Prince Harry’s Memoirs to be published.

[Madasahattersteaparty1749]

Blurb from publisher.

In an intimate and heartfelt memoir from one of the most fascinating and influential global figures of our time, Prince Harry will share, for the very first time, the definitive account of the experiences, adventures, losses, and life lessons that have helped shape him.

Covering his lifetime in the public eye from childhood to the present day, including his dedication to service, the military duty that twice took him to the frontlines of Afghanistan, and the joy he has found in being a husband and father, Prince Harry will offer an honest and captivating personal portrait, on that shows readers that behind everything they think they know lies an inspiring, courageous and uplifting human story.'

I wonder if there even is much "dirt" to dish?

There's so much I think that has already come out over the years or been hinted at.

Would anyone even be surprised by anything anymore?

@Roussette

His choice and let's be honest, it will give a lot of people something to talk about on MN. I bet some of you are soooo excited to be able to spend days and months dissecting it when it comes out!

I wonder how it will compare to Sarah Ferguson's book 'My Story' talking about 'her frustrations, humiliations and occasional joys of her life as a Windsor'

(quoting the description of it there..)

His poor family. I thought Oprah was bad. This I think is on another level

Did you think or say that when Sarah did her book? It pulled no punches.

doubt it , hes becoming the man with nothing left to sell, we have now heard all his shite already , whats going to be in this book thats new ? some more different moans or complaints , more proven lies perhaps , they have already given everybody their truth on oprah winfrey , after a while it just becomes tedious , only their most ardent fans will surely buy this book in the hopes of learnng something new , i suspect most other people would regard it as just more of the same

What does he want from his family? What does he want from the general public or the media?

I don't think he's ever stopped to think what it is he actually wants. He seems to be on a collision course and as much of a hypocrite and whinger I think he is I also genuinely think many of those near him don't have his best interests at heart and are fully exploiting his apparent poor mental heath for their own gain or agenda.

Dear Harry,

You say you want to make the world a better place "one act of compassion at a time". Where is your compassion for your family? However hurt you feel, the really strong, kind, compassionate "influential" thing to do is to forgive and find a way forward. Trashing them to the world is not the way - or is this the man you have become?

It is not just the family you are exposing, but a head of state and future heads of state. Do you care so little for your country that you would put its constitution in doubt?

You frame your activities as being about other people and trying to make them and the world better, but really it's all about "me, me, me" isn't it? - The OW interview, the Apple TV, the book, Megan's book. You may honestly believe your own PR but others see through it.

Yes you've been given a hard time by the media and SM, I don't wish that on anybody, but honestly Harry - STOP WHINGING. You're doing OK, you have a wife and kids you love and a great lifestyle. If you want to be private FFS SHUT UP.

Finally Harry, your father and brother truly love you. Like all humans, they make mistakes, but when the chips are down they are your closest relatives who have been so dear to you. That is precious. Don't lose those bonds from hurt pride or pique. Your wife has walked away from so many relationships but it's not a pattern you have to follow.

All the best

MateysMum

I completely agree, @DeRigueurMortis. It would be completely impossible to tell the story of his life, so much of which is already well known, without revealing details about his interactions with, and dealings with, other people. “The highs and lows, the mistakes, the lessons learned” - all of these will involve necessarily involve telling stories about his life, which he moved through with his friends, his family, his colleagues, his girlfriends, his staff, alongside him etc etc. Harry may be comfortable talking about what happened to him, but how on earth does he know those involved in his history are also happy to have this disclosed?

@1forAll74

I would never have imagined Harry, to have thought about putting his life out there,so to speak, as in writing a book, doing interviews, divulging his woes and problems for all the world to hear about etc. It has all happened since he married Meghan, she who always want's to be in the limelight. and profit from all this. She is most likely to be behind all these Harry disclosures.

I always thought that Harry would maybe do some good things in life, as in his Africa pursuits, his work with injured military persons, and other help for needy people. I never thought that he would be banging on to the Oprah woman, doing Hollywood stuff, and all the rest, and mostly hiding his children away etc.

