Prince Harry once left the late Queen Elizabeth in “stony silence” just before an “uncomfortable” phone call following his bombshell exit from the Royal Family, sources have claimed. The Duke of Sussex left the Firm in early 2020 and moved to the US with his wife, Meghan Markle.
Harry’s relationship with members of the Firm deteriorated even further as the years went by. The late Queen’s stance on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex was brought back into the spotlight this week after a royal author shared new claims made by one of Elizabeth’s closest confidantes, whom she befriended.
But now a new report has emerged citing a former Palace staffer who spoke about a “memorable” moment with the late Queen right after she received a call from her estranged grandson during the 2021 pandemic.
The Daily Mail claimed a former Buckingham Palace switchboard operator opened up about the incident and claimed the late monarch behaved differently.
He said: “She would always thank you and then you would connect the call and leave them to their conversation.”
But this time, she did not, with the ex-royal staffer adding: “When I announced to the Queen that Harry was her caller, there was just a stony silence.
“In fact, it was so uncomfortable that I filled the silence myself by saying ‘Thank you, your Majesty and then connected them.”
The outlet stressed the incident took place during a particularly stressful time for the late monarch, due to Prince Philip’s deteriorating health and the Sussexes’ exit fall out.
The former royal telephonist added: “It was memorable because the Queen would never not acknowledge you.”
It came after author Sally Bedell Smith published various conversations with Lady Elizabeth Anson on her Substack ‘Royal Extras’.
Born in Windsor Castle, Lady Elizabeth was the late Queen Mother’s great-niece and also King George VI’s goddaughter. Liza, as she was affectionately called by family and friends, was known for being a high-society party planner and was one of Elizabeth’s closest confidantes later in life.
The aristocrat dubbed Harry’s wife, Meghan Markle, “nothing but trouble”, and revealed how the late monarch was “not at all content” following a series of incidents in the lead up to the Sussexes’ wedding.