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

[Royalist.in.NC]

Somebody needs to stage an intervention for Harry , he's clearly unwell .

I agree; he desperately needs help. I expected some minor reveals of secrets but not this dumpster fire where he has spiraled so far out of control. I don’t think his father nor brother can reach him - perhaps there is a family member or mentor whom he respects who could intervene?

I know that he wrote this awhile back but if through his interviews this is still how he comes across….he has either had extraordinarily poor therapy (which I doubt) or was unwilling or unable to do the real work that therapy requires. He is stuck, stuck, stuck - so very sad and terrible both for him , his extended family, and most of all his own children. If he’s really believes all of this instead of embellishing to create drama to make some bucks, his development has not progressed to that of a mature adult. Far from it

 

[TLLK]

I agree; he desperately needs help. I expected some minor reveals of secrets but not this dumpster fire where he has spiraled so far out of control. I don’t think his father nor brother can reach him - perhaps there is a family member or mentor whom he respects who could intervene?

I know that he wrote this awhile back but if through his interviews this is still how he comes across….he has either had extraordinarily poor therapy (which I doubt) or was unwilling or unable to do the real work that therapy requires. He is stuck, stuck, stuck - so very sad and terrible both for him , his extended family, and most of all his own children. If he’s really believes all of this instead of embellishing to create drama to make some bucks, his development has not progressed to that of a mature adult. Far from it

Honestly I'm not sure who he would trust and listen to at this point in time, not even his cousins.

 

[Royalist.in.NC]

He’s also a fundamentally decent and kind man and I can’t see him kicking someone who is down. I think it would have been a lighthearted fun interview before the book leaked. Now? It will be interesting to see if a live interview happens at all. If it does, it is going to be a tough one to set the tone for. No one would have wanted to be the guy who picked on Britney Spears in an interview in 2008 and no one is going to want to be the guy who picks on Harry in this moment.

I agree with you. Now that I’ve read and learned more about the book in this thread, I cannot imagine what Colbert would say or how anyone could have even a lighthearted interview after all these very personal and bitter revelations Harry has made. Making fun of politicians is one thing; challenging a very disturbed “man” is something else entirely. I would expect a more in depth interview from Anderson Cooper but even then, I wonder if Anderson has been able to actually read the book.

 

[tommy100]

https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrit...s-caroline-flack-relationship-death-in-spare/

The Duke of Sussex, 38, was briefly taken with the late TV presenter after meeting her at a restaurant during a night out with mutual friends in 2009.

“Flack, they called her,” Harry wrote in the book, which will be released on Tuesday, January 10, noting that they were introduced “months after [ex-girlfriend Chelsy Davy] and I had gone our separate ways.”

***

The former military pilot continued: “I felt so awful for her family. I remembered how they’d all suffered for her mortal sin of going out with me. She’d been so light and funny that night we met. The definition of carefree.”

Harry called the loss of his old flame “an important reminder,” especially after Meghan expressed her own suicidal thoughts to him during her first pregnancy. (The pair share son Archie, 3, and daughter Lilibet, 19 months.)

“I wasn’t being overdramatic, I wasn’t warning about things that would never happen,” he explained, referring to his and the Suits alum’s long clash with the U.K. tabloids. “What Meg and I were dealing with was indeed a question of life and death. And time was running out.”



This is the lowest of the low to me. Why bring this up? And why bring it up and make it all about himself.

 

[valeas]

Same on German TV this morning, excerpts out.
I feel good, how often have I been scolded here for saying how much I dislike his behaviour of "playing hero" in Afghanistan. He simply is a disgrace to every (esp.) British soldier now ( my husband is one).

Heroine and sex, well boring isn't it but suits the Suits' girl.

And yes, they both don't care about their children.
Money, money, money....

Hope it fires back, but as many will buy the book still too good for them.

 

[Leopoldine]

The one you linked to has had the stones removed and is owned by Van Cleef and Arpels now.


I was wondering about this one:


https://www.tiara-mania.com/2016/07/emerald-parure-tiara.html

I'd be surprised if anyone in the BRF would purchase this Russian tiara. This was in the photos of the jewels confiscated by the Bolshies. Buying jewels from royal and noble refugees is one thing, but secret purchases from The Diamond Fund would be unseemly, especially for a royal family that was so careful about their image post WWI. And such a well-known and grand tiara would not be the kind of tiara the late Queen would be lending to an American bride.

