"Spare" memoir by the Duke of Sussex (2023)

[TLLK]

If they knew that Harry was always rather shaky mentally, (and since this book I am wondering if he was like this since childhood?) I wonder if they worried a lot about letting him go to the US and start off life there? DID they fear that he would become even more unstable in a strange environment, without staff to keep an eye on him, and with a wife who certainly did not encourage his better side? I suppose they felt there was nothing much they could do...If he was determined to make money outside the RF, he was a grown man and if he wasn't visibly acting strangely or harming himself there was nothing much they couild do.

In my opinion his family is worried about him. However like you stated Denville, unfortunately there's little that they can do. Harry's already shared about his in person conversation a with William and Charles after the DoE's funeral. A conversation that appears to have been very emotionally charged. So the impression that I had after reading about it, is that his father and brother were very concerned.

 

[Denville]

In my opinion his family is worried about him. However like you stated Denville, unfortunately there's little that they can do. Harry's already shared about his in person conversation a with William and Charles after the DoE's funeral. A conversation that appears to have been very emotionally charged. So the impression that I had after reading about it, is that his father and brother were very concerned.

I was thinking more of 2020 when Harry and Meg first officially said they wanted to leave, or be HIHO. I am wondering if H was seen as a problem from childhood, or at least from the time of Diana's death. Partly that he wasn't very clever and partly that there was this very strange and angry streak in him...
I wonder if the queen, Charles and Will thought, that if they agreed to his going to the US/Canada, he would get into trouble because he was away from his staff who covered things up and kept an eye on him, but knew there was nothing much they could do.

 

[Somebody]

Thanks for the compliment, Granada! I enjoy your posts too

I also agree that Harry would have had to have been a great actor all those years when we saw picture after picture of him looking genuinely happy particularly when he was with Kate. As Harry said in the Oprah interview “I was trapped, but I had no idea I was trapped.” And we all know who told him he was trapped…..

It would have been very interesting to compare the story he would have told 8 years ago vs the one he is telling now. I am pretty sure it would be a very different story in some aspects - while others would already have surfaced.

 

[Hallo girl]

To be honest, I think the kindest thing one can say about H is that he IS very unstable.. and in the past few years has gone from unstable into complete melt down territory.

But the instability was well hidden, for a time. He did come across as charming enough if he was seen in small doses, perhaps this was like his mother though in fairness to Diana I dont think she had SUCH a dark side... Then again there were her storms of temper against family members at times.
I did not follow him much when he was younger, so I can't speak about him and Kate but I do remember that he said when Will got engaged that he was looking forward to getting to know Kate, which seemed to indicate that he was not as close to his brother as the press had tended to imply...so perhaps he didn't know K all that well either and hardly spent time with her till she married Willm. I think that he resented William having a close relationship with Kate from early on, while he himself had girlfriends but did not seem to have anyone who would take him on and marry him.

He possibly didn’t see a lot of Kate, when you think about it the St Andrews years probably clashed with the early army years.

 

[Hallo girl]

I have wondered how all these revelations with Harry making fun of the disabled matron is going to play with his role in Invictus. And if I were running BetterUp, I’d get him off my leadership team with his obvious need for help for his own mental health.

I’ve not heard much of anything about the Netflix leadership series they “hosted” called Live to Lead. I just looked it up -17% rating on Rotten Tomatoes https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/live_to_lead/s01. I know that their series about themselves did well for Netflix but I am wondering about their future as “content creators “ - I just don’t see it.

Is that the series that Jacinda Ardern recorded an episode. If it is she has came out and said it was filmed 2019, and had nothing to do with Harry and Meghan when she became involved.

 

[Prinsara]

I wonder if the queen, Charles and Will thought, that if they agreed to his going to the US/Canada, he would get into trouble because he was away from his staff who covered things up and kept an eye on him, but knew there was nothing much they could do.

Maybe, or maybe they thought if he was away from a life he hated so much and living more quietly (like his original wish to go to Africa), that would be better for him?

Unfortunately Harry and/or Meghan hasn't shown much interest in the second part.

