Palace shock at Prince Harry: Royal staff slam
'breathtaking arrogance' over Duke's comment about 'protecting' the Queen and
suggestion Her Majesty tells him secrets
Harry, 37, was speaking to Today from the Invictus
Games in the Netherlands, where he is spending the week
Royal staff said his delusion knew 'no bounds' in
interview in which he claimed he wanted to 'protect' Queen
Prince also said his 'special' relationship with his
grandmother meant she told him things she kept from others
One well-placed royal source told the Daily Mail of
the sense of shock at the Duke's 'breathtaking arrogance'
By REBECCA
ENGLISH ROYAL EDITOR FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED:
22:33, 20 April 2022 | UPDATED: 01:09, 21 April 2022
Prince
Harry was last night accused by royal staff of 'breathtaking arrogance'.
They said
his self-delusion knew 'no bounds' in an extraordinary interview in which he
claimed he wanted to 'protect' the Queen.
Buckingham
Palace was left reeling after the prince said in the US TV appearance that his
'special' relationship with his grandmother meant she told him things she would
keep from others.
Harry also
risked further fuelling the rift with his estranged brother by stating that
their mother Diana beyond the grave because she had 'done her bit' with William
and his family.
His remarks
prompted an unprecedented intervention from Downing Street, which dismissed
Harry's suggestion that the Queen needed extra protection. Asked whether the
Prime Minister was confident in the arrangements for ensuring the Queen's
welfare, Boris Johnson's spokesman replied: 'Yes.'
Harry, 37,
was speaking to breakfast show Today from the Invictus Games in the
Netherlands, where he is spending the week after flying in from California with
wife Meghan.
Harry, 37,
was speaking to breakfast show Today (pictured above, with presenter Hoda Kotb)
from the Invictus Games in the Netherlands, where he is spending the week after
flying in from California with wife Meghan
Harry, 37,
was speaking to breakfast show Today (pictured above, with presenter Hoda Kotb)
from the Invictus Games in the Netherlands, where he is spending the week after
flying in from California with wife Meghan
Buckingham
Palace was left reeling after the prince said in the US TV appearance that his
'special' relationship with his grandmother (both pictured in 2019) meant she
told him things she would keep from others
Buckingham
Palace was left reeling after the prince said in the US TV appearance that his
'special' relationship with his grandmother (both pictured in 2019) meant she
told him things she would keep from others
The Duke of
Cambridge, Prince Charles and Prince Harry looking at a mobile phone during day
two of the Invictus Games at Lee Valley Athletics Centre in London
Their
relationship is already hanging by a thread. And Harry’s comments about their
late mother Princess Diana are unlikely to heal any wounds with his estranged
elder brother, Prince William.
He told NBC
Today’s Hoda Kotb he believed Diana was now watching over him as ‘she’s done
her bit with my brother’.
Asked
whether he felt his ‘mum’s presence’, Harry said: ‘It’s constant. It has been
over the past two years, more so than ever before.
‘It’s
almost as though she’s done her bit with my brother and now she’s very much
helping me. She’s got him set up, and now she’s helping me set up. That’s what
it feels like. He’s got his kids, I’ve got my kids.
‘The
circumstances are obviously different. I feel her presence in almost everything
I do, but definitely in the last two years than before without question. She’s
watching over us.’
Kensington
Palace declined to comment. But his words are likely to anger William, who has
made clear he finds any sense of ‘ownership’ over Diana’s memory ‘crass’.
The couple
stopped off en route to see the Queen at Windsor Castle last Thursday, the
first time the Duchess of Sussex has set foot in the UK for more than two
years. Harry had not seen his grandmother, who turns 96 today, since early last
summer.
While the
palace has refused to comment on the meeting, Harry, who is being accompanied
by a film crew from Netflix with whom he has signed a production deal, was
happy to chat to a journalist from US network NBC about their 'private' time
together.
The prince
appeared to make a pointed swipe at royal household staff, including the
so-called 'men in grey suits' who advise the Queen – and possibly even his own
family.
Speaking of
his meeting with his grandmother, Harry said: 'It was great. It was really nice
to see her in some element of privacy. Being with her it was great, it was just
so nice to see her, she's on great form.
'She's
always got a great sense of humour with me and I'm just making sure that she's
protected and got the right people around her. Both Meghan and I had tea with
her, so it was really nice to catch up with her. We have a really special
relationship, we talk about things that she can't talk about with anybody
else.'
