It cannot be underestimated how invisible Prince Charles has been in royal coverage through the bulk of the Sussexit chaos in the past year. We were told, here and there, that Charles was sad but supportive of his younger son, of Meghan and Charles’ grandson Archie. Clarence House made sure to leak the fact that Charles offered financial support to the Sussexes last year. We were meant to be left with the impression that everything that went down was beyond Charles’ control, that he would have loved to keep the Sussexes around, that Charles was at least aware and forward-looking enough to understand that bullying the first and only Black duchess out of the country was a bad look. But Prince Harry certainly blew up those narratives during the Oprah interview. Harry even dropped in the piping hot tea that at one point in late 2019, Charles stopped taking his calls! Jesus.
The topic of Charles’ refusal to take Harry’s calls came up when the couple was discussing whether or not Queen Elizabeth II, Harry’s grandmother, was blindsided by their decision to step down as senior members of the royal family.
“When we were in Canada, I had three conversations with my grandmother and two conversations with my father and — before he stopped taking my calls — and then [he] said, ‘Can you put this all in writing what your plan is?'” Harry said at one point. Oprah then asks for clarification about why he and his father are no longer speaking.
“Because… by that point, I took matters into my own hands,” Harry said. “It was like I need to do this for my family. This is not a surprise to anybody. It’s really sad that it’s gotten to this point, but I’ve got to do something for my own mental health, my wife’s, and for Archie’s, as well, because I could see where this was headed.”
Later in the interview, Harry said that his father is now taking his calls. “Yeah. Yeah, he is,” he clarified. “There’s a lot to work through there, you know? I — I feel really let down, because he’s been through something similar. He knows what the pain feels like. I will always love him but there’s a lot of hurt that’s happened. I will continue to make it one of my priorities to try to heal that relationship. But they only know what they know.”
He also shared compassion to Charles and William later in the interview, saying he felt “trapped” in the royal family. “My father and my brother they are all trapped,” he said. “They don’t get to leave. And I have huge compassion for that.”
“I feel really let down, because he’s been through something similar. He knows what the pain feels like…” Just another reminder that Harry is his mother’s son. He is so thoroughly disappointed with Charles being a coward and a villain, but also understands that Charles was shaped that way through his own pain and the way his parents treated him. The fact that Charles sat there and allowed his son, daughter-in-law and grandson to be cut off financially, left unprotected and thrown to the wolves speaks to just how badly Charles f–ked this all up too. So much for his carefully curated image.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Avalon Red and Backgrid.
That was just… wow.
Charles, Charles, Charles. You fucked it up.
Right? How stupid are these people? He’s essentially created a US faction that’s not just way more popular with the younger generation but that will serve as evidence that you don’t need tax funding to do good deeds. William must be punching the air right now. He’s now forever trapped in a popularity contest with a man who doesn’t need to be popular to survive. William and Charles can’t afford for even a dip in public support because that could lead to a Parliament amending their terms. Harry on the other hand only needs a regular fan base that will tune in to his shows and he’s got that in spades. Charles gives stupidity new meaning.
Also just remembered that Meghans rich black friends stepped in to cover the financial hole. I love it. The coloniser in chief bested by black billionaires. Bwahahahaa.
Thank you!!! I’ve been saying this for months. The royal court of Montecito is going to be the more powerful one in the future. How shortsighted can a family be?
Bless Tyler Perry!
That’s the part that gets me. It’s like when people think Washington is house of cards when it’s really veep. These people have the absolute worst media/pr instincts AND no head for strategy. They think they are games of thrones when they aren’t even a Disney villain. It is such bad short term thinking. They keep saying that they learned from Diana and then recreated the Diana situation but WORST by allowing the hugely charismatic prince to walk away. Even if you are cynical and think Harry and Meghan are the worst divas alive, pushing them so far that the leave and can’t be controlled is just dumb. If they had given Archie security they could have held that over Meghan and Harry’s head forever to silence them. They are used to people blowing smoke up their a** and it means they don’t know what to do in situations without that level of reverence. Everyone with less than 5% of the information saw that it was unsustainable but instead of giving Harry and Meghan a few crumbs they literally allowed them to live the best of both worlds. Even if you take their titles the Americans will always see them as royalty. They not only created a second more charismatic power Center, that power Center is where all the money is. Even if you think Meghan and Harry are duller than paint drying, the fact that she is American and he is a blood prince AND Diana’s son means they will never be truly irrelevant. Paris Hilton STILL makes some headlines AND a ton of money and she is considered irrelevant after originally making her fame off of being a Hilton heiress.
“Bless Tyler Perry!” Amen to that.
What I do not get is that the commentariat of the tabloids have been hammering on and on and on that Charles is picking up the bills for Meghan & Harry. How could any father allow this falsehood to be perpetuated?
And in the process, gave them the narrative of the ultimate love story: Leaving behind royalty to protect your wife and child. It makes all those other Hallmark movies about marrying a prince and living happily ever after as royals look rather pathetic.