 

[HighGoalHighDreams]

I think it is groundbreaking. We know that the RF are not angels and that their image is partly crafted to make them seem attractive. we know they have their faults and deserve criticisms at times But surely none of the RF have shown such a gap between image and reality as Harry has?
I thought that he genuinely enjoyed being a soldier but he seems to have come out of combat with a lot of weird ideas, and criticised te senior brass, and talked far too heartlessly about the people he killed.
I thought that he genuinely liked people, probably more than William did, in some ways, and he liked to mix with them, work at projects for them and so on but he himself said that he disliked it all and felt that he was worked far too hard..
and I thought he genuinely cared for wounded vets, but his attack on his matron makes it rather hard to believe that. I hope he has SOME sincere feelng for them, but how much sympathy did he show to this lady who had trouble walking? absolutely none, it seems so can we be sure that he cares much for the men and women he claims to be helping in Invictus

Denville, I am in total agreement. I think the individual tidbits- Harry does cocaine! Harry finds out about The Queen's death from the BBC! William recoils from Meghan's hug! Kate reluctant to lend lipgloss!- are all nothing much to see. The groundbreaking thing is that the entire book reveals that the Harry the world "knew" was a fabrication.

For someone who detests "the Institution's" ability to spin stories, he surely benefited from it perhaps more than anyone.

 

[Hallo girl]

Does anybody on here actually think that nobody tried to contact Harry to tell him the Queen had died before it was released. He has admitted he missed 32 calls when Philip died. So why would they not try to contact him when it was the Queen.

 

[tihkon2]

He actually has (had) everything that many others in the world can only dream of. On top of that, he was allowed to marry the woman he loves. Meghan was welcomed into the royal family. Both could have lived a sheltered family life with plenty of comforts. why they didn't appreciate this is beyond me.

Because they both have king sized egos and thrive on attention.

 

[Queen Claude]

Does anybody on here actually think that nobody tried to contact Harry to tell him the Queen had died before it was released. He has admitted he missed 32 calls when Philip died. So why would they not try to contact him when it was the Queen.

IIRC when The Queen had taken her turn, family members were contacted and were trying to get to Scotland. There was a disagreement between Charles and Harry on Meghan accompanying Harry to Scotland, this may have gone on for hours. I think there may be more than one version, but it is believable that Harry may have been in the air when she died and there was only so long that they could withhold the announcement. But I think there is a version that states that Harry was notified before the public.

 

[TLLK]

Does anybody on here actually think that nobody tried to contact Harry to tell him the Queen had died before it was released. He has admitted he missed 32 calls when Philip died. So why would they not try to contact him when it was the Queen.

Wow! I was aware that the British Consulate in Los Angeles had to contact Santa Barbara Co. Sherrif's department to send a deputy to the house. The officer had to ask him to check his phone.

 

[XeniaCasaraghi]

Wow! I was aware that the British Consulate in Los Angeles had to contact Santa Barbara Co. Sherrif's department to send a deputy to the house. The officer had to ask him to check his phone.

Oh goodness are you serious? Where did you hear that? His tantrum is gettythe police involved because he want answer a phone? And good for Charles not being open to Meghan coming. Though to be fair I would say she can come to Scotland but stay in a hotel.
It's scary how likable the palace made him appear. That's some serious PR. Those people he is bashing saved him when he attacked photographers, wore the Nazi costume, and was naked in Vegas.

 

[Hallo girl]

Oh goodness are you serious? Where did you hear that? His tantrum is gettythe police involved because he want answer a phone? And good for Charles not being open to Meghan coming. Though to be fair I would say she can come to Scotland but stay in a hotel.
It's scary how likable the palace made him appear. That's some serious PR. Those people he is bashing saved him when he attacked photographers, wore the Nazi costume, and was naked in Vegas.

The spouses of the Queens children were there, but only the two sons of the King arrived, the remainder of the grandchildren arrived on the Friday without spouses. It was suggested that Harry had thought only Meghan was being told not to come, I think Harry himself said it had been confused, but blamed his father for the confusion.

The tv was reporting live all that day from the first announcement, I do believe that it had been assumed that Kate would be going along with William, but I don't think there was ever an official announcement to that effect.