Harry's
decision to acrimoniously quit as a working royal and spend the past two years making
a string of damning accusations against his family is understood to have caused
the Queen great heartache.
A spokesman
for the prince reportedly refused to explain his remarks in the interview
further last night. Buckingham Palace pointedly chose not to comment, as did
Kensington Palace on behalf of William.
But one
well-placed royal source told the Daily Mail of the sense of shock at his
'breathtaking arrogance' and made clear that many felt Harry's delusion knew
'no bounds'.
'It is the
Queen's birthday and despite a difficult year people are working full steam
ahead on making her Platinum Jubilee an event to remember that properly honours
such a remarkable woman. She just doesn't deserve this,' they said.
'I have no
idea what intention he may or may not have had in saying this, but Harry needs
to start thinking before he opens his mouth.'
Harry also
risked further fuelling the rift with his estranged brother by stating that
their mother Diana beyond the grave because she had 'done her bit' with William
and his family
Harry also
risked further fuelling the rift with his estranged brother by stating that
their mother Diana beyond the grave because she had 'done her bit' with William
and his family
During the interview
the prince, who is still sixth in line to the throne, also made clear that he
was planning to remain in the US for the foreseeable future and did not see the
UK as his 'home'. Pictured: Harry and Meghan on April 17
During the
interview the prince, who is still sixth in line to the throne, also made clear
that he was planning to remain in the US for the foreseeable future and did not
see the UK as his 'home'. Pictured: Harry and Meghan on April 17
During the
interview the prince, who is still sixth in line to the throne, also made clear
that he was planning to remain in the US for the foreseeable future and did not
see the UK as his 'home'.
There has
been speculation over whether he and his family will make a palace balcony
appearance with the Queen during commemorations for her jubilee. But when asked
about returning for June's celebrations he made clear this was not a done deal.
Harry is to
sue the Home Office for the decision to pull his taxpayer-funded, 24-hour
police protection when he left Britain.
He claims
that he does not feel safe bringing his family – children Archie and Lili –
back to the UK and wants it reinstated, even if he pays for it himself.
The smooth
build-up to the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations was thrown off course
yesterday by Prince Harry’s extraordinary interview. In it, he said:
The Queen
and me
Speaking to
US network NBC’s Today show from the Netherlands, where he is attending the
Invictus Games, Harry, 37, was asked about his reunion with the Queen at
Windsor on Thursday last week.
Buckingham
Palace has maintained a dignified silence on the meeting – in part out of
respect to the monarch, who loves her grandson – but Harry did not choose to
issue a polite ‘no comment’.
In fact he
went further. He said it was refreshing to meet her ‘in some element of
privacy’, and made the extraordinary claim that he wants to ‘protect’ his
grandmother, apparently suggesting she was not being well served by some of the
‘people around her’.
Interviewer
Hoda Kotb asked: ‘How did it feel being back, being with her?’
Harry
replied: ‘It was great. It was so nice to see her. She’s on great form. She’s
always got a great sense of humour with me. Just making sure she’s protected
and got the right people around her.’
Speaking to
US network NBC¿s Today show from the Netherlands, where he is attending the
Invictus Games, Harry, 37, was asked about his reunion with the Queen at
Windsor on Thursday last week
Speaking to
US network NBC’s Today show from the Netherlands, where he is attending the
Invictus Games, Harry, 37, was asked about his reunion with the Queen at
Windsor on Thursday last week
Buckingham
Palace has maintained a dignified silence on the meeting ¿ in part out of
respect to the monarch, who loves her grandson ¿ but Harry did not choose to
issue a polite ¿no comment¿. Pictured: a new portrait of the Queen which has
been released by The Royal Windsor Horse Show to mark the occasion of her 96th
birthday
Buckingham
Palace has maintained a dignified silence on the meeting – in part out of
respect to the monarch, who loves her grandson – but Harry did not choose to
issue a polite ‘no comment’. Pictured: a new portrait of the Queen which has
been released by The Royal Windsor Horse Show to mark the occasion of her 96th
birthday
It is not
clear exactly what he meant. Was he referring to the loyal members of the Royal
Family – the Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall or the Duke and Duchess of
Cambridge – none of whom have uttered a word about recent events?
Or did he
mean she was being let down by her staff? Harry has frequently revealed that
he, like his mother before him, has an inherent distrust of the ‘men in grey
suits’ around the royals.
But as well
as senior courtiers, the Queen is also served by long-standing and loyal
personal staff including her confidante Angela Kelly, her page ‘Tall Paul’
Whybrew and Master of the Household Vice Admiral Sir Tony Johnstone-Burt, all
of whom have her best interests firmly at heart.