Was a sh*t husband, a sh*t father and a sh*t grandfather. That man isn’t seeing heaven. I hope next season of the Crown portrays the real Charles for the coward that he is. Shake Piers Morgan’s hands but don’t pick up your son’s calls. I’m shaking my head like an old grandma at that bit.
I am so sad for Harry to have been let down by his father like this. To have them cut out financially without any protection. The anger and negativity on the web about them: i cant imagine the death threats in the real world because of it. Poor Archie. it took Tyler Perry to man up for Charles, future King. Harry said all he had was what my mother left me. So so sad.
Myra, exactly. Charles thinks of Charles. I’ve never understood people who try to rehabilitate his image.
My hubby actually screamed at the tv saying Charles is an a**hole and coward from way back.
…and he’s going to be a shit king.
Harry was plain wrong when he said Charies knows what the pain feels like. That man is an emotionally stunted and ruthless Lord Voldemort in disguise. He is selfish and incapable of empathizing with anyone.
If Charles did not want to pay his son bills, for whatever reason, that is his right. However, to allow the tax paying UK public and the Daily Fail commentariat to believe you are financially supporting your son when you are not is just disgusting in any culture.
Minx
It was and is some people’s only job to rehab his image. They get paid well for it. I doubt they’re all doing it for Queen and country.
Wiglet Watcher, yes, of course. I’m talking about regular people who aren’t being paid to prop him up.
Of every bombshell in the interview, this was the most surprising for me. I believed that Charles was quietly supportive. What a fool am I.
I wasn’t that surprised as he wasn’t allowed near William’s children for a while. I’ve often wondered why that was. He only got close to William to tag team the Sussexes out of the country.
For me personally–and I am biracial and I have had boyfriends express concern about what our children would look like–this news of father abandoning son was THE most upsetting thing to hear.
Same. I actually gasped. I really, truly thought that behind the scenes Charles was more supportive and of course would want to have a relationship with Archie. Poor Harry-this must be the most crushing part of everything. It’s one thing for the “grey men” to block you-but your own father?! And to not only stop taking his calls, but to cut him off financially and pull his security which would put him and his young family in danger? Ugh.
Charles doesn’t have the capacity to be anything other than the Prince of Wales. Every second of his life is “duty” and in deference to the queen. He can’t just be Charles the dad or Charles the man.
ANG —- I threw that idea out of my head when Charles threw his entire weight behind going after everyone involved in Season 4 of the Crown. He had no problem leaning on writers, directors, producers, actors, Netflix, etc., but can’t say one bleeping thing in support of the Sussexes. This man is a loser as a human being. I think Harry was great in calling Charles out in his statement to James Cordon about realizing the Crown was fictional versus the vicious tabloid stories that told lies about actual events and people and call it truth. Charles should have stood up for the Sussexes not come out raging about a factionalized version of just one season of The Crown. I don’t recall him voicing any complaint over Seasons 1-3.
It’s odd, because Chas. is the one of them who has any intellectual capacity at all. And loves architecture and the environment, so I’ve given him the benefit of the doubt, despite his flaws.
PHILLIP is the one I’d bet on being a raging racist.
So none of this feels right to me. But for sure the royal family is outdated and this pushes them closer to the brink. And I wouldn’t trust Wm. or esp. Kate as far as I could throw them.
Really, I think he’s dumb as a bucket of rocks but pretentious. He’s always had sycophants crawling up his arse no matter what half-baked pompous bollocks he spouts.
Yes, twenty five years of rehabilitation has definitely gone down the drain. But it was always a mirage created by assiduously cultivated media. It wasn’t going to last once the boys had grown up and become adults and started living their own lives and speaking their own minds without mediation. And Andrew has made that so much worse because it shows that it’s not just Charles, William, and Harry, it’s much more widespread.
Charles has only fought for his erection. He is a useless father. I never thought I’d see the day when Andrew the pedo proved himself a better father.
Agreed. It’s sad that Andrew, with all of his despicable faults, managed to be a better father and create a better family unit than Charles who has had a chance to be a better husband, father and now grandfather. But his narcissism knows no bounds.
Wow, I have never thought about in that way but it’s true. Andrew is the better father.
Between this and the Crown, Charles’ image has taken a huge hit in the past 6 months. Too bad so sad, maybe he shouldnt have been such a shitty person.
This is it for him. People already remained skeptical of him and the bombshells Harry dropped will forever damage his image. Fitting for such a selfish coward of a man.
I was thinking this too, Becks. Season 4 of the Crown was a reminder of how crappy everything that happened to Diana was. Even if it was “embellished” there is still truth in it. And then this? I honestly felt sick for Harry when he said that last night.
They made it about Meghan when it’s Harry really making the decisions. Harry calling them out. Charles was an abusive ahole to his wife and he was rightfully vilified. How can he even attempt a comeback after doing this to his own son and grandson? Tom Bradby was right, even if they survive due to the tabloids, the RF has taken a major hit internationally. If I were a diplomat, would I want to have a red carpet rolled out by a racist, misogynist and abusive institution? How much soft power can they attempt with this out in the world?
