Prince Harry will discuss his memoir in TV interviews on Sunday after the book’s explosive revelations about royal divisions, sex and drugs cast doubt on his future in the British royal family.
The book written by a ghost of the 38-year-old prince, ‘Spare’, was widely leaked after it was mistakenly put on sale in Spain ahead of the official release date on Tuesday.
Details include an allegation that his brother Prince William, the heir to the throne, attacked him during an argument over his wife Meghan; an account of how he lost his virginity; an admission of drug use; and a claim that he killed 25 people while serving in Afghanistan.
British media reported on Sunday that the book had deeply hurt William and the boys’ father, King Charles III, but the monarch wants to reconcile with his son. The palace did not react officially.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak declined to comment on the scandal in a BBC interview while stressing his “enormous regard for the royal family”.
TV channels have already released clips where Harry talks about his rocky relationship with William and accuses his family of sowing negative stories about him and Meghan in the media.
British television ITV will be the first to broadcast its program “Harry: the interview” at 9:00 p.m. (21:00 GMT) on Sunday.
– William ‘burns inside’ –
In the latest clip released by ITV, Harry revealed he had ‘cried once’ after the murder of his mother Diana and said he felt guilty for not being able to express his grief while greeting crowds of people mourners whose hands were wet with tears.
In previous clips, he focused on his combative relationship with William, saying his older brother physically attacked him as they argued over Harry’s wife, Meghan, and “I saw this red mist in him”.
“I want reconciliation, but first there needs to be accountability,” Harry said.
Sources close to William and Charles commented on the broadsheets on Sunday.
The Sunday Times quoted an unnamed friend of the two brothers as saying that William “won’t fight back, he never will”, but “he’s anxious and he’s sad”.
“He handles it so well on the outside – on the inside he burns,” the source said.
Another unnamed friend told the newspaper that William is “strongly protective of his own family, and he’s not just going to turn around.”
The Sunday Telegraph newspaper quoted sources close to Charles as saying the King saw a reconciliation with Harry as the “only way out of this mess”.
While Harry’s book is more critical of William, Charles “is hurt no less because he has not personally been at the center of much of the book’s anger and frustration”, reported the Sunday. Times, quoting a friend of the King.
Harry told ITV he still believes in the monarchy, although he’s unsure whether it will play a role in its future.
– No coronation role –
Unlike William, Harry will not have an official role in Charles’ coronation this year which he is expected to attend, The Sunday Times reported.
In “a major break with tradition, Charles has abandoned the act of royal dukes kneeling to ‘pay homage'”, he wrote, and “William will be the only royal to carry out the tradition”.
The American channel CBS will later broadcast its interview with Harry on its evening program “60 Minutes”.
Another US network, ABC, was scheduled to air its interview on Monday.
Harry called William a “beloved brother and sworn enemy,” ABC presenter Michael Strahan said in an interview excerpt.
“There’s always been this competition between us, weirdly,” Harry told the American channel.
“I think it really plays or is played by ‘the heir/replacement’.”
The interviews were recorded before Harry’s book was widely leaked on Thursday – sparking a backlash from the media, royal commentators, military veterans and even the Taliban.
British newspapers have slammed Harry’s claim that he killed 25 people while serving in the army in Afghanistan, after veterans slammed the claims as risky and inappropriate.
A Taliban official condemned Harry for saying the killings were like removing chess pieces from a chessboard.