 

[Heavs]

Oh goodness are you serious? Where did you hear that? His tantrum is gettythe police involved because he want answer a phone? And good for Charles not being open to Meghan coming. Though to be fair I would say she can come to Scotland but stay in a hotel.
It's scary how likable the palace made him appear. That's some serious PR. Those people he is bashing saved him when he attacked photographers, wore the Nazi costume, and was naked in Vegas.

There was a report some months ago, IIRC with validation from the Sheriffs. They had to practically break down the door. None of it was denied by the Sussexes at the time. Everyone did everything humanly possible to make sure he knew before the world knew.

The same thing is likely true of HLM's passing. That he knew that she had taken a sudden turn and was dying at the same time the rest of the family knew. His confirmed negotiations (tantrums?) about going up there and whether or not Meghan should go was possibly the reason that he knew of her death only when it was announced or as it was reported back in September "minutes before it was officially announced". But he doesn't spare any thought for his cousins who loved her just as much and were not allowed there even though their parents were or were trying to get there and who have not complained publicly.

 

[TLLK]

Oh goodness are you serious? Where did you hear that? His tantrum is gettythe police involved because he want answer a phone? And good for Charles not being open to Meghan coming. Though to be fair I would say she can come to Scotland but stay in a hotel.
It's scary how likable the palace made him appear. That's some serious PR. Those people he is bashing saved him when he attacked photographers, wore the Nazi costume, and was naked in Vegas.

I believe that I heard the news on a local TV station.
Based upon the time difference between the UK and CA, it would have been very early in the morning when the Queen tried to contact Harry. That news had to be shared with him before the official announcement of Phillp's death was made. However, it does reveal the extraordinary efforts they undertook to contact him.

 

[Hallo girl]

The spouses of the Queens children were there, but only the two sons of the King arrived, the remainder of the grandchildren arrived on the Friday without spouses. It was suggested that Harry had thought only Meghan was being told not to come, I think Harry himself said it had been confused, but blamed his father for the confusion.

The tv was reporting live all that day from the first announcement, I do believe that it had been assumed that Kate would be going along with William, but I don't think there was ever an official announcement to that effect.

I should add that it was reported at the time that the plane for William and the others sat on the tarmac for 1 hour for no obvious reason before it took off for Aberdeen.

The television cameras were on the plane sitting waiting, I think it was an air force base rather than an airport.

That would suggest they had been waiting for someone but I do not actually know.

 

[Hallo girl]

I believe that I heard the news on a local TV station.
Based upon the time difference between the UK and CA, it would have been very early in the morning when the Queen tried to contact Harry. That news had to be shared with him before the official announcement of Phillp's death was made. However, it does reveal the extraordinary efforts they undertook to contact him.

Philips death was announced at noon here in the UK, but I believe he had died in the early hours of the morning our time.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

Double post.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

I consider Meghan's discussion about titles for Archie / the Sussex children to be word salad because she conflated what Archie's designation would be at birth versus what it would be when Charles ascends - I do debate with myself whether she did that accidentally or on purpose. IIRC, and I don't recall her exact words, she did say something to the effect that in these discussions Charles made it known that, when the time came, it was his prerogative to do things as he sees fit.

From the transcript posted upthread, it doesn't appear Charles (or anyone other than Archie) was specifically mentioned during that section of the interview.

https://www.theroyalforums.com/foru...ke-of-sussex-2023-a-49676-83.html#post2521936

 

[Ghost]

From the transcript posted upthread, it doesn't appear Charles (or anyone other than Archie) was specifically mentioned during that section of the interview.

https://www.theroyalforums.com/foru...ke-of-sussex-2023-a-49676-83.html#post2521936

I cut part of the transcript that wasn’t related to the race. She does say something that makes me think she knew exactly what she was saying: something along the line “he was not going to be like the other grandchildren”. Not great grandchildren, as in the queen was the one stopping him becoming a prince, but grandchildren, as in Charles’ decision.