I was actually thinking about this a couple of days ago. They are not just a family, they have a job to do, to promote Britain globally. So I really wonder at what point this actually becomes a point of political concern and reason for the government to reign in the Palace with their campaign against the Sussexes…
Surely, if the BRF’s popularity suffers internationally due to the way they have handled this whole saga, they are not fulfilling a key requirement of their job as soft power and diplomatic tool.
Boris Johnson is PM. Not going to happen. As a Labour leader, Blair had the room to talk good sense to the Queen. I don’t think a Tory could handle not differing to the Queen. Maybe in the past, but not now. Conservativism is rotted around the world.
@Concern Fae: I’m not suggesting tht he is going to interfere due to his convictions, but because this is quickly becoming damaging to his project. On that note, BoJo has just issued n announcement that he is going to say something about the interview in a couple of hours. Of course, this could just be ‘it’s a family matter’ nonsense, but it can also be the sign of the government getting alarmed at how bad it makes Britain look.
@Pilot – great point. This is an angle that we should talk about more!
@Pilot, BoJo is not saying anything. “Asked about the interview at a coronavirus news conference, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson steadfastly refused to comment on the explosive allegations of racism and dysfunction inside the Royal Family.
Johnson said he had “always had the highest admiration for the Queen and the unifying role that she plays in our country and across the Commonwealth.”
But he said that “when it comes to matters to do with the Royal Family, the right thing for a prime minister to say is nothing.””
Good. Let Britain’s public image suffer. They tried to colonize 1/3 of the planet and some still walk around as if the world is still theirs, everything from this to Brexit. Time for a change and a reality check…and vindication especially for those of the former colonies.
Yeah, Harry’s now speaking to his father. Meaning, (to me at least), my father is a horrible person but he was not racist towards my wife and my son.
Charles is a very nasty deplorable man though, no doubt about that, and the whole RF minus the Sussexes are a bunch of racists. I can’t believe how they continue to bleat on about the commonwealth, they can shove it.
I think Charles could’ve been the racist one. Harry seemed very (overly?) understanding of the fact that his family are racists who still can’t even see their racism because they were raised in a racist institution. I think he expects racism from his dad and sees it more as “bias” and not necessarily as cruel hatred towards POC. And I think even if Charles said the stuff about what Archie’s skin color would be, he might still want to repair that relationship bc Charles is old, was recently sick with covid, and might not live as long as William, for example. Plus Charles is the only parent he has on his side left. And I think Charles is running the firm at this time, and Harry wants to have a better working/living relationship with the firm—like getting them to stop leaking about him and still wanting to be welcome at betty’s funeral and such—and he has to negotiate that with Charles since he’s basically running it now.
Honestly the more I think about it the more I think the fact that Harry still wants a relationship with his dad means it WASN’T his dad who was the huge racist one. Harry was willing to touch on his relationship with his dad. He’s angry but more disappointed that his dad is coward. Harry even wants to talk to his dad which, would you want to maintain a relationship between you and your dad and then your dad and your son if he said racist stuff about your son. Harry literally could not talk about his brother beyond the word “space” because if he does it is way too obvious how pissed he is. Wouldn’t you want space from a brother that basically only cared about your sons skin tone and implied negative things about it. Wouldn’t you stop talking to that brother and start on a “different path”. The fact that when William came up the camera panned to Meghan’s face. I feel like the things Harry and Meghan said throughout were shocking but the things they didn’t say but were silent about could fill it’s own 2 hour interview.
I’m fairly certain it was William.
It’s William who cares about appearances more than people. Charles is not excused in all this, but he’s taken unpopular stances on issues like organics and sustainability issues. He’s used to people not liking him and doesn’t care as much. Charles escorted Meghan at the wedding. What has William done to show support for Meghan, ever? William really, really wants to be liked, even at the expense of others.
The more I think about it, the more I also think it’s William. Or both of them but for whatever reason it hurts more coming from William because William is of his generation and should know better and Charles is…Charles. Old, stunted, crusty, casually racist.
This is the most egregious part for me (besides Will OBVIOUSLY being the racist “what will the kids look like” one). Charles not only had Edward VIII as a lesson, he gaslit and crushed a teenaged Diana, he then watched his “true love” be mercilessly attacked and then, most recently and reprehensibly, LEARNED NOTHING and passed the trauma on like a baton in a race by the least aware, most irresponsible and damaging parent in the world. Charles has no excuse and the sooner everywhere in the Commonwealth is a republic, the better.
I’ve always said here that Charles was raised to be the center of his own world. Some of you bought his transparent retcon of the Diana days but not me. I’ve always maintained that nobody raised to be king from birth can possibly be a decent man. His world revolves around him. Hell, even his issue with Diana was that she needed him to pay attention to her and that the spotlight was frequently on her. Imagine marrying a 19 year old and having issue with any of that? He’s a self centered man. I did not need evidence to conclude that but the proof is nice.
YES!!!!!!
Yep. If you are raised believing you are ordained by God to be king, and your whole life you are treated differently because of it, how on earth would you come out of that anything less than pathologically self centered?
And this fate is probably what awaits George. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.
I am stealing “trauma baton” as the perfect metaphor for inter generational fuckshittery.