I wrote here once that I thought it may have been the Youssoupov emerald bandeau tiara that Meghan saw. I've never seen it in Diamond Fund photos, and the sleek simplicity is Meghan's style.

 

[Lady Chiara]

I have so many questions but the main one is, how was this dumpster fire allowed for publishing??
Moeheringer is a super reputable ghost writer (Agassi's autobiography is considered a masterpiece of the genre) and, while I'm sure there are some parts of the book that are wonderfully written, I'm still shocked he would land is name to it. The same goes for Penguin Random House, how could the editors say "Yep this is a good book, worth the millions we have invested"

 

[Lee-Z]

After all the new quotes 'leaking' it still feels like a big hoax just to be able to show how 'the media' just baits at anything dangling before them to make H&M look bad.

If the quotes indeed are in the book, Harry for me has just confirmed loads of 'media articles' that i thought of as 'the british media being mean to them' and always dismissed them as untrue. What 'negative' media stories are left that haven't proven to be true by now by H&M or their helpers?..

I think i saw a clip somewhere of Harry saying in one of the upcoming interviews that 'silence is betrayal' or (i'm paraphrasing, don't remember the exact text) 'not understanding why someone would choose to remain silent', but like a poster mentioned a few pages ago, Harry should really be made to understand the quote 'sometimes it's better to remain silent and thought a fool than speak out and remove all doubt'.

He doesn't seem to be interested in history or in learning lessons, and indeed proves that he was the wrong person to help Meghan learn about the monarchy or about 'the family business'; he has no idea about any of it, and just relishes the perks of it, and pouts if others get more perks than him.

To me the quotes (if true) leave me with the same feeling as the infamous P.Andrew interview: entitled, spoiled, petty. But Harry doesn't seem to learn from others, so I doubt he understands the fallout of that interview (or of the interviews Diana and Charles infamously gave back in the day). A typical case of 'those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it'.

PS. Keeping mementoes from a deceased relative is only natural imo, and the keeping of a lock of hair is an old tradition, so i don't think we should scold him for that...no matter what we think of all the other stuff he does or doesn't do

 

[Granada]

The whole book (excerpts) just seem ugly, for lack of a better word.
Harry comes off as a very sad and bitter Man, clearly upset with his lot in life and jealous of his brother. Still seemingly angry at his Father, on his Mother's behalf. I think the overall tome of the Book is missed opportunities. That Harry feels his uniqueness and his wife's, wasn't valued or nurtured. Again, that they weren't allowed the HIHO model apparently wounded him greatly. So now he lashes out at Everyone.

Very strange fixation on Diana sending him messages from beyond the grave, make me question his mental health. According to him, a Leopard in SA when he visited there was a message sent by his mother. And a broken Christmas ornament, that Archie was playing with featuring The Queen, was witnessed by a laughing Diana ghost.
It really is over the top, with a box of her hair on his nightstand as a good luck charm and in his mind facilitates happy events for Harry.
He mentioned that in connection to a pregnancy test result being placed next to the "hair box" saying...."Right, lets see what Mommy can do with this situation ".....ummm OK.

Harry doesn't come off as a contented, confident and secure Man. Instead, he seems peevish, perpetually aggrieved and from the excerpts I've seen quick to blame others for not recognizing Meghan's "specialness".
That story that Harry tells about the seals in Scotland "singing to Meghan, even they recognized her as magical" .....yikes, that sounds just nuts to me.

I thought Harry wanted to position himself as a forward thinking leader in different commercial and philanthropic ventures. Do People think he came off as someone you could trust as a positive innovator ? I dont, he spills secrets and betrays trusts of nearly everyone in the Book that he has had close relationships with. From ex girlfriend Chelsea Davy to his brother, who comes in for brutal put downs.
And the lurid details, c'mon you are nearly middle aged, not a College frat boy.
Those "recollections" did not need to be mentioned and were decidedly inappropriate for a supposedly serious Autobiography.

Even his time in the Military and unbelievably his "kills" there get revealed. That disclosure in and of itself, was foolhardy AND dangerous.
The hit to his reputation from this Book will be deep and lasting.
I honestly haven't read anything in it that is uplifting or enlightening. Just sad and bitter.

Harry seems VERY quick to judge others behavior, but the ability to reflect on his own ? Seems to be missing.

 

[lucien]

Same on German TV this morning, excerpts out.
I feel good, how often have I been scolded here for saying how much I dislike his behaviour of "playing hero" in Afghanistan. He simply is a disgrace to every (esp.) British soldier now ( my husband is one).

