Part 2 of our coverage of the Telegraph’s lengthy interview with Tina Brown, author of The Palace Papers, appears to be one of the royal books published this year (it will be published in a few weeks). Last week, we discussed VF quotes from The Palace Papers, and many of you have been slammed by Brown’s seemingly anti-Sussex agenda. I don’t actually think it’s a full-on-agenda like many royal journalists do. I think he’s – often not – unfair to Prince Harry and Megan, and he misunderstands their motives and motives. But I’m also looking forward to reading the whole book, because I think it would be interesting to see how he discusses specific topics and talks around other topics, and I think his source and his motives will become clearer when we take a long look. . In this telegraph interview, he is obviously appealing to British readers, but much like Robert Lacey, who will be interested to know what he has to say from both sides of his mouth when promoting the book in America. So, here are the Sussex-related parts of the Telegraph interview:
William and Harry have a bad relationship: The relationship between the two brothers is ‘very bad’, Brown said sadly. “I was told nothing was going on between them at the moment.” William and Harry were extremely close until Harry left the army. After losing the military structure, things went awry when Harry was “fidgeting around and not really understanding who he was.”
William A Charisma Vacuum: ‘Truly the more charismatic prince was the younger brother. It was very difficult because Harry had to hold on and find a role for him. He had all these interests in Africa and conservation, but William and Harry always had to play second hand. Diana insisted that for her achievement as a mother, two sons would be treated the same, but they would never be the same, that was the problem. Gradually it became an extreme tension between them. William had this great destiny in front of him, he knew who he was. For Harry, “Who am I going to be – Uncle Andrew?”
Harry before Meghan: Brown paints a complex but sympathetic picture of ‘this extremely insecure, fragile, hot-headed man who didn’t really deal with his mother’s death and then faced a somewhat chaotic life. He has done very badly in this situation. ‘ Harry loved Kate, she says, but after William married her, “they were the perfect couple and Harry felt like Bridget Jones.”
Brothers need each other: ‘Someone close to him told me that everyone talked about how much Harry needed William, and he did, but William needed Harry too because all the friends you think are very real still know you’re going to be king. Only William’s wife and his brother are going to be straight with him. And Harry can tease his brother and bring him down to earth. Relied on William, I was told. There was a danger that William would go for style and Harry would not let that happen. ‘
Is there a problem with Harry leaving? ‘Honestly, I think they should have found a way to make it work. The problem was that the way Harry did it was so catastrophicly rude that it made everyone really angry and felt he had to go. He was incredibly excited about discussing their departure. Are you dumping the website with all those terms before you agree with the Queen? He just isolated everyone. And now, unfortunately, he is paying the price for it and so is England. Because Harry and Megan would have been an amazing asset to the Commonwealth. They did not realize that the Queen was giving them this platform for their soft power which could have been great if they had done it in a patient, strategic way. ‘
Why Harry sues: “Harry decided not to surrender in any dialogue with the newspaper, which he believes killed his mother, ruined her life and ruined Meghan’s life. That is his view. And he is not entirely wrong. But fighting the British media is a loss Because… and unfortunately, Megan fights like her. William and Kate calm each other down a lot; the way their marriage works. In a Sussex wedding, they kill each other and it’s against the world, and it’s a disaster. ‘
Brown understands why Meghan was disappointed: ‘Even as Meghan grew up on the world stage, like Alice in Wonderland, she had to shrink into the voiceless need for Crown service. She just didn’t understand. For an actress, star power is leverage. If you don’t get what you want as an actress, then “call my agent!” But if you are in a palace and you are married to a sixth person, no matter how big your star power, you are not important to the palace. I understand how frustrating it was. ‘
Meghan’s desire to ‘run and hit the ground’: This caused tremors in the palace, where they thought a glacier should be fixed, the old chap. ‘I think Meghan felt she could get in there and change everything,’ she says. ‘Honestly, he could have done a lot to change things if he was stuck around, but the thing that surprises me the most is impatience. He could have spent a year away and come back with a great game plan. ‘
Brown understands why Meghan’s frustration with the palace: ‘I think for a woman who had a high-profile U.S. career, a 35-year-old professional woman, dealing with palaces must have been an absolute nightmare. Meghan knew what she wanted to do. Most of his ideas were probably constructive and good – but he had to go through this sclerotic culture. And live in a hierarchy that he never did. ‘
Brown wonders if Meghan was a victim of racism: ‘I think he must have felt very alone there. The diversity among the palace staff is only eight per cent. The other women in the family are white women who have attended the same school or the same school version. He didn’t know who to talk to in order to feel that way. His entry into England was very difficult. For a Hollywood actress who is used to making soft access pieces, all those media piles are on. ‘ The ‘almost straight out of Compton’ part of Brown Mail singles out, which really identifies Meghan’s mother as someone who lives in a gang-infested neighborhood. Absolutely untrue. It was actually a very well prone community. That smear would be traumatic. I do not think so [the Palace] He understood why it was difficult for him.
Brown thinks the Oprah interview was a disaster, haha: ‘It’s actually amazing that every time one of the royal family does one of these big sit-down interviews it’s a disaster. Martin Bashir, Andrew with Emily Metallis, Charles with Jonathan Dimbleby, Megan with Oprah and Harry – what good is a web site if it simply “blends in” with everything else out there? Like an atomic bomb every time. Oprah’s interview was fatally damaging to any relationship Harry could have hoped for with his family. And even that can be reassured slowly if he doesn’t announce that he’s doing a memoir. I think the memoir was actually more breathtaking than the interview. What was it like ?! Honestly, the world has been reprimanded for his lack of privacy and now he can’t stop giving interviews … it’s amazing. ‘
Brown finds a point in speaking of the palace in Harry’s memoirs: William was upset for Meghan’s attack on Kate because she couldn’t answer. But this is nothing compared to how furious he is going to be when this book comes out. Because Harry is not going to go after the Queen, she is holy. And he probably won’t go after Kate, whom he likes very much. But he will go after Charles and Camilla and possibly William. And that is so helpless for them in this special moment; For William, this is the big cloud of their relationship now. ‘
How he views Sussex: The truth about Harry, he says, is that he is so mentally destitute that he has been completely and utterly overwhelmed by Megan and his whole personality has changed. This is a very sad thing for many people. Meghan seems to be answering some of Harry’s huge needs and they seem to be in a strong co-dependency. And I wonder how it will end. ‘
Perhaps, he thinks, ‘He will wake up and realize that he is living in secret [Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle website] And he has to get out of hell, go down to the pub, and see his friends.
Would Harry want to come back when the Queen died? ‘My feeling is that when the queen dies it is going to be such an earthquake that it will really force everyone to say,’ Enough, enough! We just have to think about the monarchy and what is important. ‘ And I think Harry would like to come home at that time. He doesn’t want to be in Montecito when the whole UK is watching the show. And William should use that moment to get him back. ‘
LOL fully explains the real reasons why Harry and Megan thought they should leave the UK in the first place. Brown acts in such a way that Meghan and Harry stab each other in such a way that they become enraged and decide to leave as soon as they pick up. William was actively trying to deport them, and William led a vicious hate campaign against Megan, where he committed suicide! For the love of God. And of course Brown’s palace source tells him that Harry is insecure, Harry is needy, Harry needs to come to his senses, Harry needs his brother. This was Brown pushing behind some of those narratives in a very subtextual way. I don’t know this whole thing Palace papers The thing is going to be messy and I’m actually here for it.
Image courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid and Instar.