He didn't wan't the royal life anymore, but now he keeps talking about it non stop, and probably getting paid big for it.

See I don’t agree that Meghan is the one who is pushing Harry to any of this. I think it’s unfair that she gets blamed for so much. Some people like to say that Meghan was a nobody and a B list in a cable show before she met Harry and she was literally an unknown, fair enough. If she had wanted to seek the limelight I’m sure there were other ways to do it, she never had any scandal, no reality shows , just some charity work , her job as an actress and a blog.

In my opinion this is all Harry, I just saw a quote a few years ago he said something about writing a newspaper column to correct lies in the press or something. Plus his interview when he was in the army talking about his dislike of tabloids. So no, to me this is not Meghan, she is not a jezebell who bewitched Harry & turned him. And I think this Harry has always been there, there are glimpses of him all over the years before he met Meghan. I’m not even saying it’s a bad thing, he wanted out, he has always hated the tabloids etc etc. Since they left Harry has been the one more out there and I believe that he is an adult and has taken responsibility of his own narrative. Fair play to him, it may backfire or not who knows.

I agree with all points that DeRigueur makes.
It just seems to open even more cans of worms and "devalue" his/their status - if that is at all possible now. The deep irony of it all seems to be utterly lost on him and his wife.

There must be many many people from colleagues, staff, friends, nannies, girlfriends etc that have afforded him privacy over the years.
Let alone his actual family!

If he then goes and breaches their privacy it immediately lends itself to "open season" on retaliation in many different forms from media articles, interviews, informal comments etc in response to what may have been put into print. It's just a crazy stance. It just will feed more media frenzy which is something he has been at pains to stress that he hates. He, understandably, hates the media intrusion that his mother suffered. But here he is opening the gates himself even further.

The lack of judgement on all of this is so unbelievable that it's actually quite stunning. In the end though he will no doubt end up hurting a lot of people, but ultimately he is the one who will pay a much higher price for all of this further down the line as the record is already wearing thin and after this surely he literally has nowhere else to go with this self destruction and ill advised path.

I also feel hugely sad once again for his Grandmother who is due to be celebrating her Platinum Jubilee next June which is such an amazing achievement. And once again the Harry and Meghan show will loom large as a big cloud overhanging a major milestone in history.

His Father will presumably always love his son, but be hugely disappointed. But what of his brother going forward? It's just an impossible position for harmonious family unity.

The sad, sad thing is it all could have been so very different. He could have carved out a worthy role especially with ex service personnel and the African continent, together with mental health charities etc.
Silly, silly boy. But in ten, twenty years he will really feel it all when he looks back and reflects on his life. Perhaps he should have waited until then to pen this sad reflections on his life as he really would have had something to write about.

I think the losers in all this will be his children. They will not have relationships with Charles or William and Kate, or their cousins and wider family. Meghan doesn't have anything to offer on her side apart from her mother. They will be locked into a bubble as they grow up, and that surely can't be healthy. The great grandchildren of the King of England, yet just rich Californian kids at a school for other rich kids no doubt.

Sorry grandchildren of the King of England.

@Roussette

Any insight into the RF would be called 'slagging off' undoubtedly because there is total opacity.

Isn't there 'opacity' about most people's private lives?

Why do the public have a right to know about the royals' family life?

Would Chelsy or Cressida be entitled to provide 'insights' into their relationship with Harry, being as he is - or was - a member of the royal family?

I’m sure their children will be loved and have a happy childhood and I don’t really feel sorry for them. Same way I don’t feel sorry for William’s children. We don’t know if they don’t know anyone except Doria since most of that family don’t talk to the press to trash Meghan. We don’t even know if Harry talks to his cousins in the UK or not.

@Zuluqueen

I agree with you.

I don't think M is to blame.

I simply think they have one of those relationships where personality types converge (at times) in an unhealthy way.

