Harry and Meghan bombshells from new tell-all book - name row to secret meetings
A brand new royal tell-all has unveiled the drama from inside the Royal Family, and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are mentioned more than a few times.
Charles III. New King. New Court. The Inside Story by royal expert and historian Robert Hardman takes a look at how the reign of the late Queen ended and how Charles' began and boasts "unrivalled access" to the royals, friends of the King and Queen Camilla as well as aides and courtiers. The book has finally hit shelves and it's full of of brand new royal bombshells concerning the likes of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, as well as the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Here are the seven bombshells revealed about the California-based duo and what it reveals about their fractured relationship with their fellow royals.
Prince Harry’s account of Queen’s death ‘isn’t exactly true’
READ MORE: Prince Harry looks downcast as he goes jogging amid reports daughter's name angered late Queen
Robert claims Harry's recount of the Queen's death isn't exactly true (Getty Images)Prince Harry claimed he didn't find out about his grandmother's death from his family, but a royal author has now said that isn't exactly true. The Duke of Sussex rushed to be by the late Queen's side when he learned of her worsening health in the hours before her death. When his plane finally landed in Balmoral, he checked the BBC website, which featured reports on the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
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However, the royal author claims otherwise. He wrote: "In his memoir, Spare he suggests that no one had told him and that he was reduced to learning the news from the BBC website as the plane was landing. Not exactly.
"A member of the Palace staff says that the King had been urgently trying to make contact with his younger son. 'There were repeated attempts to get through to him but no calls were going through because Harry was airborne,' says the official."
'Queen's fury at Lilibet's name'
Lilibet was born in 2021 (Misan Harriman/Duke and Duchess of Sussex HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)
Charles III: New King. New Court. The Inside Story by Robert Hardman is out now (Macmillan)One of the biggest bombshells from the book so far is a claim from a royal aide, who says the late Queen was "as angry as I'd ever seen her" after Harry and Meghan claimed they had her blessing to call their daughter Lilibet.
Harry and Meghan announced in June 2021 that their newborn daughter would be named after the late monarch's childhood family nickname. The BBC later reported that a Buckingham Palace source said the Queen was not asked by the Sussexes whether they could use Lilibet.
But the Sussexes' lawyers fired off legal letters to the broadcaster and other publishers, saying the claim was false and defamatory. A spokesperson for Harry and Meghan insisted at the time that the Duke spoke to his grandmother in advance and would not have used the name had the monarch not been supportive.
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'Wry' remark between Princes Harry and William
The duo bonded for a brief moment (Getty Images)The royal tell-all details the "wry", knowing remark exchanged by the Princes at Queen Elizabeth's funeral, the moment of shared memories that, for a split second, brought them together amid their feuding. Author Robert Hardman wrote: "As members of the Royal Family lined up to follow the coffin in bright sunshine, Princes William and Harry swapped a knowing glance and, according to one royal source, a wry remark about having been here before."
The brothers had gone through a nasty history of feuding over two decades, including rifts that were torn between them amid the Duke of Sussex's departure from the Royal Family in early 2020. But, the brothers were respectful during the ceremony, putting aside their differences while in the public eye for a short stint during the mourning period. For a fleeting moment, they were just two brothers, side by side once more, united over their grief.
'Harry snubbed from secret meeting'
Harry was left out (Getty Images)In another part of the book it is claimed that Charles and William held detailed discussions on the day the late Queen died but decided they couldn't include Harry. After he first became King, Mr Hardman claims one of the new monarch's first decisions was to sit down with his eldest son hours after his beloved mother had passed.
He said the King needed to have "vital but discreet discussions" with his eldest son. He said Harry would have previously been involved in such meetings, before he left the Royal Family.
Archie and Lilibet's titles 'need to be earned' by Harry and Meghan, says source
Robert added: "But not any more. This was clearly not an occasion for an opening up of hearts and minds with Prince Harry, particularly if he was still taking notes for his forthcoming book. Charles III needed a clear head and no distractions."
Harry’s ‘blatant Kate attack’
William thought it was a low blow from Harry (Getty Images)Their Netflix documentary series Harry & Meghan, which was co-produced by the couple's Archewell Productions, had some attacking comments towards the Royal Family, especially King Charles, Prince William and Kate Middleton. Harry talks about "the pain and suffering of women marrying into this institution" including what his mother Princess Diana went through and what his wife went through while the two still had royal duties.
But there was one claim he made that seemed to be about his older brother. According to Robert, Harry claimed that, for male members of the Royal Family, "there can be a temptation or an urge to marry someone who would fit the mould - as opposed to somebody who you perhaps are destined to be with".
This was a huge blow for William, according to a friend of the family that Robert talked to. They said Harry "breached [his brother's] trust while making a "blatant attack on Catherine".
'Dangerous villain' Queen Camilla vs Harry
Camilla swiftly let it go (UK Press via Getty Images)Queen Camilla was previously branded a "dangerous" villain by Prince Harry, even telling CBS's 60 Minutes in an interview around the time: "With her on the way to being Queen Consort, there was going to be people or bodies left in the street".
But author Robert Hardman claimed despite this, Camilla was "business as usual - with a smile and without a word", sure the "public have a pretty good idea of what they're getting".
Hardman writes that the Queen "was content to let it pass", referring to the remarks Prince Harry made on 60 Minutes about her. He went on to detail her strength and the way she had changed as she prepared to take on the role in the past years, knowing that the late Queen's health was declining.
Charles' true feelings about Harry and Meghan
The King's feelings have been revealed (UK Press via Getty Images)Robert claims that King Charles had a "sense of exasperation" about Harry and Meghan. He said the monarch was "hurt" by their decision to step back from The Firm and attack the institution in their Netflix documentary and Harry's debut memoir, Spare.
A friend of the royals was quoted in the book as saying: "Of course, the King is extremely sad about Harry and Meghan but there is a sense of exasperation, that he has done what he can and now he is King, there are many more things to think about.
"He has tried listening. Now he just says: 'I don't want to know what the problem is. I'm just getting on with my life," the source continued.
You can purchase Charles III: New King. New Court. The Inside Story here.
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