Prince Harry “badly damaged” his relationship with his grandmother, the late Queen, due to “high-handedness” before and after his wedding to Meghan.
The revelation is in a book called Mother And I, by respected royal biographer Ingrid Seward, which is out this week.
The writer also reveals Elizabeth was “uncomfortable” with Charles stepping in for Meghan’s father and walking her down the aisle at St George’s Chapel, Windsor.
Her Majesty was upset by Harry’s “high-handedness” and “their relationship was quite badly damaged by it all”, said the writer, quoting the late Queen’s close confidante Lady Elizabeth Anson. Ms Seward goes on to suggest that Harry’s behaviour was due to him being indulged by his parents.
Diana was so concerned that people would think Harry was “thick” that she called on her alternative healer Simone Simmons to cure him of headaches caused by dyslexia.
Ms Seward writes: “Diana once told me William is very sensitive and Harry is very lively,” adding that Harry may have “inherited some of his father’s more unattractive characteristics”.
The book also reveals that the Duke of Edinburgh died suddenly in April 2021 after feeling dizzy in the shower and before the late Queen could reach his bedside. During Elizabeth’s final hours in Scotland, Princess Anne was out sailing on the Moray Firth with her husband Sir Tim Laurence when she got an emergency call on the ship’s radio.
Ms Seward writes: “Anne took charge of proceedings while her brother Charles struggled with his emotions, knowing not only that his mother was dying but that he was about to become King.”
The King still carries a teddy that his wife’s couturier mends, with instructions to do it quickly so he can have it back.
And Ms Seward notes Charles was closer to his gran the Queen Mother than his mum.
She writes: “Diana hated the performance Charles put on when greeting his grandmother: he would kiss her hand in a gentlemanly way but then place kisses all the way up her arm with a theatrical flourish.”
But Ms Seward says that her late Majesty did understand Charles.
“She privately acknowledged long before anyone else that his marriage to Camilla was inevitable.”
And Ms Seward adds: “His darling mama is no longer here and he realises she is a hard act to follow. In the end Charles earned the love and support that he craved all his life.”
● My Mother And I, by Ingrid Seward, is published by Simon & Schuster, and is out on Thursday.