I actually think “inter-generational fuckshittery” doesn’t need a metaphor. I like your phrase. It’s clear, concise and brilliant in a say what you mean and mean what you say kind of absolute brilliance
The security cutoff is the real kicker.
I can actually understand Charles saying “all my assets are crown–public–money one way or another that I can’t keep spending on you if you’re not a working royal. Your mom left you $20 million; don’t pretend you have nothing–that’s plenty to start the ‘normal’ life you want.” It’s assholeish, but it has an element of truth.
But to deny your son and grandson security protection (at least to start, until they get themselves set up) when you KNOW they’re the target of violent Nazis is just another level.
100%
Exactly. He was willing to risk Harry, Meg and Archie’s lives. That was the worst what happened to them. The emotional hurt from family is one thing but to suddenly be left with fear for your child’s safety is horrible.
fully this. that charles and everyone else in the family was just fine with them losing security. and not carrying about meghan. they weren’t just negligent, they were fully okay with all of them dying. that harry is still saying he loves his father, and the way he talks about his grandmother – it’s like he is slowly being deprogrammed from being in a cult.
This was such a clearly abusive move that I’m almost left speechless. It was definitely done to punish them but also, I suspect, as an incentive to return to the fold.
I agree Sara. I would never want to grow up how Harry grew up. He was in this horrible family for 36 years. It will take time but he is getting it and got his family out.
When Meg said she was suicidal, the Firm (headed up by Charles, for the most part) threw up their hands–sorry, nothing to be done.
When Meg and her baby were threatened physically (after their own campaign to malign her and dredge up violent racism), Charles cut off both their general funding and their security.
All Charles’ choices indicate he did not care whether Meghan and Archie lived or died.
Commenters here would often say that Andrew shows more love to his girls than Charles and I’m starting to believe it. Even he allegedly pays security for his girls. Charles is just… a horrible excuse of a man.
Exactly!
Not only does Andrew pay for security, when Beatrice had dyslexia, he and Fergie got her treatment for it.
Harry has the same condition. Charles never got help for him, ever. And let his older brother mock him and call him stupid in interviews right in front of him (And & Dec at Highgrove). It’s clear, from what Harry has proven to do well – in military service, especially – that Harry is a visual-kinesthetic learner, and that the Gordonstoun school that Charles went to and despised would have been ideal for Harry, vs. the passive, visual/auditory learning style espoused by the Etonian model. It’s a sad irony that in trying to reverse the damage his own father did to him, Charles effectively did the same to Harry.
Especially when Charles’ team leaked that he was going to fund them for 2020. How he works and lies to create a public perception of himself that is nothing like the petty demigod he really is.
And Meghan begging them to leave her husband security in place even if they take away hers and Archie. I think eventually Harry will cut all ties. My dad got there after getting 5 years of therapy.
That was heartbreaking to me.
You will never convince me he wanted anything other than for Meghan and Archie to be hurt or worse.
I’m convinced the Palaces, plural, and their quisling courtiers all wanted them dead.
Charles’s private income from the duchy was around $22 million in 2019-20 (in one year). He could absolutely have funded his son’s security and Meghan and Archie’s. I think it’s a fine line to say that’s crown money when the duchy was specifically set up to give the Prince of Wales a private income, no?
I think Charles is making all the major decisions and basically running BP. You know how we’ve had a lot of leaks and “palace sources” from both KP and BP but hardly anything from CH and we all thought it was bc Charles was just being quietly supportive, yet weak as hell, and letting it all play out around him. Now I’m thinking the reason we didn’t get CH leaks is bc Charles is the one behind BP or “the palace” leaks since he’s basically in charge.
I don’t get how Harry could have such a close relationship with his grandmother (and Meghan is even calling her up personally when Philip is in the hospital to check in!) if she were still making all the decisions and running it all. I think Charles is the one making decisions about who can be half in/half out, and have military honors and patronages, and receive titles and security. Who else would know they didn’t want Archie to be a prince even after Charles was king? Who else would have been cutting off funding and security? Who would’ve suggested Meghan continue acting bc he wasn’t sure they had the money for her security—and I got the feeling that was maybe dating/engagement time. Like when she moved to the UK to live with Harry but wasn’t married yet. I think they wanted to keep her acting with no security to prolong the dating period and hope for a breakup. All of Harry’s financial support and bills went through Charles. He spoke to Charles more times than Elizabeth when he was trying to negotiate stepping back. 3 times (“until he stopped taking my calls”) vs 2 times. Charles asked for Harry to put his plan in writing. A man had conversations/worries about Archie’s skin color.
I don’t believe that the Queen is making the decisions anymore, it’s all Charles.
Yep Charles is unofficially pretty much king
I’m honestly angry at myself that I believed the narrative they tried to sell. Charles was successfully positioning the Queen/BP against the Sussexes because TQ is more respected and beloved amongst the conservative/elderly. They would support their dutiful queen against the vile progressive Sussexes. So it only played to draw Sussexes more hatred – much more useful for Charles. He sold himself as the understanding one whilst William the tantrum, and QE the protector of monarchy and conservatism who always puts nasty Sussexes in their place.
