From the savage Oprah interview to the explosive memoir and controversial Netflix series, Prince Harry has not held back from settling scores with his royal relatives.
When the Duke and Duchess of Sussex quit their royal duties and fled to the United States, they lashed out at close family members, particularly King Charles and Prince William. In his Netflix series, Harry slammed the Firm for failing to welcome Meghan when they begun dating.
Next, Harry claimed his brother pushed him to the floor in a fit of rage as one of the many compromising revelations detailed in ‘ Spare‘.
However, beyond these very public criticisms, it has also been reported that Harry criticised the royals in private too, leaving a former friend ‘disgusted’.
Daily Mail reporter Rebecca English wrote: “I was told of one former confidant, who for many years couldn’t have been closer to Harry, who was so disgusted by his behaviour – and, in particular, by some of the things he apparently said privately about his family – that they vowed never to talk to him again. And they haven’t.”
This friend is not the only former ally that Harry has alienated. According to The Sunday Times, Prince William and Harry have not spoked since their grandmother the late Queen’s funeral in September 2022.
Even then, according to Harry’s memoir, they “barely exchanged a word”. Although the pair were reunited in August for the funeral of their late uncle Lord Robert Fellowes, those at the service say that the brothers kept their distance and did not speak to each other.
The Sunday Times explains that William is unlikely to forgive his younger brother any time soon for Harry’s criticism of his wife Princess Catherine in ‘Spare’. In fact, William is said to have taken the comments so badly that he would not want Harry at his Coronation, according to friends.
The King is also understood to be avoiding Harry, with insiders claiming that one long-running issue is straining their already rocky relationship. Sources close to the Sussexes have claimed that the King is not taking his sons calls as Harry attempts to discuss his security arrangements.
The Duke has been locked in long-running disputes over the police protection available to him when he visits the UK, having lost his right to this when he stepped down as a working royal.
A friend of Harry’s told PEOPLE magazine: “He gets ‘unavailable right now’. His calls go unanswered. He has tried to reach out about the King’s health, but those calls go unanswered too.”
Another friend explained: “Harry is frightened and feels the only person who can do anything about it is his father,” while a further source added: “Harry is determined to protect his own family at all costs.”
Harry has lost court battles for his security to be reinstated, and is planning an appeal to protect himself and his family during their trips to Britain. According to PEOPLE magazine, Harry believes his father has the power to influence decisions around his security arrangements, but a palace source has dismissed this claim as “wholly inaccurate”.
Harry took legal action over the February 2020 decision by the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) which ruled he would no longer be given the “same degree” of publicly-funded protection when in the country.
However, in February retired High Court judge Sir Peter Lane dismissed the Duke’s case that he was “singled out” and treated “less favourably” by the decision, concluding instead that Ravec’s policy was neither irrational nor flawed. In response to the ruling, a legal spokesperson for Harry issued a statement explaining that the Duke “hopes to obtain justice from the Court of Appeal”.
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