Heroine and sex, well boring isn't it but suits the Suits' girl.

And yes, they both don't care about their children.
Money, money, money....

Hope it fires back, but as many will buy the book still too good for them.

Hear Hear Hear!!On ALL counts!

 

[Denville]

I

I highly doubt this. Don’t forget that H&M attended QEII’s funeral and were models of decorum.

I agree that probably they will behave OK at the coronation. Its the trick they have of then writing a book or doing an interview being nasty, afterwards. but I think the RF will invite them and then ignore the aftermath

 

[Leopoldine]

My sympathies are with HRHHermione, who said she will read and review this.

As a couple, they come across as alienating and delusional.

 

[Denville]

All this is making the War of the Wales look like a tiny skirmish - this one is more of a nuclear annihilation, and self-administered at that.

well there was some excuse for the war of the Waleses. They were a married couple who were divorcing.. they were unhappy and angry. Harry is a young man who has been able to leave his job in the UK and find work abroad, he has plenty of money to make the move. He has a wife and kids. if he was very unhappy in the UK, he was able to get out and most of the time since he left, he has been threatening or making bitter attacks on his family and home insted of gtetting on with his life.

 

[Denville]

I wonder if Meghan actually wanted the half-in/half-out role. I think she was going along with Harry, who wanted to keep military patronages. I'm sure that Meghan wanted to keep the platform, but only to amplify her causes and make money. I don't think she really wanted to work for the royal family.

I think she wanted it in the sense that she wanted to still be a notable working royal, who would be seen in public as a member of the RF, with the queen etc. but it was mainly to boost her public profile, not because she liked living in the UK or wanted to work for the RF. I felt at the time that if they had had hte HIHO, it would gradaully have become 80% away in the US or travelling and a small bit in the UK

 

[ppetrica]

Here is the scary thought... what if this is only the tip of the iceberg? So far, it doesn't sound like he's gone after his grandparents too hard. Imagine a follow-up memoir...

I'm affraid I agree with you on this.
I don't think he'll ever stop. In fact, I think it will only get worse as time goes by.

 

[Hallo girl]

I agree that probably they will behave OK at the coronation. Its the trick they have of then writing a book or doing an interview being nasty, afterwards. but I think the RF will invite them and then ignore the aftermath

TBH I think it dawned on Meghan at the funeral of HMQ what she had walked away from.

 

[yukari]

Prince Harry has broken four military codes of conduct, says senior Army officer

(...)

Speaking to Times Radio, Major General Chip Chapman, a platoon commander in the Falklands conflict, said: "We have a code of conduct. It's the values and standards of the military and he's broken at least four of those values that include respect for others, integrity, loyalty, and selfless commitment.

"You can't be any more disloyal, either both to the Crown and the Crown being a member of your family, so from both of those perspectives it's not really good."

(...)

He also said he had never come across the "body count mentality" Harry seemed to be demonstrating by pinpointing the number of people he had killed, saying he had "never, ever" come across it in the forces.

"You would have found it in Vietnam, it was the macro level thing. But it's an awful lack of judgement and maturity. It's a naive approach to how the miltary should act.

"We talk about*jus in bello (International humanitarian law) conduct in war, this is a terrible conduct in peace.

"Also he was not on the ground. There's no way that he could id anyone or bury them so to give a specific number is, quite frankly, slightly ridiculous."

(...)

Here's the clip of the interview:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1611120005042835457

The host raises a good question by the end. I wonder how that killing count comment will affect Harry standing with Invictus (and amongst veterans in general).

(...)

I know that he wrote this awhile back but if through his interviews this is still how he comes across….he has either had extraordinarily poor therapy (which I doubt) or was unwilling or unable to do the real work that therapy requires. He is stuck, stuck, stuck - so very sad and terrible both for him , his extended family, and most of all his own children. If he’s really believes all of this instead of embellishing to create drama to make some bucks, his development has not progressed to that of a mature adult. Far from it

And he's supposed to be the face of BetterUp. I don't think he's a good example to promote mental health support/therapy because his mental health condition clearly isn't getting better.

 

[Denville]

TBH I think it dawned on Meghan at the funeral of HMQ what she had walked away from.

