Prince Harry has been
urged to “do the right thing” and “withdraw” the upcoming
release of his book or risk being “exiled” from the UK with his
wife Meghan Markle.
When the Duke of Sussex first announced details of the
book last year, he said in a statement: “I’m writing this not as the prince I
was born but as the man I have become. I’ve worn many hats over the years, both
literally and figuratively, and my hope is that in telling my story—the highs
and lows, the mistakes, the lessons learned – I can help show that no matter
where we come from, we have more in common than we think.
“I’m deeply grateful for
the opportunity to share what I’ve learned over the course of my life so far
and excited for people to read a first-hand account of my life that’s accurate
and wholly truthful.”
The book had been due for
release over the coming weeks but its publication could reportedly be delayed
by several months as Harry is planning to add new chapters in which he will
recount the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
But Nile Gardiner, a monarchy
enthusiast, foreign policy expert and former aide to Margaret Thatcher, fears
Harry’s book could still be “hugely controversial” and contain
“a great deal of criticism of the Royal Family”.
He has warned the Duke that
any such criticisms risk seeing he and Meghan “exiled” from the UK
following the resulting British public backlash.
Mr Gardiner told
Express.co.uk: “Prince Harry should withdraw his upcoming book. The book
clearly is clearly going to be hugely controversial and may well contain a
great deal of criticism of the Royal Family.
“It will likely be a very
highly-charged book, and Harry should do the right thing and withdraw his book
from publication.
“Especially in the wake
of the Queen’s death as it would be very disrespectful to put out such a book.
“Both Harry and Meghan
run the risk of being exiled from the UK and not welcomed back into the country
by the British people with this book.”
