Image Source: Getty / Matt Dunham – WPA Pool
Prince Harry is not holding back about all he’s been through as a royal in the leadup to the release of his highly-anticipated memoir, “Spare.” Following the explosive debut of his Netflix documentary, “Harry & Meghan,” the Prince is set to sit down with Anderson Cooper on CBS’s “60 Minutes” on Jan. 8 to discuss some of the many revelations he’ll unpack in his book coming out on Jan. 10. The book promises to dive into topics such as Harry’s experience coping with the tragic death of his mother, Princess Diana, the challenges of growing up in the public eye as a royal, and — more recently — the royal institution and the British press’s treatment of him and his wife, Meghan Markle, that led them to step down as working royals.
While fans (and critics) will have to buy the book to read everything Harry has to say about his lifetime of royalty, based on the two teaser clips CNN released from his “60 Minutes” appearance, the interview is still a must-see.
In one clip, released on Jan. 2, Cooper asks Harry, “Can you see a day when you would return as a full-time member of the Royal Family?” to which the Prince responds, “No,” without hesitation.
In another clip, when asked why he’s being so public about his gripes with the royal family, Harry takes aim at the Palace’s “never complain; never explain” motto, insisting that the institution’s refusal to protect him and his wife, while also leaking private details about them to the press, is akin to “betrayal.”
“Every time I’ve tried to do it privately, there have been briefings, and leaking, and planting of stories against me and my wife,” he says. “The family motto is ‘Never complain; never explain,’ but it’s just a motto, and it doesn’t really hold.”
Harry also claims “endless” complaining and explaining is coming from the Palace. “Through leaks. They will feed — or have a conversation with — the correspondent,” he adds. “That correspondent will literally be spoon-fed information and then write the story and, at the bottom of it, they’ll say they’ve reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment. But the whole story is Buckingham Palace commenting. So, when we’re being told for the last six years, ‘We can’t put a statement out to protect you,’ but you do it for other members of the family, there becomes a point where silence is betrayal.”
Catch Prince Harry’s “60 Minutes” interview when it airs on CBS on Jan. 8 after Sunday night football. It’ll be available to stream on Jan. 10 on Paramount+ at 8pm.
