Just finished 'Spare'...

[HerReputationMadeItDifficultToProceed]

… and I encourage anyone who’s even vaguely interested in this story to give it a read. Especially if what’s been leaked has made you at all angry, because I think in context everything makes a lot of sense.

I wasn’t a Harry and Meghan hater before reading this, but I wasn’t a fan girl either. Like many Brits, I find a lot of Americans- especially West Coast Americans- quite irritating and Meghan firmly falls into that camp for me. I’m sure she’s nice enough, but she’s very American and very perky and much like Wednesday Addams, I don’t do perky. However, I suspect that her intentions and generally good and that like most of us she’s got good and bad qualities. She’s clearly ambitious and I think that she probably initially dated Harry based on that ambition and on getting a platform, although I think that she genuinely loves him now.

The ghost writer has done a great job at capturing Harry’s personality I think; he comes across as introspective and thoughtful but funny and bright.

I think that Harry has a good soul; I think that he’s kind and has had a hard time of it growing up. I also think he’s a bit clueless and naive and has been in a bubble, but I think he acknowledges that and wants to understand and change. Undoubtedly losing his mother at the age he was had more of an outward impact on him than it had on William. He’s also been a victim of his dad’s wishywashy parenting. It sounds like- and looks like to me from my vantage point as a normal citizen who knows bugger all except what I’ve seen in the media- that Charles has been there for his kids to an extent, but not in a hands on or especially useful way. It also seems clear that Charles has always put Camilla first. From almost the moment Diana died it seems that he wanted, above everything else, to rehabilitate Camilla’s image so that they could marry. I think that he put that above being a father and the way Harry writes about their relationship makes that clear too.

I also think that it’s suited the palace to portray Harry as dimwitted and feckless to show William in a better light and that Harry has every right to be angry about that and not want to play that game anymore (and to call it out now). Especially as it’s obvious that the palace haven’t kept up their side of the bargain and protected Harry from the media in return.

I also think that the media have treated H and M poorly and it’s clearly the case that the palace has used them and news stories about them to divert from other newsworthy problems… certainly Prince Andrew, perhaps William’s affair/s. Is Harry overly jumpy about the media and the paparazzi in particular? Yes, of course. Who wouldn’t be with his background. But they’ve also obviously been hounded and harassed.

I do think that Harry is on a journey that he isn’t at the end of yet, but I think that he realises that too. I think that he was always going to leave the royal family and that Meghan didn’t cause what’s happened, she was just the catalyst for it. I think that he’s been scapegoated and an afterthought within his nuclear family and I don’t blame him for being angry. I think that he means well and is essentially good. And I don’t think that anyone who’s read the whole book would be able to disagree.

More than anything I think it’s clear that the British Royal Family is no longer fit for purpose; the way they live, bring up their children, pay their members for work and demand unrealistic levels of protocol and formality is no longer working in the 21st century. These people need purpose and lives beyond the crown and those on the edges of the heir shouldn’t have to live their lives in service of the their. Realistically H and M could have worked as royals and had private interests, the RF chose not to bend to help them live fulfilling lives because of its own, outdated reasons.

Harry’s a grown man. Time he ‘put his big boy pants on’ as MNer’s like to say. No one would tolerate this person in their own lives if he was just Joe Bloggs.

I'm confused. Some posters have mentioned Harry's 'boast of killing Taliban'

In 2013 when the same media were celebrating his kills?? Did you assume these were all lies also? I'm curious? Did this not constitute an increased threat, or was it OK when the Sun and Mail glorify voilence it's patriotic , when a vet talks about their service its a sign of 'not real man'

Oh do give over @Pointerdogsrule. You’re not confused or baffled at all. You’re stirring the pot in the hope of a bunfight.

@Mirabai If you’re going to selectively copy and paste, you’ll find that I have already written:

From the looks of things, Harry’s parents seemed to have done this and so now it seems that Harry is following in their footsteps.

Then the Royal Family have their own wealth and it is only a small sum of money from the Taxpayer that goes to them.