I’m just surprised that I’m surprised Charles’ PR never cracked during this period, I think it was all thanks to Sussexes. I’m glad they’re speaking up now. Why did I ever think Charles would be an at least sensible person after all? Great PR indeed!
That is a great point Luna. Charles was shoving his own mean, cruel, stingy, casually racist, vindictive message out of Buckingham palace and because everyone thought it was coming from the Queen, whom they respect and revere, they accepted it more easily and tried to put the nicest, most respectable, most logical and business-like (vs emotional and family fued-like) spin on it. He was basically using his mom’s mouth to speak his words so that his message and decisions would be immediately respected and defended while he was able to sit there looking like his own mouth wasn’t speaking, thus giving him an air of quiet dignity and the notion that he wasn’t even a player in what was happening to the Sussexes. It just adds an extra layer of evil and conniving Machiavellian villain-like behavior to the whole situation.
Of course, it’s been a Charles Regency for sometime now. He is the King in training now. I am sure he and the Archbishop of Canterbury have practiced a dozen times how the coronation ceremony will go.
Amy, that would explain how it is that Charles, with an assist from Andrew, was able to force out the Queen’s old personal secretary Christopher Geidt a few of years ago and replace him with someone Charles found acceptable. Since then people and even some reporters have commented that things don’t run as smoothly with “the firm.” So I guess we have an early peek at a Charles reign. Yikes.
We all know the plan was leaked. So Charles insisted the plan be put in writing, then leaked it. William is off the hook for this leak, it seems. We all thought it was William, because who could possibly conceive of a father treating his son in such a manner? None of us. Damn.
I’m pissed off at myself for falling for it. I thought he was being quietly dignified and it was the “men in grey suits” leaking and stuff. It was Charles. Damn, eh~
Charles showed the world who he was decades ago. If anyone bought into his revisionist history/whitewashing of the Camilla affair then that’s on them.
Agree, but a lot of people did. And glorified his drunken wife too. To me they were always Cruel Intentions come to life, and I would marvel at some of the comments I read. Such nonsense. Now they want to blame it all on William, and watch, Charles will be running his own son over to play into that. But that won’t fly with me either. Not because I think William is a good person, but because I know Charles isn’t. If anything, William is who Charles raised him to be.
Not that William isn’t terrible in his own right, but I reckon Charles is behind an awful lot of the leaks and decisions that have been generally ascribed to Kensington. The exit plan that needed to be put in writing, for starters. It was suspicious in the extreme that ever since the wedding he was painted as the kindly father upset at his sons feuding but powerless to stop it all escalating when it’s been known for years that much of the decision making behind the scenes has been passed from Lizzie to Chuck.
He has and always will be a terrible father. As someone mentioned upthread, I can see Charles going “you’ve got millions from your mother use that” which is true but Charles could and should have helped them out in the beginning for a few months.
If HM can continue Andrew’s (who’s no longer a working royal either) security, I’m sure Charles could pull similar strings for Harry if he wanted to. But he didn’t want to.
I think Charles was behind cutting off the money and security. Because he was in charge the Cambridges and the Sussex’s funding. He funded their offices, he gave them their clothing allowance, he paid for their travel, etc. So I think it’s not a leap to assume that included security detail as well.
I think he believed if he brutally cut Harry off that he would cave and come back.
100% this is now what I think happened – he cut them off thinking they wouldnt make it and would come crawling back.
God bless Tyler Perry
I better not ever see this scumbag be king. Throw that throne into the river when Liz dies!
The fact that he cut off security, funding, had Harry out his plan in writing and then it leaked they were in Canada…..they really stripped them of everything and lead the wolves directly to them. They wanted something to happen to them and I don’t think I’m dramatic in thinking that anymore.
Diana being a better parent from the grave is something I’m still struggling to wrap my head around.
Out of everyone I think he is the worst. The audacity of not defending his son and leaving his son unprotected when his son supported him when he married his mistress who put his mother in so munch pain.
THIS, 100%.
I agree Charles is the worst. Because he is the one with the greater power between William and himself. He is the more senior of the Royals, Her Maj is pretty much in retirement. This falls squarely on Charles.
We were all so flabbergasted at why the Queen and Charles were supposedly letting William make all the decisions for the whole family and run the show even though he’s 2 generations away from being king. So yeah, it makes way more sense that it was Charles all along making the decisions and he made the decisions that he WANTED to make. William just agrees with him and is extra leaky and obvious about his leaking and exposing himself as a hateful, spiteful brother who is fine with throwing his brother under the bus if it helps him and his wife out in any way. With William screaming so loudly all the time and Charles supposedly silent, and the Queen supposedly liking Harry and Meghan, it made sense that the Queen and Charles were bullied against their will by William’s angry temper tantrums into taking his side, but now that we’ve heard the interview and we know what Charles did, it just makes way more sense that Charles has been the one in charge, doing exactly what he wants to do.