I dot think so - I dont think she regrets leaving the RF at all.. even if she had wanted to be part of it a few years ago, she very soon got disillusioned and hated it. But she does want to keep up a connextion because it is all that will distinguish her from thousands of modestly successful actresses. However, she and H dont seem to realise that its rather difficult to keep up a connextion but trashing the family that you are trying to stay on terms wiht

 

[ppetrica]

I'd be surprised if anyone in the BRF would purchase this Russian tiara. This was in the photos of the jewels confiscated by the Bolshies. Buying jewels from royal and noble refugees is one thing, but secret purchases from The Diamond Fund would be unseemly, especially for a royal family that was so careful about their image post WWI. And such a well-known and grand tiara would not be the kind of tiara the late Queen would be lending to an American bride.

I agree. I find it very unlikely.

The Queen apparently offered Meghan 5 tiaras to choose from. I do not believe that she would first offer a tiara, and then refuse to loan it for whatever reason. So this emerald tiara, even if it exists, most certainly wasn't among the 5 tiaras.

Secondly, how on earth would Harry and Meghan know that in the royal jewel vaults there is a secret emerald tiara that nobody is supposed to know about?

Third, I absolutely do not believe that the Queen "begged" them not to use one of tiaras that Diana wore.
Diana wore only 2 tiaras - Spencer tiara is not owned by the royal family at all, and Lovers Knot tiara was obviously returned to the Queen after the divorce for the future Princess of Wales to wear it some day. Harry isn't the owner of the Lovers Knot tiara, so the Queen certainly didn't have to beg Meghan not to wear it.

In my opinion, if Meghan really requested an emerald tiara, it was either the Vladimir tiara (and that tiara was worn exclusively by the Queen so I doubt that the Queen would loan that one to anyone at the time) or she had a misperception about some emerald tiara to be owned by the Queen when in fact it wasn't.

 

[Mbruno]

https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrit...s-caroline-flack-relationship-death-in-spare/

The Duke of Sussex, 38, was briefly taken with the late TV presenter after meeting her at a restaurant during a night out with mutual friends in 2009.

“Flack, they called her,” Harry wrote in the book, which will be released on Tuesday, January 10, noting that they were introduced “months after [ex-girlfriend Chelsy Davy] and I had gone our separate ways.”

***

The former military pilot continued: “I felt so awful for her family. I remembered how they’d all suffered for her mortal sin of going out with me. She’d been so light and funny that night we met. The definition of carefree.”

Harry called the loss of his old flame “an important reminder,” especially after Meghan expressed her own suicidal thoughts to him during her first pregnancy. (The pair share son Archie, 3, and daughter Lilibet, 19 months.)

“I wasn’t being overdramatic, I wasn’t warning about things that would never happen,” he explained, referring to his and the Suits alum’s long clash with the U.K. tabloids. “What Meg and I were dealing with was indeed a question of life and death. And time was running out.”



This is the lowest of the low to me. Why bring this up? And why bring it up and make it all about himself.

I also wonder why the ghostwriter (apparently) has chosen to cite Harry throughout the book as "the former military pilot". I would have expected a citation like "The Prince", which he has been since birth, rather than "the former military pilot", which refers only to a brief period in his life and, in my opinion, does not define at all who he is.

 

[Denville]

I'm affraid I agree with you on this.
I don't think he'll ever stop. In fact, I think it will only get worse as time goes by.

Afraid so. Sadly there will be a market for what he's selling, and even if the RF cut down contact to almost zero, Harry and M can go on for years, attacking different members of the family, telling sligthly different versions of the story. He kept off the queen when she was alive, but not sure he will continue to do so.

 

[GraceOMalleysGhost]

I don't think he'll be able to continue with Invictus, there are so many military and ex-military people, true heroes, coming out and telling him to stop. I will be very surprised if they don't drop him.

https://news.yahoo.com/prince-harry-told-to-shut-up-by-the-ex-marine-he-called-a-hero-202746544.html

I wonder how many others will drop him. How can he be an advocate for mental health, for example, when he isn't dealing properly with his own?

 

[suztav]

This is an interesting perspective from an American who married into British aristocracy ...

https://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/celebr...sedgntp&cvid=7347905134a74e58ab6109ffe3d494ca

 

[VictoriaB]

I agree. I find it very unlikely.

The Queen apparently offered Meghan 5 tiaras to choose from. I do not believe that she would first offer a tiara, and then refuse to loan it for whatever reason. So this emerald tiara, even if it exists, most certainly wasn't among the 5 tiaras.

Secondly, how on earth would Harry and Meghan know that in the royal jewel vaults there is a secret emerald tiara that nobody is supposed to know about?

