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William “disappointed” and “greatly concerned” at what Harry may say next
Prince William has had enough of brother Prince Harry’s share sessions with Oprah—and famous friends of Oprah—which are also royal dish-fests of varying volume and velocity. William is apparently “disappointed” and “greatly concerned” at what Harry may say next, according to a Mail on Sunday report.
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It’s unsurprising, given that in the past Harry and Meghan have accused an unnamed royal family member of being a racist; of not supporting Meghan when she felt suicidal; and trashing Charles, the queen, and Prince Philip’s parenting. But William may also take heart from the latest Harry verbal splurge, which seemed comparatively barb-free.
As The Daily Beast reported Friday, Harry talked about his own shame when it came to helping Meghan when she was feeling so low. “There’s an element of shame that we feel because we’re like, ‘How could we have not have seen it? How could we not know? How did you not feel comfortable enough to share that with me?’ But we all know that when people are suffering or struggling, that we’re all incredibly good at covering it up… So many people are afraid [to have] that conversation because they don’t feel like they have the right tools to give the right advice. But what you want to say is that you are there. Because listening and being part of that conversation is without doubt the best first step that you can take.”
A source told the Mail there were “concerns rather than fears” that Harry and Meghan would make new accusations, but perhaps Harry talking in generalities means, at least for now, the “truth bombs” are becoming less ferocious in nature.
Then again, this is the royal family we’re talking about.
Rolling out the red carpet
The queen has been slowly but steadily increasing her official appearances following the death of her husband Prince Philip at the age of 99 last month. She has carried out her first solo engagement, and in June will undertake two high-profile, televised engagements that will see off any lingering rumors that she intends to use her husband’s death as an excuse to step back from royal duties, or make her son Charles regent.
One will be the Trooping of the Color on Saturday, June 12, the queen’s official birthday celebrations, where she will also have a plus-one to keep her company, her cousin the Duke of Kent, the Mail on Sunday reports.
Usually, the Trooping of the Color is a huge event with all of British pomp and pageantry on display, and hundreds of soldiers parading down London’s main ceremonial thoroughfares to the accompaniment of flashing steel and clashing cymbals, but this year’s ceremony will be significantly smaller and will take place effectively behind closed doors as a concession to Britain’s ongoing COVID restrictions, which are only due to be fully rescinded on June 21.
As the Mail on Sunday also reports, the other big event in the queen’s calendar is her inaugural meeting with President Joe Biden, which will take place at the G7 summit in Cornwall, the day before the Trooping of the Color on June 11.
Meeting Biden at the G7 is not, of course the big, fancy state visit that the British establishment usually likes to roll out for American presidents, but it will help flatter and welcome Biden—especially as she will likely be joined by the royal A-team of Charles, Camilla, Kate and William—and also serve an important purpose for Her Majesty in making sure that she is seen, which, as she has previously quipped, is important if she is to be believed. Of the 14 American presidents there have been during the queen’s reign, she has met all of them except Lyndon B. Johnson.
All aboard
One of the vanishingly few occasions on which the queen has been seen to shed a tear in public was at the decommissioning ceremony for the royal yacht Britannia in 1997. The luxurious vessel, in which the royals holidayed and used for work all around the world, was taken out of service by the government of Tony Blair.
So, one imagines there will be much rejoicing in the royal palaces of England today at a front-page story in today’s Sunday Telegraph (the paper has long been at the forefront of calls for a new Royal yacht) that the government is to build a “new national flagship” to replace the royal yacht.
The Sunday Telegraph adds that the ship is likely to be called the Prince Philip. It quotes prime minister Boris Johnson saying: “This new national flagship will be the first vessel of its kind in the world, reflecting the UK’s burgeoning status as a great, independent maritime trading nation. Every aspect of the ship, from its build to the businesses it showcases on board, will represent and promote the best of British—a clear and powerful symbol of our commitment to be an active player on the world stage.”
The prime minister’s office told The Sunday Telegraph that “a typical six-month itinerary for the flagship might include docking at a port in a country where a British prime ministerial visit is taking place, to accommodate parallel discussions between British and local businesses, hosting trade fairs to sell British products to an emerging market and providing the venue for an international ministerial summit or major trade negotiations between the UK and another government.”
At the risk of pouring cold water on the plans, it all sounds a bit like a floating conference center. It is not yet clear whether the royals will be able to use the yacht for private holidays and pleasure cruises as they were with Britannia. To be honest, that ship may have sailed.
Knock on the door
Prince Harry had to be woken up in person in the middle of the night to be told that his grandfather Prince Philip had died, it was reported this week. Philip’s death was announced at 12 noon in the UK on April 9, which is 4 AM in California, where Harry and Meghan live. However TMZ reported that when embassy staff were unable to reach Harry on his phone, police officers were sent to wake him up and told him to call home immediately. The outlet cited “law enforcement sources” for the intel.
One has been jabbed
Kate Middleton tweeted Saturday, “Yesterday I received my first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at London’s Science Museum. I’m hugely grateful to everyone who is playing a part in the rollout—thank you for everything you are doing.” Prince William has already been vaccinated.
Big mouth
Piers Morgan has claimed that he could make a return to Good Morning Britain, the British breakfast show he left after he accused Meghan of lying in her Oprah interview. The show has suffered a drop in viewing figures since his departure and he told the Sun: “They reached out—there have been approaches. Never say never.”
Morgan has been on a PR blitz this week; he told the Daily Mail’s Jan Moir: “I have no doubt I could take the ratings back to where I left them—but the doubt is, would anyone be allowed to do it that way again? I was hired to give very strong, honestly held opinions, which I did. But in the end I was asked to apologize for a genuinely held opinion.”
This week in royal history
The queen’s coronation took place on June 2, 1953, allowing royal fans—and even those who aren’t fans—to again just marvel at the scale and scope of the queen’s reign. And now widowed, at 95, on she goes.
Unanswered questions
Is Prince William right to be worried? Have Harry and Meghan got more to say, and how damaging could it be? What will we see of the royal A team in action at the G7. It will be a fascinating glimpse into the old-meets-new royal power structure in action.