I think it also makes sense that Harry has spoken to his grandmother more in the past year than ever before in his life if she really has stepped down in all but name, and is just “grandma” to that family now. She’s probably more reachable and easier to get ahold of and talk to if she’s no longer The Queen trying to be reached by her Working Royal Employee. Like I bet she’s at home and Charles is in the office, shielded by 40 layers of courtiers.
ALL. OF. THIS.
Charles is insecure.
He has spent all his life in the shadow of his mother and Diana, he cannot tolerate to be overshadowed. No way, even if he has to throw under the bus his own children, that’s how I read this.
Thank you Harry for destroying the myth that Charles was supportive of Harry and Meghan.
This one was quite a gasp for me. After all he did to his wife and mother of his sons. He learned NOTHING. He is not remorseful and he is an awful human being. To be able to do hat to your wife and then son – imagine how he with others. I think maybe Liz knows what a terrible person he is and maybe that is why she will not step down. And Cams, it says a great deal about her too.
I definitely believed that Charles was just “cowardly” rather than nasty. Mea Culpa.
I find it interesting that Harry has the space to feel kind of sorry for his brother and father who only “know what they know” and are “trapped”. I mean, they aren’t being held hostage. If they had Harry’s courage, they could leave, too.
Can they?
Harry was extremely brave, but he was also 6th in line when he exited stage left. William walking away would be a whole different kettle of fish, not least because he’d dumping that huge burden on someone else unless the monarchy was abolished at the same time (and I’m in the UK- the firm is taking a big hit with this interview, but they are definitely not done yet). The Queen never forgave her uncle for making her the heir when he abdicated.
I mean, to be clear, I don’t expect for one moment that either of them ever would give up the privileges they have not earned. William especially seems particularly unsuited to live the “normal” life he seems to covet, but the monarchy is not a prison sentence.
Again, I don’t see it happening, but there’s like a hundred people in line for the throne if Brits really wanted the institution to continue, although granted it would just reveal the silliness of it all.
I think he meant trapped as in, they’re brainwashed, they don’t live in reality, they’re trapped in the royal construct and don’t even know what they’re missing. Like he said he was trapped and didn’t even know it before Meghan, not that they actively want to escape but are trapped by duty so they stay.
Agreed Sunday! 100%
Yea, no one on that family is “trapped”. They can leave and Harry proved it!
Charles reminds me of some very bad bosses I’ve had. People who come up with a “bright idea” like a slimmed down monarchy, but are incapable of thinking through all of the ramifications of what that means. When problems inevitably arise, they don’t have the capacity to rework their grand idea to fit reality and push the consequences out upon everyone else. It may feel like narcissism, but narcissists can usually keep the ball rolling. This is much more about inflexibility. And dimness.
Yes, but also I think the idea of the “slimmed down” monarchy was a pr campaign meant to seem like he was being a responsible leader when really he was issuing a threat to his entire extended family – fall in line or you’re out.
This was so surprising to me. I knew Charles was a jerk about a lot of things, but I believed the rumors he was okay with H&M and was okay with them being half in/half out. It sounds like he was the main problem though, more than Will.
And this is why karma is a bitch. Decades of PR, decades of rehabilitation, decades of money and effort put in place to make Camilla Queen, and… poof, it’s gone.
Deadbeat dad with a royal title and more money than God. He deserves what’s coming to him and we all know William will totally use this in the tabloids against his father.
I’ll stick my neck out here and say this: I think Charles not taking Harry’s calls for a period of time was him acting as best he can in an emotional situation he did not understand (was probably jealous of, too). There is no excuse for the cutting off of security when it was obvious that Harry and family were going to be targets, but I can’t fault him for not taking calls. I can’t. I *am* that emotionally constipated person sometimes and there are times when what people are asking of me is beyond what I can deal with.
I think Charles has put in some work since Diana, I do. He is definitely a uniquely blinkered person (which of you above just said, “you can’t be raised to be a kind and be a good person”), but I do think he is trying to his best by his children and the institution in which he works. His best just isn’t very good here.
I thought that before last night. Hearing that he not only cut off contact but cut off financial help, thereby putting the lives of his son and grandson in jeopardy (and of course his daughter in law) show what a truly callous, selfish, horrible person he really is. Not to mention his on-going jealousy that was triggered during Harry and Meghan’s first tour.
I understand what you’re saying but I don’t buy that. They leaked where the Sussexes were staying in Canada, leaked info Harry had put it in writing about them stepping down, took security away, cut Harry off financially. The Palace created this mania around the Sussexes departure and then left them to fend the crazies off for themselves. I don’t believe it’s an exaggeration to say a tragedy could have happened during that time.
This isn’t just not being able to emotionally deal with a situation, this was about his son, grandson and daughter in law being at serious risk and him ignoring it. They didn’t need an emotional conversation, Charles just needed to do the right thing for once in his life. And then for him to turn around and have his office brief the press on how he’s supporting them financially? He’s disgusting.
Lila – you’re spot on!
Charles is nothing less than despicable to have done what he did to cripple and expose his son, grandson and daughter-in-law to serious risk. He should be shunned by every decent human being forevermore.