Harry's
loaded remarks
On the
Queen
She’s
always got a great sense of humour with me and I’m just making sure that she’s
protected and got the right people around her. We have a really special
relationship. We talk about things that she can’t talk about with anybody else,
so that is always a nice piece to it.
On
attending the Platinum Jubilee
I don’t
know yet, there’s lots of things – security issues and everything else. So this
is what I’m trying to do, trying to make it possible that, you know, I can get
my kids to meet her.
On Charles
and William
When I
leave here [the Invictus Games], I go back and my focus is my family, who I
miss massively.
On America
Home for me
now is, you know, for the time being, it’s in the States. And it feels that way
as well.
On Diana’s
presence
It’s almost
as though she’s done her bit with my brother and now she’s very much helping
me. She’s got him set up, and now she’s helping me set u
There are
also questions over how Harry, no longer a working member of the Royal Family –
and who claims he cannot even come to the UK because he fears for his family’s
safety – is able to ‘protect’ the Queen.
I’m her
confidant
Harry went
on to claim that the Queen tells him things she feels she cannot tell anyone
else.
He said:
‘We have a really special relationship. We talk about things that she can’t
talk about with anybody else. So that’s always a nice piece to it.’
That Harry
has always enjoyed a good relationship with his grandmother is of no doubt. The
monarch most definitely has a soft spot for him and he has always been able to
persuade her to step out of her comfort zone.
When he
started the Invictus Games, the Queen was so proud that she agreed to star in a
viral social media skit with him. But the idea that she would discuss anything
with him that she would not discuss with Charles, William or any other close
members of her family, was greeted with derision by some insiders yesterday.
UK no
longer home
The prince
made clear that he has firmly settled in California. He said: ‘Home for me now
is for the time being... in the States and it feels that way. We’ve been
welcomed with open arms and have a great community in Santa Barbara.’ He moved
with Meghan to Montecito, California, after their decision to step down as
senior royals in 2020.
The balcony
at the Jubilee?
Don’t be so
sure...When questioned about whether the Queen would be bored with her Platinum
Jubilee, Harry replied with a laugh: ‘No, I don’t think so. She’s had a few
jubilees now, every one is slightly different but I’m sure she’s looking
forward to it.’
In recent
days there has been fevered speculation about whether the prince will make a
appearance on the Buckingham Palace balcony with the Queen.
The Mail’s
sources have always issued caution over this, stressing: ‘He only met with his
grandmother last week. There’s a lot of ground to be covered between now and
June. It is by no means a done deal in any way, shape or form.’ When Miss Kotb
asked Harry if he would return to the United Kingdom for the Jubilee, he said:
‘I don’t know yet, there’s lots of things – security issues and everything
else.
‘So this is
what I’m trying to do, trying to make it possible that, you know, I can get my
kids to meet her.’
The prince
made clear that he has firmly settled in California. He said: ‘Home for me now
is for the time being... in the States and it feels that way'
The prince
has launched a High Court legal action against the Home Office for stripping
him of his round-the-clock police protection when he and Meghan quit as senior
royals.
His critics
believe Harry has boxed himself into a corner with this latest in a long line
of legal actions, making it impossible for him to bring his children Archie,
two, and ten-month-old Lilibet to the UK.
His
children
Harry – who
claims part of the reason he wanted to quit as a working royal was because of
his lack of privacy – spoke at length about his children.
Speaking of
his pride at being a father, he said: ‘I love every part of it. I always wanted
to be a dad and now I have two little people I’m responsible for.’ Harry said
he tells Archie about his late ‘Grandma Diana’, although not her entire life
story.
Asked about
his ‘typical’ day, he revealed: ‘It revolves around the kids as much as humanly
possible. This whole working from home stuff is not all it’s cracked up to be.’
He added:
‘My mantra now every day, and it’s a dangerous one because I need to make sure
I don’t have burnout, but it’s trying to make the world a better place for my
kids, otherwise what’s the point in bringing kids into this world? That’s a
responsibility I feel as a parent and you probably do as well. We can’t fix
everything but we can be there for each other.’
His family
When asked
if he missed his family ‘at home’ – the UK – Harry’s answer was perfunctory,
saying ‘most people’ had missed their loved ones during the Covid pandemic.
He
sidestepped a specific question about whether he missed his ‘brother and dad’,
both of whom have been deeply hurt by his actions.
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