Third, I absolutely do not believe that the Queen "begged" them not to use one of tiaras that Diana wore.
Diana wore only 2 tiaras - Spencer tiara is not owned by the royal family at all, and Lovers Knot tiara was obviously returned to the Queen after the divorce for the future Princess of Wales to wear it some day. Harry isn't the owner of the Lovers Knot tiara, so the Queen certainly didn't have to beg Meghan not to wear it.

In my opinion, if Meghan really requested an emerald tiara, it was either the Vladimir tiara (and that tiara was worn exclusively by the Queen so I doubt that the Queen would loan that one to anyone at the time) or she had a misperception about some emerald tiara to be owned by the Queen when in fact it wasn't.

But we know the Royal Collection has another Emerald tiara because the Queen loaned it to Eugenie for her wedding. It’s possibly that one that was in the 5 offered to Meagan to choose from.

I’m sure that if Harry & Meaghan wanted her to wear the Spencer tiara, Lord Spencer would have been happy to loan it for the occasion. Lovers knot was returned to the Queen for her to loan to whomsoever she wanted, it just happens to be Kate.

 

[ppetrica]

After all the new quotes 'leaking' it still feels like a big hoax just to be able to show how 'the media' just baits at anything dangling before them to make H&M look bad.

I know what you mean.
I just hope that these leaks aren't false book details deliberately published by H. and M. team so that when the book does get out, H. and M. can accuse the BRF of leading a worldwide attack on them both.
And I hope the BRF and the court don't react to any of this until the book gets out.

 

[Mbruno]

But we know the Royal Collection has another Emerald tiara because the Queen loaned it to Eugenie for her wedding. It’s possibly that one that was in the 5 offered to Meagan to choose from.

I’m sure that if Harry & Meaghan wanted her to wear the Spencer tiara, Lord Spencer would have been happy to loan it for the occasion. Lovers knot was returned to the Queen for her to loan to whomsoever she wanted, it just happens to be Kate.

Eugenie's wedding tiara was the Greville Emerald Kokoshnik , which, as far as I know, is not of Russian provenance. So I find it unlikely that it is the same mysterious tiara mentioned in the book. To be honest, until I see hard evidence to back it up, I am not sure that this particular tiara even exists or is part of the late Queen's personal collection.

 

[Denville]

what are tehy saying about the tiara? I seem to remember a row with Angela Kelly? about seeing a tiara.

 

[ppetrica]

Eugenie's wedding tiara was the Grenville Emerald Kokoshnik , which, as far as I know, is not of Russian provenance. So I find it unlikely that it is the same mysterious tiara mentioned in the book. To be honest, until I see hard evidence to back it up, I am not sure that this particular tiara even exists or is part of the late Queen's personal collection.

I agree.

And as I said before, I do not believe that the Queen would first offer Meghan a tiara, and then refuse to loan it after Meghan chose it. So if the Greville emerald kokoshnik was among the 5 tiaras, in my opinion Meghan could have chosen it and the Queen wouldn't mind at all.

If it really was Greville emerald kokoshnik that Meghan wanted, then she was probably told about its existance in the vaults and when the Queen didn't offer it herself, Meghan asked about it. But maybe the Queen already promised Eugenie to loan it to her. I wouldn't find that strange or mean at all. Come on, how many women dreamed of their wedding day since childhood and planned it with their mothers and grandmothers!

Or if there really is an emerald tiara that was aquired in a dodgy way (and I'm sceptical about it as well untill proven differently) and the Queen didn't want the public to know, and then someone from the BRF told Meghan about it, how unreasonable would she have to be and request to wear that particular tiara, so that entire world can see it? And please don't tell me it's because she's an American and the ice cold BRF have no understanding for American customs and Meghan's feelings.

 

[Lilyflo]

Queen Elizabeth II would not have "begged" Meghan to wear one of her tiaras instead of one associated with Diana. There is no scenario on earth where HMQ would have begged an American actress to do anything. HMQ would suggest or politely request a range of alternatives, which is actually an instruction wrapped in a regal ribbon. HMQ even told Prince William which uniform he had to wear for his wedding so it's clear that the image portrayed was very important to her.

 

[intothesea]

If these excerpts are all legit, it makes me wonder if Meghan read this and thought she truly is magical and sings like Snow White.

Or, if she thinks….well, if this marriage doesn’t give me the lifestyle I like, this will be a way out, proof he’s unstable.