#AbolishTheMonarchy
To me this proves that Charles and William were fully aligned in their campaign against Harry and Meghan. They both saw them as a huge threat because of their popularity and efficacy as working royals; they knew that if Harry and Meghan remained in the picture, any future heir would be overshadowed and neither Charles nor William could abide that.
Charles was the one that required Harry put his plan into writing, and then he passed it off to William, whose minions sent it to their press contact Wootton. If Charles went to Wootton directly to “keep his hands clean” by using William’s go-to, William would have hit back with his own press against Charles which I don’t think happened so for me that indicates they’re all working together (and I hope they all go down with the ship).
Agree, SUNDAY. I think this is down to Charles, William, and all the little grey men in the Firm. I go back to Maya Angelou: “When someone shows you who they are the first time, believe them.”
We knew Charlie was a pos, look at what he made Diana go through, but this is beyond my imagination.. what a despical person.
His precious reputation is now in tatters. What a vile man…the only thing he’s ever protected other than himself is his mistress-turned-wife. I hope he enjoys his remaining years having to battle with his equally repulsive first son. Harry is more of a husband, a father, a MAN than Charles ever was.
Wow. I just thought he would be more supportive than Willy. I suspect that Charles has Aspergers or an ASD. He is emotionally stunted. Always has been. A normal person would be more compassionate. He is clearly not a normal person. He probably never had any support or evaluations, either. Such a sad family
They’re all badly, emotionally damaged people in the direct line of descent. Betty watched her father reluctantly made King and her mother blame that for his early death. She nailed herself to the cross of duty at the expense of her two older children, leaving her sensitive, eldest son with zero affection and at the mercy of a father also emotionally brutalised by his fractured upbringing. The damage keeps echoing down the line. Essentially it seems that everybody in that line – Liz, Charles, William – simultaneously thinks they are better than anyone else whilst genuinely viewing themselves as victims of their duty and held hostage by the tabloid press that they live in terror of displeasing.
They’re all bats*t crazy. What a mess.
It is because the way that the BRF is managed is utterly inhumane and thus it produces emotionally mutilated people.
@ArtHistorian – so true. And what I am finding deeply depressing is that there seems to be no will to change it – just lining the next child up. Those pictures of Betty, Charles, Wills and George all ‘making’ Christmas cake now give me the heebie jeebies.
Those three innocent children will be fed to the institution and I fear for them. They won’t be protected against their own family – because IMO the BRF has just been revealed as abusive on a massive scale. Living with that family/that institution (and you can’t really separate the two IMO) is just being subjected to a lifetime of emotional abuse that is then passed on to the next generation.
Being on the spectrum does not make you a cruel or vindictive father. Can we stop treating autism as a moral disorder?
Charles is just a selfish, frightened, repressed, angry old man. A bad person.
Yep. Recently a snotty, petulant, vindictive letter Charles wrote whilst on a tour of New Zealand was released. Was chucking a tantrum because the Kiwis weren’t servile and forelock-tugging enough for his liking. Eat a bag of dicks, Chuck.
Thank you. This bothers me in a similar way as people trying to connect racism to a disease. No, it’s a learned behavior and a *choice*, a choice to continue with each action and thought in a racist and bigoted manner, and we are not going to let people off the hook for this when it is under their control.
Charles is a confirmed petulant coward. He showed himself many years ago. Believe him.
Stop believing the PR.
It’s especially sad to think about what could have been. I remember at the time of the wedding, when Meghan’s father was being SO toxic and gross, and Charles stepped in to walk her down the aisle. And the way he made sure to be kind to Doria that day, too. If he had chosen to continue to protect and embrace Meghan it would have been FANTASTIC for his image and the Firm overall. It would have forced William to play ball too, or be painted as the obvious villain. Charles & Clarence House could have told the press to back off at any time. Alas, Charles’ racism, self-obsession, and insecurity trumps all, as usual. Fuck him forever.
They aided, abetted and incited a racist mob against Harry, Meghan and Archie. Then they hung them out to dry by denying them security protection.
Diana on the day she died only had one (1) official security officer. The most famous, hounded woman on the planet they left with (1) official security officer. We saw how that ended !!!
How many security officers does Andrew currently have?
Tell me how am I to believe this family did not, does not, actively, want Harry, Meghan, Archie dead !!???
Petty, vindictive does not even begin to describe these degenerate pieces of white-trash!
I don’t believe Trevor Reese was a royal protection officer. I believe he worked for the Fayads if I remember the news articles correctly.
Correct! Trevor Reese was an employee of the Fayads.
Diana gave up all of her Official Royal Protection or “UK PPO” because she felt they were spies for the Palace.
I’m so f*cking mad at Charles. He’s a shit father, absolutely the worst. I just don’t understand how any parent can leave their own son unprotected. All the royals are targets, but harry, Meghan and archie even more so because of all the white supremacy nut jobs out there. He probably was well aware of all the death threats they were getting. They don’t have to be close or even get on, but to compromise harrys safety is not something any decent parent would do. I’ve literally been arguing with fonts on twitter who keep trying to justify their racism. Seriously harry was well and truly orphaned in 1997 when Diana died.
This revelation made me think of Katherine McPhee’s comment that Harry sees David Foster as a father figure. It seemed weird when it came out but it makes more sense now.
