he encounters the various frightening elements of the maze that gave him quite a scare. Richard Eden, who appeared alongside Richard Kay on their podcast, was critical of Harry’s TV appearance.
He remarked: “It was sort of quite amusing, but … royal families should just not do light entertainment.”
“It never really ends well. We’ve seen Harry before with James Corden, that was cringe-making. We’ve seen Meghan … squatting down on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, that was excruciating.”
“And then if we go back further, we’ve got Prince Edward organising the grand knockout tournament.”
Despite some criticism for his chat show appearances, the prince has been involved in significant humanitarian work recently, attending the WellChild Awards in London and working with Sentebale, a charity he co-founded in Lesotho in the 2000s. Today, Sentebale supports individuals across both Lesotho and Botswana.
Speaking at an event in Lesotho earlier this year, Harry commented on the progress made since the charity’s inception.
The Independent quoted him as saying: “We are building a force of young advocates and when they are empowered to use their voices, the strength of their impact will be immense. You might not always realise how significant your influence is, but if it changes even one person’s life, it’s worth it.”
The kingdom’s Prime Minister Sam Matekane also lauded Harry, expressing that they would be “forever grateful for his dedication”.