They have their own wealth boosted by decades worth of tax breaks and opaquely accounted for income from a pair of Duchies with their own archaic rules which somehow escaped amalgamation into the Crown Estate and whose tax status swings between public and private depending which is most advantageous to them.

The taxpayer is on the hook for many millions more than the much quoted base sum.

The tourism generated by the Royals more than covers that.

The only source for this myth is a branding company with royal links who pushed a report to this end with no indication as to who was behind it.

Harold has only given ‘his truth’.
what about the RF’s truth?
He comes across as spiteful and entitled. I am concerned that he and Meghan bullied their staff who were forced to sign NDA’s so what about their truth?
as an animal lover I am predisposed to loathe the whinging manchild after seeing the way he abuses his polo ponies. Look up Drizzle, the 10 year old mare who died of a heart attack after being ridden by Harry. His use of spurs and his predilection for trophy hunting and killing endangered birds are troubling.
please don’t accuse me of being raycist. Some of my best friends are German.

U.K. tabloids are grim and they clearly hounded Meghan as they did to all the new wives joining the royal family to varying levels over the last few decades. Also although I of course have much sympathy to Harry tragically losing his mum at 12, by the second half of the book I found Harry a problematic character. I think their behaviour since leaving in 2020 has often been disingenuous and airing his family’s dirty laundry for mega bucks distasteful.

In 2013 everyone, including the Taliban, believed Harry was being kept in the base playing computer games.

He's not 'boasting' about the number of people he's killed in the book, he's reflecting on it, but the sheer monumental stupidity of confirming he's killed people and going so far as to put a number on it - what an idiot.

It doesn't even take the Taliban to retaliate, just one of their lone nut job supporters.

Its actually in response to specific posts.

I've read the passages about the Taliban and miffed why anyone would think its a threat to his family, when killing Taliban was plastered all over the same press crucifying him now. Not stirring, not wanting a bunfight.

Astonished at the hatred and double standards....

I haven’t watched any of the Crown. It’s based on observations of his behaviour.

Does Spare address Bunker Harold’s alleged treatment of sex workers?
No?
gosh what a surprise that is.

I’m confused whether you’re agreeing with me about this or not so I’ll leave it at that.

Yes, I am a critic of Harry but he didn’t boast about killing the Taliban as our awful tabloids claimed last week.

I was in the fence until I listened to the audiobook. Now I think what a selfish, self indulgent twat. I could say more but I just get angry. There are so many people so much worse off that you Harry, who have been through just as much or even worse!

⬆️ THIS!!!
Plus, Meghan could have just done few more seasons of “suits” or find another role to keep them going financially instead of trying to make money on Netflix crap series or the book… most of the people have to work for their money, yet entitled M&H chose to make it easy way by tearing his family to pieces in the media… just shut up and get a job!

Er, you seriously think someone will be radicalised by Harry's book kill number?😂

That prior to reading the passage below, they were law abiding and this pushes them over the edge...

twitter.com/AkanKwaku/status/1611614627909050368?s=20&t=oHstF-M1JJ-7Axly4Y4_3A

@Buffs The Guardian review 🤣🤣🤣

I sat through 90 mins of the interview with him and have discussed the book with ds who listened to it on audio. H has laid into W completely unnecessarily, in ways that must really have hurt W, and has slated his father's wife. He certainly has kicked them in the teeth.

He put his boy pants on and fucked off out of the country. The indignation of MNers and tabloid bully boys who thought he would put up with their kicking ad infinitum was entertaining to watch.

It's all about perception then.

I don't agree.

I think there's a lot of sibling rivalry, yes. That's about it.

Have you heard of a writer called Salman Rushdie?

I don't think he's ever killed anyone. Yet he spent years in hiding from Islamic extremists. They caught up with him in the end, 33 years after the first threats

It doesn't take much for an extremist to use as an excuse to harm.

Suits was ending and Meghan hadn’t been successful in getting another role so tbh I am not sure how much she could have contributed to by acting

But you find it amusing. Go you.

he didn’t boast about killing the Taliban as our awful tabloids claimed last week.

At the time and in a thoroughly overlooked comment he likened killing to a video game.