Happy Birthday, Spare!

[EncantoSpice]

It’s the one year anniversary of the release of Spare, how are you all celebrating?!

In all seriousness, a year on what impact do you think the book has had on the Royal Family and the Sussexes?

In my opinion it clearly did very well commercially but in popular culture it became a bit of a joke. In terms of the RF I’m not sure it made much difference - to people who already didn’t like them it confirmed what they already believed, to people who did like them it was more evidence that Harry was no loss. I also think even a year later it has made reconciliation between William and Harry impossible.

She was the Spare for the first 10 years of her life. She was second in line to the throne.
Then Andrew was born, which then put her 3rd in line, then Edward , which put her 4th, and so on.
However, she's managed to cope, and carve out a role for herself. Oh, and she was also an Olympic equestrian.

I do not think he has gone off the rails.

I find him very rational.

I think he has made a bid for independance which is admirable.

I think his book was reasonable and reasoned. His side of the thousands of stories told about him.

It happens in millions of families the world over all the time.

Because of the way we have structured our society, with one family as the apex of all of our society they will, deservedly, get extra attention.

I am not trying to make little of her or her acomlishments.

However, being the spare until the age of 10, with the intellectual and emotional understanding that would come with the age, is surely different to being the actual spare in your teens or twenties?

Really? Blimey, what’s going off the rails for you then, if doing drugs, talking about how many kills. And selling gossipy stories on your family for money isn’t off the rails?

My point is that she was a "Spare", and diminished in status by the birth of her brothers, then their children. She is now 17th in line to the throne. I would suggest that it's possible to come to terms with your position in an hereditary monarchy.

I would hardly call it a bid for independence

It was a specific bid to remain half in half out and make lots of money “independently “

Then he got told no

He could of course continued have to made an independent life but seems to have trouble disengaging ( to put it politely)

Most threads go off topic. @Maireas was saying that she was the less favoured sibling and that Harry needed move to past it. I listed all the things that he'd done and asked how she'd moved on as I think Harry has achieved a lot.
Other people volunteered their jobs and I wondered how they did it.

My answer was to this part of the post - I’m glad to see the admission that Harry has gone off the rails. - which I interpreted as being that he is now off the rails. And I do not think he is.

I think that in doing all the things you reference he was indeed suffering and off the rails.

Now, it seems to me, he has come to a better place.

I agree with you.

I think you need to read my post again. It was not off topic.

That’s really extreme.

I would not be surprised to learn that Anne had more intellectual and emotional understanding of the conduct becoming of a ‘spare’ at ten years of age than PH ever actually displayed in his teens or indeed his twenties.

That's probably how Meghan feels. Everything has been scrutinised and commented on.

Maybe.

But it would also be fair to say that she did not have an extreme family tragedy to deal with just shy of 10.

I have no bone to pick with Princess Anne. I am not sure why she is the comparator here.

Shouldn't it be Prince Andrew?

A.lot of people go off the rails in their teens. Do we never get past that.

No you misunderstand. Someone mentioned that the thread had gone off topic with me asking you how you moved on past being a less favoured sibling and I explained why

I wasn't feeling uneasy for myself @Rockybooboo. Are you in tune with Meghan's feelings?

My understanding is that he has been using drugs more recently than his teens
Source - Harry’s (big ) mouth

Totally agree. And some of what I've read indicated William was just as bad but Harry's stories were used to protect him, being the heir an' all

I remember the country being shocked at Charles's liking for cherry brandy! What simple times they were!

William also had an extreme family tragedy.
I think Anne's "Spare" situation was significantly worse than Harry's.

Yes she didn't lose her mum and apparently she was the Apple other dad's eye and as I know if you got a dad who loves you to bits, it makes a lovely childhood.

@MN you think my post is wrong and you delete it but you leave up the person who says that we are all unhinged if we don't agree with her? Come on now 😂

No. I was talking about Harry.