Respected sovereign, dutiful family matriarch,
Zoom granny? Queen Elizabeth might not be so far out of touch from her millennial grandkids,
after all. Keep watching for the truth about her relationship with Prince Harry.
When Princess Diana died in a car crash in 1997, the world was left in shock and
mourning. Her death devastated her young sons, William and Harry, who were aged just 15 and 12,
respectively. Being the children of the woman whom then-Prime Minister Tony Blair
dubbed "the People's Princess," the young princes were thrust into the media spotlight.
In a 2017 interview with Newsweek, Harry said,
"My mother had just died, and I had to walk a long way behind her coffin,
surrounded by thousands of people watching me while millions more did on television.
I don't think any child should be asked to do that, under any circumstances."
At the time, Queen Elizabeth II was criticized for supposedly appearing
cold and refusing to fly the flag at half-mast outside Buckingham Palace,
which is the royal tradition when the nation is in mourning. But the truth is,
she did this to protect her grandsons. Tina Brown, the writer of The Diana Chronicles, said,
"The Queen was adamant that her place was at Balmoral with her grieving grandsons.
Everyone rallied around the young princes. This was the first time in a long reign that the Queen
was thinking about her family before her people. We should admire her for that. Her thoughts were
with her grandchildren and she wasn't thinking about how this would be played out in the media."
When then-President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama playfully
teased the queen and Prince Harry in a promo for the 2016 Invictus Games,
they weren't quite prepared for the monarch herself to have game.
"Remember when you told us to bring it at the Invictus Games?"
"Careful what you wish for."
"Boom."
The queen's response was unexpectedly sassy.
"Oh, really? Please."
"Boom."
Angela Levin wrote in her book, Harry: Conversations with the Prince,
"The queen and Harry made a great double act,
with the queen showing utter surprise that the president was determined to win."
Levin added that Queen Elizabeth II's willingness to take part in the
tongue-in-cheek video demonstrated that she would do almost anything for Harry.
Speaking with Hello! magazine,
Prince Harry opened up about the experience and praised his grandmother highly, saying,
"She had great fun. And I think it was almost as though you could see that look in her face,
at the age of 90, thinking, 'Why the hell does nobody ask me to do these things more often?'"
She may be the most powerful woman in the world,
but Queen Elizabeth takes on a more grounded role in the eyes of Prince Harry.
He told ABC News in 2012,
"In a small room with close members of the family, then she is just a normal grandmother.
Very relaxed. She obviously takes a huge interest in what we all do, that's her
children as well as her grandchildren. She wants to know which charities we're supporting,
how life is going in our jobs and such. So you know, she has a vested interest in what we do."
"What is she like as a, just as granny?"
"Really, very very normal."
The Duke of Sussex went on to applaud his grandmother for helping to modernize the royal
family. There's no denying that the institution conjures images of stuffy, antiquated ideals,
but there have been strides made in the past decade — for instance, diversity measures were
introduced to the establishment in 2021. And, many decades earlier, Queen Elizabeth was pioneering
for women in the British workforce, as she trained as a mechanic during World War II.
Harry said in the interview,
"She's managed to get the family to move with the times, and I think that's incredibly important.
You can't get stuck in a sort of an old-age situation when everything else around you is
changing. So you have, you have to go with it." A mentor
Following Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's explosive 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey,
in which they heavily criticized the requirements of being working members of the royal family,
many believed that the Duke of Sussex's relationship with his grandmother
would be irreparably damaged. However, royal insider Kate Nicholl said that the
bond between Harry and Queen Elizabeth is unbreakable. This is, in large part,
due to the important role that the queen has always played in her grandson's life.
Nicholl told Entertainment Tonight,
"Harry is [...] in quite regular contact with the Queen. She is always delighted to
see [great-grandson] Archie on video calls and it is very important to her that she touches
base with Harry. She is in touch with them, she knows what is going on in their lives,
they discuss their plans with her. Harry has always seen his grandmother as a mentor."
Likewise, don't expect the queen to ban her beloved grandson from Buckingham
Palace following the Oprah revelations. In spite of everything that has been said,
insiders claim that she would welcome Harry back into the royal family with open arms should he
ever want to waltz back across the pond. As royal expert Andrew Morton told Vanity Fair,
"The Queen [...] has made sure the door is always open for Harry to
return to the royal fold. She will have a lot of empathy and sympathy for him."
For many years, Prince Harry was pigeonholed by a "bad boy" reputation,
which was in stark contrast to his gracious brother, Prince William. Infamously, a 20-year-old
Harry donned a Nazi uniform at a Halloween party in 2005, for which he swiftly apologized,
but the so-called "Dirty Harry" soon proved himself to be a magnum force in redemption.
After being set up on a blind date in 2016, Prince Harry and Suits star Meghan Markle fell in love,
and Harry went from Playboy Prince to Prince Charming. When news broke that Harry had found
love, no one was happier than his grandmother. Many assumed that the queen would disapprove of
her grandson cavorting with an American actor, but she was reportedly ecstatic by the news.
An insider told Us Weekly that the queen was supportive of Markle, saying,
"She's delighted to see Harry in a loving relationship."
