The royal family had been braced for it, and the publishers warned it would be unflinching, but perhaps no one expected Harry’s memoir would go this far.
It is a very raw, very detailed book, exposing private moments and personal conversations – and at its heart is a fraternal falling out of biblical proportions.
The rift between the two Princes has long been reported, but these details show how deep that rift is.
We have a warts and all account of a physical altercation between the brothers, with William allegedly attacking Harry. Although what provoked and prompted him isn’t clear, the very accusation is damaging for William.
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Throughout the book, Harry doesn’t hold back, from William and Kate approving the Nazi costume he wore to a party, to begging his father not to marry Camilla.
Before, Harry made accusations but didn’t name names – this time he’s going into the specifics.
We learn how he found out the Queen had died through a news website, not a call from the family.
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And Harry shares a very private conversation with his father, at the funeral of Prince Philip, where Charles pleads with his sons not to make his final years a misery with their disputes and disagreements.
There are also excruciatingly intimate details about his teenage years, the cocaine at parties aged 17, and losing his virginity to an older woman.
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The whole book is a barrage of claims, conversations and confrontations from behind closed doors. We’ve never heard such candid frankness from the royal family before, but Harry seems set on putting private moments in the public domain.
It is a one-sided story, but one which paints a gloomy picture of life in the royal family – a life which Harry feels failed him on many levels.
The book is an uncomfortable read for the royal family, but maybe most of all for Prince William.
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The two brothers were once so close and are now divided with a gap so wide, it’s hard to see how the pair can make peace.
Will this bring the closure Harry hopes? With at least four more interviews to go, it certainly won’t for now.