“ Meghan: But the idea of our son not being safe, and also the idea of the first member of colour in this family not being titled in the same way that other grandchildren would be . . .  You know, the other piece of that conversation is, there’s a convention — I forget if it was George V or George VI convention — that when you’re the grandchild of the monarch, so when Harry’s dad becomes king, automatically Archie and our next baby would become prince or princess, or whatever they were going to be.

Oprah: So, for you, it’s about protection and safety, not so much as what the . . . what the title means to the world.

Meghan: That’s a huge piece of it, but, I mean, but . . . 

Oprah:  . . . and that having the title gives you the safety and protection?

Meghan: Yeah, but also it’s not their right to take it away.

Oprah: Yeah.

Meghan: Right? And so, I think even with that convention I’m talking about, while I was pregnant, they said they want to change the convention for Archie.”

 

[Leopoldine]

Well, I folded. I bought the book.

In the front, on the page with the publishing and copyright information, it is stated that Harry is donating 1.5 million dollars to Sentebale, and 300,000 dollars to WellChild, all from the proceeds of the book. Good for him.

 

[valeas]

I wonder if all this negative effects his book has had,
starts Harry doubting his wife's advice given Meghan checked it all.
"Normally" a couple would discuss these things, but I fear they just
support each other in their wrong beliefs and remain on the wrong path chosen.

 

[Muhler]

I wonder if all this negative effects his book has had,
starts Harry doubting his wife's advice given Meghan checked it all.
"Normally" a couple would discuss these things, but I fear they just
support each other in their wrong beliefs and remain on the wrong path chosen.

I doubt it would change Harry's view on Meghan and any advise she may provide.
They would both instantly deflect any kind of criticism and blame it on somebody else. - Whoever that may be.

 

[Erin9]

Does anybody on here actually think that nobody tried to contact Harry to tell him the Queen had died before it was released. He has admitted he missed 32 calls when Philip died. So why would they not try to contact him when it was the Queen.

I don’t. Charles told Harry she was dying by his own account. I’m sure someone tried- or did- tell Harry she’d died. Didn’t the palace officially say everyone had been notified first?

32 phone calls about Philip and the police at his door.

Not buying what Harry’s selling.

Not to mention- this is the same guy who chose to pick a fight with dad while granny is dying about Meghan. And then proceeds to blame dad for it. Not only does he choose to tell this personal story- he throws Charles under the bus and expects readers to just take HIS word that Charles was the whole problem.

 

[LauraS3514]

IIRC when The Queen had taken her turn, family members were contacted and were trying to get to Scotland. There was a disagreement between Charles and Harry on Meghan accompanying Harry to Scotland, this may have gone on for hours. I think there may be more than one version, but it is believable that Harry may have been in the air when she died and there was only so long that they could withhold the announcement. But I think there is a version that states that Harry was notified before the public.

When The Queen's death certificate was released, it showed that she died just after 3 p.m. local time. Her death was not announced for another three hours. Anne was with her, and Charles, Camilla, and Tim were in the castle (we don't know if they were at her bedside.) She died about an hour before William, Andrew, Edward, and Sophie arrived at Balmoral and possibly before Harry even left London. If the plane with William and co. sat on the runway for an hour while waiting for the Harry situation to resolve, that hour could have made the difference between them being there in time and not. That could be hard for any family to forgive.

 

[Sunnystar]

Does anybody on here actually think that nobody tried to contact Harry to tell him the Queen had died before it was released. He has admitted he missed 32 calls when Philip died. So why would they not try to contact him when it was the Queen.

No. In fact, he states in the Epilogue the following...

As the plane began its descent, my phone lit up. A text from Meg. Call me the moment you get this.

I checked the BBC website.

Granny was gone.

Pa was King.

I didn't buy, for a second, that Harry checked the BBC website before he called Meghan. Or that he didn't have other missed calls/texts from, at minimum, his father.

 

[Sunnystar]

When The Queen's death certificate was released, it showed that she died just after 3 p.m. local time. Her death was not announced for another three hours. Anne was with her, and Charles, Camilla, and Tim were in the castle (we don't know if they were at her bedside.) She died about an hour before William, Andrew, Edward, and Sophie arrived at Balmoral and possibly before Harry even left London. If the plane with William and co. sat on the runway for an hour while waiting for the Harry situation to resolve, that hour could have made the difference between them being there in time and not. That would be hard for any family to forgive.