Subsequently, she gave the lovebirds her own personalized seal of approval to wed after
they became engaged in 2017. What's more, Her Majesty bonded with her grandson's new bride,
reportedly welcoming her with open arms. Leaving
Although Prince Harry has since given up his royal duties, this decision was by no means a reflection
of any lack of obligation to his grandmother. In fact, Harry had considered quitting the
royal family years earlier, but opted not to out of love and respect for Queen Elizabeth.
Following his time in the British Army, which he loved, Harry felt disillusioned with his
princely responsibilities. Speaking with Angela Levin for the Daily Mail in 2017, he reflected,
"I spent many years kicking my heels and I didn't want to grow up."
As a result, he questioned whether he actually wanted to remain a part
of the hallowed institution. He told Levin,
"There was a time I felt I wanted out. But then I decided to stay in [The Firm]
and work out a role for myself."
The prince also explained that he decided to remain in the institution
despite his reservations, because Her Royal Highness did not put pressure on
him to perform his royal duties. He told Newsweek,
"The queen has been fantastic in letting us choose. She tells us
to take our time and really think things through."
While he is no longer the proud bearer of a royal title,
Prince Harry's unyielding deference to his regal grandmother is evident.
Eventually, Prince Harry's disillusionment with royal obligations did indeed catch up with him,
and he and Meghan Markle officially decided to step away from the establishment in 2020.
Following his departure, the Duke of Sussex was interviewed in 2021
by actor Dax Shepard on his podcast, Armchair Expert, during which he shockingly described
the royal institution as, quote, "a mix between The Truman Show and being in a zoo."
According to insiders, Queen Elizabeth was reportedly
infuriated by this analogy. An insider claimed to Us Weekly,
"It definitely hasn't helped with healing the rift. They feel it was thoughtless and
irresponsible of Harry to once again shade The Firm so soon after Prince Philip's death,
while the queen is still mourning the death of her husband."
Accordingly, a source previously told Vanity Fair that the queen was disappointed by her
grandson following the so-called Megxit, saying, "After everything she has done for Harry she
feels monumentally let down. All she has done is accommodate him and Meghan from the start.
The family are all very upset at how the Sussexes have behaved,
not least because of the impact it has had on the Queen. [...] The whole Andrew
problem to deal with and now Harry, who is frankly behaving like a bolshie teenager."
Queen Elizabeth using Zoom? It turns out the queen is up for a spot of Zooming if it means
she gets to keep in touch with her grandson and great-grandchildren from across the pond.
Prince Harry told James Cordon,
"Both my grandparents do Zoom. [...] They've seen Archie running around."
The Duke of Sussex explained that the video communications app is a perfect
means of asking his grandmother to purchase gifts
that are most unbefitting of the most powerful woman in the world.
He told Corden,
"My grandmother asked us what Archie wanted for Christmas,
and Meg said a waffle maker. She sent us a waffle maker for Archie. So breakfast now,
Meg makes up a beautiful organic mix in the waffle maker."
It seems that, despite his move to the U.S.,
Prince Harry is in constant contact with the queen. According to some insiders,
he actually speaks to her more than any other relatives residing in the U.K.
When Prince Philip died in April 2021, the world was in shock. Although approaching 100 years of
age, Queen Elizabeth's dutiful husband appeared to be fitter than many people decades younger
than him. Prince Harry was devastated by his grandfather's demise, writing on his website,
"Grandpa, thank you for your service,
your dedication to Granny, and for always being yourself. You will be sorely missed,
but always remembered — by the nation and the world. Meghan, Archie, and I, as well as
your future great-granddaughter, will always hold a special place for you in our hearts."
A somber Prince Harry was photographed paying his respects to his grandfather when he attended his
funeral at Windsor Castle. The sad event was an opportunity for Harry to reconcile with the
queen after being separated by both borders and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Subsequently,
the pair had a private meeting during which they reportedly had a much needed one-on-one chat.
An insider told Harper's Bazaar,
"This trip was to honor the life of his grandfather and support his grandmother and
relatives. It was very much a family-focused period of time. Saturday broke the ice for
future conversations but outstanding issues have not been addressed at any great length.
The family simply put their issues to one side to focus on what mattered."
A second source added,
"The love and respect he has for his grandmother will always be unwavering."
While Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's interview with Oprah Winfrey was a cornucopia of juicy
royal gossip, the Duke of Sussex made a point of never once disparaging his grandmother.
Although he was highly critical of the royal institution, and the media scrutiny
that lies therein, Harry said nothing negative about Queen Elizabeth herself.
Among the bombshell revelations that surfaced in the interview
were claims that a member of the royal family made racist
observations regarding Harry and Meghan Markle's infant son Archie's skin tone.
"And also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he's born."
However, during an interview with CBS Mornings, Winfrey noted that Harry made
it clear that it was certainly not Queen Elizabeth who uttered the offensive remark.
"Neither his grandmother nor grandfather were part of those conversations."
Throughout the interview with Oprah,
Harry emphasized how much he continued to look up to the queen.
"I've never blindsided my grandmother. I have too much respect for her."
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