Harry spouts load of hot heir on new Netflix series but how can Prince William hit back?
I’LL admit it. I tuned into the Harry and Meghan docuseries fully expecting it to be self- indulgent, whining garbage.
You know the kind of thing: While most of us are worrying about paying the bills, keeping a roof over our heads and paying for Christmas, they are moaning from their £11million house that no one understands them or likes them.
But I also expected more “truth bombs”, revelations, scandal and controversy in return for the £88million it’s claimed they were paid for their Netflix documentary.
What we got, among the cinematic black-and-white montages, hand holding, kiss-cams and romance, were subtle land mines.
But although they were subtle, they were horrendously damaging to one person — Harry’s older brother, William, the Prince of Wales.
First, in what was a clear dig at William and his wife Kate, Harry said that the men in the family have to marry “someone who fits the mould” instead of for love.
A ghastly thing to say about a couple who are clearly very much in love, very happy and very well suited.
Then came the claim that Kate and William are not warm people.
Meghan claimed that while she was “barefoot” and wearing ripped jeans when she first met the couple, they were formal.
Clearly code for cold.
Meghan says “formality” carries through behind closed doors and that she is a “hugger”, which she did not realise was “jarring for some Brits”.
Not any old Brits, mind.
She means the Prince and Princess of Wales.
I find this very strange.
In 2017 I met the three of them when they came to West Ham to observe the graduation of sports coaching apprentices, as part of the Coach Core scheme.
William joked about being an Aston Villa fan and Kate giggled next to him, despite suffering dreadful morning sickness.
They were far from cold.
They were very warm, funny, caring, personable and intelligent.
The cold one was Harry.
While William and Kate engaged and chatted to everyone around them, Harry sat on his own.
Brooding.
He certainly didn’t seem in the mood to hug anyone that day.
I suspect William and Kate will brush off these snide observations.
But I think what will be more jarring for William is Harry, or H or Haz, as he clearly likes to be called, is undermining the modernisation that Prince William (not W!) is trying to bring to the Royal Family.
It seems Harry is determined to beat him at his own game when it comes to modern topics such as climate and inclusion, and in the process is making William look like he is living in the past, portraying H and M as the modern royals of their own little monarchy in America.
Worldwide audience
Harry has lifted the veil of silence that has always been the most powerful weapon in the arsenal of the Royal Family.
Meanwhile, William can’t even complain or explain.
He most certainly cannot air all his views in a documentary.
And Harry knows this.
It’s almost as if Haz is trying to scupper William’s attempts to modernise the Royal Family, and in the process trying to destroy his brother’s future.
There is a void left by the Queen and Harry has rushed to try to fill it — and talking about the issues he knows his brother is also focusing on.
The problem for William is he has to do it from inside the constraints of the Royal Family, which is much trickier.
So how can he compete with all the noise Harry is making?
Harry was six when he gleefully told big brother William: “You’ll be King, I won’t; so I can do what I want!”
Well, that’s a prediction that is coming true 32 years later.
Harry has the kind of freedom William can never have.
Princess Diana’s former bodyguard once said the most angry he ever saw her was when she was telling Harry off for hitting William with a snooker cue.
There is no physical fight this time, but Harry has used words as his weapon, jumping on William’s issues, taking away his edge and doing it on a platform with a worldwide audience.
I don’t think Diana would approve.
Mum’s Dunn good
I AM full of admiration for the mother of Harry Dunn.
Charlotte Charles has been unbelievably tenacious in taking on the US government in her bid to get justice for her son.
Harry was a teenager when he was killed by US citizen Anne Sacoolas, 45, who was driving on the wrong side of the road outside RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire in 2019.
Sacoolas fled to the US and evaded the law by claiming diplomatic immunity.
But Harry’s mum campaigned tirelessly for justice and, this week, Sacoolas was finally sentenced at the Old Bailey to eight months in prison, suspended for 12 months.
It was very moving watching Harry’s tearful mother talking outside the Old Bailey, saying: “Job done, promise complete. Properly, properly complete now.”
What an admirable person she is.
One of my women of the year, for sure.
Postie offer is fair
I KNOW the point of strikes is to make us realise how dependent we are on the services we are being denied.
And this Christmas, more than ever, we will all be rueing the fact that our beloved posties are suddenly declaring themselves to be on strike.
My grandfather was a postman and he really loved his job.
He was so proud and dedicated and really saw himself doing a public service, which he was.
He would never have gone on strike.
I know things have changed since he was working, but surely there are better ways to resolve disputes than spreading this kind of chaos and disruption.
Postal workers have been offered a nine per cent pay rise, which they have refused.
Most in the private sector would willingly, and gratefully, accept that.
Syndrome is a body blow for driven Celine
MY heart goes out to Celine Dion, who has revealed she is dealing with a rare neurological disorder called stiff person syndrome that causes spasms all over her body.
This would be horrible for anyone to deal with.
But in her case, it affects her singing, which is the thing that has driven and defined her for her whole life.
She has had to put her European tour on hold indefinitely, which must be incredibly challenging when she is at the peak of a wonderful career.
Here’s hoping she finds some kind of treatment that will help.
End aid to rich China
WHEN the minister in charge of the foreign aid budget says it is “virtually impossible” to defend our cash being sent to either China or India, we should probably all take note.
That’s what Andrew Mitchell told the House of Commons’ International Development Committee this week.
He added that he was “rather surprised” Britain still sends foreign aid to China, the world’s second-largest economy, given that it’s now more than 12 years since he tried to stop taxpayers’ money going there.
Mitchell said, rightly, the fact that we sent £51.7million in aid to China last year was “extremely difficult” to explain to the “hard-pressed” public, saying it did “great damage” to the reputation of Britain’s wider development budget.
This is why people are against the foreign aid budget, as so much of it is wasted and there are so many issues that desperately need addressing here.
It’s all very well for Mitchell to be surprised.
Let’s hope that now translates into action and he stops it once and for all.
Labour alarm
EVERYONE should be alarmed Labour is taking millions of pounds from the unions – who are in the process of trying to bring Britain to a standstill with strikes.
According to data released by the Electoral Commission, the Labour Party has said it received more than £4million in donations from Unite, Unison and the GMB during the past 12 months.
And yesterday it was reported unions have donated £15million since Keir Starmer has been leader.
The fact Labour is dependent on funding from Unions hellbent on destroying the country affects us all.
And let’s not forget the unions made Jeremy Corbyn into a Labour leader.
So we should all be very wary.