We also know that the PM was informed about around 4:30pm, while the House of Commons was in session. There was considerable debate here that day and over the next few days about the timing of when the family and key government ministers were notified.

IIRC, Harry was already in the air when she passed away and his plane landed in Aberdeen sometime around 5:30pm, so they did not make the public announcement until after he had been informed. And, it would seem, from his own memoir, Meghan was informed before him since he was en route and she was still at Frogmore.

 

[yukari]

Another varied recollection?

Prince Harry's army instructor says story in Spare book is 'complete fantasy'

Prince Harry’s dramatic account of a “suicide” training flight is a fantasy – says the man who was sitting alongside him.

The royal claims in his*autobiography*that an Army instructor deliberately stalled their Slingsby T67 Firefly propeller plane without warning.

But ex-Sergeant Major Michael Booley insists every detail of training flights is discussed beforehand.

And he tells the Sunday Mirror: “I am staggered by this. In shock even.”

His clear version of the incident suggests Harry has come up with yet another porker – after a string of claims in his book were proven to be inaccurate.

(...)

While Michael maintains the utmost respect and admiration for Harry, he questions parts of Spare, which was ghostwritten by leading author John Joseph Moehringer.

Michael says he never called the royal Lt Wales, as the book claims. He adds: “I think the reference to the flying sorties has been dramatised. I think it’s a result of the ghost writing. I never called him Lt Wales, he was an officer, and I called him Sir.”

(...)

I've read and watched many of "dramatisation" of real events/history and until now I'm under impression that it's usually called "fiction based on true story/real events".

Well then, if this book is a memoir, could Netflix's The Crown be claimed as documentary?

 

[Somebody]

We also know that the PM was informed about around 4:30pm, while the House of Commons was in session. There was considerable debate here that day and over the next few days about the timing of when the family and key government ministers were notified.

IIRC, Harry was already in the air when she passed away and his plane landed in Aberdeen sometime around 5:30pm, so they did not make the public announcement until after he had been informed. And, it would seem, from his own memoir, Meghan was informed before him since he was en route and she was still at Frogmore.

I also thought that it might be another 'reconstruction' of Harry (after the one with his great-grandmother); however, the timeline seems to suggest that the announcement was indeed made about the time Harry landed at Aberdeen (although I cannot find the exact time).

Based on the public information, the timeline was about:
12.45 pm: first statement about queen's health
1 pm: Confirmation that Charles and Camilla are on route to Balmoral
3.10 pm: Death of Queen Elizabeth II
4 pm: Arrival at Aberdeen Airport of Edward, Sophie, Andrew and William
4.30 pm: PM informed of queen's death
5.15 pm: Arrival at Balmoral of Edward, Sophie, Andrew and William
6.30 pm: Announcement of queen's death (so, that would be the time BBC would be running the story)
6.30 pm: Arrival of Harry at Aberdeen Airport
7.45 pm: Arrival of Harry at Balmoral

 

[BritishRoyalist]

I also thought that it might be another 'reconstruction' of Harry (after the one with his great-grandmother); however, the timeline seems to suggest that the announcement was indeed made about the time Harry landed at Aberdeen (although I cannot find the exact time).

Based on the public information, the timeline was about:
12.45 pm: first statement about queen's health
1 pm: Confirmation that Charles and Camilla are on route to Balmoral
3.10 pm: Death of Queen Elizabeth II
4 pm: Arrival at Aberdeen Airport of Edward, Sophie, Andrew and William
4.30 pm: PM informed of queen's death
5.15 pm: Arrival at Balmoral of Edward, Sophie, Andrew and William
6.30 pm: Announcement of queen's death (so, that would be the time BBC would be running the story)
6.30 pm: Arrival of Harry at Aberdeen Airport
7.45 pm: Arrival of Harry at Balmoral

Charles arrived at Balmoral by 10:30 am. Camilla was at Brickhall and was preparing to leave for Dumfries that day but was rerouted.