Also read that it was David Foster who arranged the Canada home as well as the Tyler Perry offer.
I officially vow to stop complaining that Tyler Perry manages to insert his name into the title of every production he touches. Tyler Perry can insert his name into anything he wants. The White House is now Tyler Perry’s The White House.
@fluffy_bunny Okay…except for For Colored Girls. I will never forgive him for that.
Does anyone else think what Harry is hinting at is the royal family are essentially puppets? I think the grey men behind them use them (eg. to promote arms deals, something Prince Charles has openly said he doesn’t like doing). You have the different royal courts fighting for power and prominence. Harry isn’t “supposed” to get attention and power, he’s just a spare. (Not negating the racism faced by Meghan, I think that made it even easier for the men in grey to move against them with viciousness). So the men in grey move into action in concert with the tabloids, trashing Harry & Meghan, in order to prop their own courts up.
Prince Charles and William have been taught some guff their whole lives about how they were born to be king, how important and special they are. They accept and participate in the mud flinging. They are cosseted by their courts. But are actually being used as puppets for the interests of the men in grey.
There’s some weird mafia, umbrella corporation shit going on with the UK. This is really sinister… I’m not visiting that island and I hope the Commonwealth gets disbanded in my lifetime.
After this interview, I’m thinking that the Commonwealth will be disbanded in your lifetime and mine. How is a person of color, as are most of the people living in Commonwealth nations, watch Meghan and Harry speak frankly about racism in the BRF and the “institution,” then continue to blithely accept an old white woman as their Head of State? And how will it be when their Head of State is an old white man who couldn’t be bothered to protect his son, his biracial daughter-in-law, and their progeny? The revolution IS coming, and it WILL be televised …
OKURR —- One of the hosts on CBS Good Morning today referenced it as almost a deep state inside the monarchy. I think he nailed it.
Yes, I agree with this. The men in grey, and as someone has pointed out before, they are always men, control the monarchy. The lucky people promoted to these positions are retired Admirals of the Navy, retired spies, senior civil servants etc. This is the true deep state.
I Just hope we can see more seasons of The Crown after this!
Let’s just call this what it is: he chose to potentially sacrifice his own son’s LIFE rather than be a paparazzi target again.
Charles has ALWAYS been a petty, selfish bastard and it’s about time this is finally accepted. He was a huge disappointment to h is mother, father and 1st wife. Now his son is reiterating what a jerkoff he is. The whole family is horrible imo, I’m glad Harry dumped them.
he is one cold prick – hope he never gets to be king
Agree.
If he stopped taking Harry’s calls before sussexit, and he cut off the money and security, what was going on with Meghan curtsying to him at the commonwealth church service when they came back to do their last engagements? Remember that? It was weird because we thought that it wasn’t even protocol, like she doesn’t even have to curtesy to Charles, does she? We assumed it meant she was still really good with Charles, was thanking him, was showing her support, and that was more evidence for our “it’s all William” theory. Was she….curtseying sarcastically? If so, bad ass. Was it like “enjoy this curtesy now because I will NEVER be back to curtesy to you as King”? Also, bad ass. Or were they briefly made up and better by then? That would’ve been right after he stripped their funding and security. Or right before he stripped their funding but after he stripped their security? Was she actually curtseying to someone else?
I think she was cutrseying to him as a fuck you. Enjoy it now because you will never see it again.
I did think it meant they were on decent terms but now I think Meghan decided she was going to be above reproach in every way on her Coulda Had a Bad Bitch Tour. She was going to curtsy the most profoundly, beam serenely no matter the provocation, and dress like an Old Hollywood goddess. Then dust off her hands and never look back.
Diana has been totally vindicated.
I don’t care what Charles does going forward, he will never redeem himself, never.
This 💯!!! He is evil and you can’t unsee it
If Harry really wanted to, he could have admitted to Oprah that he and Charles had very little contact during his childhood. Charles had no time for his children growing up. He was off in his own little world with Camilla and too busy trying to divorce Diana to be present for his sons. No one should be surprised Charles stopped taking Harry’s calls, he barely knows Harry. He just knows Harry gives everyone he’s around amazing press.
Something I have always wondered about is the PR long dished out that Charles is “the smart one”. He never came off as particularly bright as a young man.
As we have seen with Trump over here, degrees can be purchased. And may not even need to be purchased if you’re the future king. They’re likely just given.
A man who certainly has failed to distinguish himself in any way is said to be intelligent because “he has an interest in architecture”? Has Charles ever given a memorable speech about anything? Written anything? Been seen as a leader of men any time, any place, under any circumstance?
This man has been a whining, self-absorbed dolt for as long as I can remember, and I’m old.
I remembered last night that Diana said Charles was disappointed when Harry was born, that he was not a girl, and that he was a redhead. She said that was the beginning of the end for their relationship too. Because she said he should be glad they had a healthy baby. And Charles didn’t like being talked back to… She always said he was an excellent father, but maybe, clearly in these past few years, on v diff terms than most of us would think. I’m so glad H&M&A got out…