I'm not trying to suggest their marriage is unhappy (by all accounts they are both very happy) but rather it's perhaps quite "insular" in the sense of us against the world with neither looking at a bigger long term picture.

Again I appreciate why they might feel that way but it seems they a both prone to "heart vs head" choices that have the potential to backfire against their long term interests/ambitions.

They both certainly seem happy to isolate themselves from anyone who isn't fully bought in to their vision and actively hostile to those who challenge their motivations.

Personally I think their current strategy has a very limited shelf life.

Then what? Maybe nothing....they'll acquire enough money in the short term so it doesn't matter to them.

Then again perhaps I'm wrong.

Maybe they will at some point be the people their PR purports they are now - actual philanthropists with gravitas at the top of the social mountain - but they are a long way from that now and have burned a lot of goodwill to get to the foothills at best.

I highly doubt that all profits from the book will be turned over to charity.

"A portion" really does cover a multitude of sins.

@diddl

I wonder if there even is much "dirt" to dish?

There's so much I think that has already come out over the years or been hinted at.

Would anyone even be surprised by anything anymore?

I don't think there is much 'dirt to dish'.

The royals have been quite boring since the Diana years, and aside from the fact that that period has been 'done' so many times, Harry was too young to have any real insight. I'm sure Harry might have a tale or two to tell, but I really don't think there are any major scandals just waiting to break.

Harry does not know what the truth looks like "we got married in are back yard 3 days before wedding". ABC said he did not perform another wedding ceremony 3 days before wedding.

Harry said he takes Archie out on his bike in a little seat his Dad would have never done that for him. Photos out in newspapers within 2 days showing Charles riding s bike with Harry looking about 4 in seat on his Dad's bike and William riding along next to them. Other photos too on separate occasions.

No apologies from Harry for lying on national TV.

Harry and Meghan are one trip ponies as LL they do is moan about Harry's family.

Anyway ghostwriter will write what Meghan tells him to put then Scoobie will be telling us about how traumatic Harry's life was.

H&M need to just get on with their lives in US.

" Harry was too young to have any real insight."

This is what I'm thinking.

Away at boarding school, then the army.

How involved was he really with any "goings on"?

I can't think of much that might be of any interest (but then I do lack imagination).

I guess Meghan will write her autobiography next, and then we'll have the sequel to FF, "Living Our Freedom", then the baby and toddler cookbook, then the parenting manual, then maybe some educational books, a series with times tables, phonics etc, then maybe a self sufficiency grow your own type book, then a well-being book focused on diet, then one on meditation and being present, then one on exercise. Then a shake / smoothie recipe book. Then a series of children's reading books a la Oxford Reading Tree. Then a series of children's encyclopaedia type books on wildlife, art, civil rights, great women of history. Then it'll be time for Harry's memoirs part 2, then freedom part 3, "Freedom Grows" etc etc.

I wasn't expecting that to be so long but it's so predictable. I could go on..

The royals have been quite boring since the Diana years, and aside from the fact that that period has been 'done' so many times, Harry was too young to have any real insight. I'm sure Harry might have a tale or two to tell, but I really don't think there are any major scandals just waiting to break.

I don't know tbh.

That's why I think this book is a bad idea.

I think there are probably people with plenty of "dirt" on H who've kept quiet.

I'm not suggesting there's more "dirt" on him than any other royal - the difference is they are not writing a biography and giving people a perfectly reasonable opportunity to respond with their counter recollections.

You've also got people caught in the middle who were loyal to both brothers for example.

What if H's version doesn't reflect their experiences at the expense of his brother?

Will they speak out?

Or fundamentally is H secure in the knowledge that none of these people can challenge "his truth" because they've all been muzzled with non-disclosure agreements?

Irony there hey??????

Permission to speak his truth whilst preventing others from speaking theirs by upholding legal agreements presumably crafted by the institution he despises to protect him.

I'm sorry there's just no way to spin this development in a way that reflects well on H.

