Prince Harry is the “Prodigal Son” who “really upset” King Charles with the allegations levelled against the Royal Family in his memoir, an expert has claimed. Arthur Edwards, royal photographer at The Sun newspaper, said in his view the Duke of Sussex had “lost his way a bit”, but hoped there would be a reconciliation between Harry and the Royal Family.
Mr Edwards told The Sun’s Royal Exclusive show: “Harry’s just lost his way a bit in my view. I think he is the Prodigal Son, in my view, and he’s got to think about what he’s doing and think what damage he’s done.”
He added that everyone is capable of forgiveness and, as in the parable, the Prodigal Son returned to the fold.
But he warned King Charles would likely be “unhappy” at the prospect of Harry finding out things about the Royal Family and sharing details in his next book or interview.
Mr Edwards added: “Of course the King felt very upset with that last thing Harry did – the book – especially what he said about his lovely wife (Queen) Camilla.”
He said that offending the Queen would have “really upset” the King and it wouldn’t be easy to forgive that.
The Duke of Sussex claimed Camilla was “dangerous” and described has as “a villain” who had left “bodies in the street” as she strove to change the public’s perception of her.
Harry accused the King’s wife of sacrificing him on her own “personal PR altar”, claiming Camilla of leaking negative stories about him to the press in a bid to burnish her own image.
The Duke also claimed in Spare that he and Prince William had begged Charles not to marry Camilla, but that he and his brother were willing to accept her “in their hearts” if she made their father happy.
After the allegations surfaced, Lady Lansdowne, godmother to Camilla’s daughter Laura Lopes, told The Sunday Times the claims bothered the Queen, but she didn’t let them get to her.
The Duke of Sussex has been estranged from his father and brother since he and his wife, Meghan Markle, stepped back as senior working royals and moved to the US. The move was followed by a series of bombshell allegations made by Harry in Spare and the Sussexes in their Netflix docu-series.
Harry was in the UK earlier this month for the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games. There was much speculation about whether the Duke would meet his father during the trip, but there was no meeting.
The Duke was reportedly very keen to meet the King, who he last saw in February after it emerged Charles was being treated for cancer. Harry’s spokesperson later said it would not be possible because of the King’s “full programme”.
The King reportedly offered to put Harry up in a royal residence during his visit to the UK, but the Duke said no as it would have left him in a “visible” location with public entry and exit points but with no police protection, according to the Daily Telegraph. The Duke is understood to have stayed in a hotel instead.