It's just more whataboutary and hey good on you for publicly trashing the privacy of your family, friends and anyone who you worked with you because they are above the standards they hold other people to.

I guess Meghan will write her autobiography next

She'll wait until after the divorce for maximum impact.

I bet Oprah has first dibs on the post-divorce 'tell-all' too.

But which one of them?

[quote DeRigueurMortis]@Zuluqueen

I agree with you.

I don't think M is to blame.

I simply think they have one of those relationships where personality types converge (at times) in an unhealthy way.

I'm not trying to suggest their marriage is unhappy (by all accounts they are both very happy) but rather it's perhaps quite "insular" in the sense of us against the world with neither looking at a bigger long term picture.

Again I appreciate why they might feel that way but it seems they a both prone to "heart vs head" choices that have the potential to backfire against their long term interests/ambitions.

They both certainly seem happy to isolate themselves from anyone who isn't fully bought in to their vision and actively hostile to those who challenge their motivations.

Personally I think their current strategy has a very limited shelf life.

Then what? Maybe nothing....they'll acquire enough money in the short term so it doesn't matter to them.

Then again perhaps I'm wrong.

Maybe they will at some point be the people their PR purports they are now - actual philanthropists with gravitas at the top of the social mountain - but they are a long way from that now and have burned a lot of goodwill to get to the foothills at best.

[/quote]
Agree @DeRigueurMortis. I think they have to be very careful with what they do going forward. I like them, I wish them well but I sometimes think if they are not careful they run the risk of overexposure. They have an opportunity that most people, most would be producers dream off( Meghan as a POC with the Netflix deal). Most POC producers often say how hard it is to get a foot through the door. So I’m hoping that both of them use the privilege they have to give a chance to those who would otherwise not get a shot. I believe this is what they should be focusing on, there is so much they can do to make a difference whilst getting rich as a bonus. Even with Spotify there is so much content they could put that matters.They have to find a balance to somewhere, they are not like us normal people who get to mess up in private & deal with the fallout out in private.

@IcedPurple

I guess Meghan will write her autobiography next

She'll wait until after the divorce for maximum impact.

I bet Oprah has first dibs on the post-divorce 'tell-all' too.

But which one of them?

I'm not a fan of gleeful speculation about the divorce of a couple with two children.

I wouldn't wish this for their family.

I simply wish they'd stop this trajectory they are on.

At 36 with years of therapy behind you, there comes a point where your happiness is your responsibility and where you actually realise that you might learn from the previous generation of your family about the dangers of over-sharing.

To add to what de Rigeur Mortis said, many of the people likely to be on the receiving end of 'Harry's truth' have probably signed non disclosure agreements or the Official Secrets Act ... and so cannot tell 'their truth'.

I also find the timing of this so frustrating. In a week where they had some positive news to announce for a change (the animated children’s series for Netflix, the second proposed production under their deal) it’s all got swept away by the WTF??” reaction to Harry’s deal to write his memoir. Why announce that now?? Why not take the chance to bask in some good news for a change? The book won’t be published for a year, what wa so important that it needed to be announced now?

@Zuluqueen

Agree @DeRigueurMortis. I think they have to be very careful with what they do going forward. I like them, I wish them well but I sometimes think if they are not careful they run the risk of overexposure. They have an opportunity that most people, most would be producers dream off( Meghan as a POC with the Netflix deal). Most POC producers often say how hard it is to get a foot through the door. So I’m hoping that both of them use the privilege they have to give a chance to those who would otherwise not get a shot. I believe this is what they should be focusing on, there is so much they can do to make a difference whilst getting rich as a bonus. Even with Spotify there is so much content they could put that matters.They have to find a balance to somewhere, they are not like us normal people who get to mess up in private & deal with the fallout out in private.

Absolutely agree with you.

I hate to admit it but I am kind of interested in it. I might wait for reviews and see what the general consensus is, but I want full on glamour and gossip, not a rehash of what has already been said.