12 December 2023 , 18:41
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Prince Harry has been given a huge boost after his scathing attacks on the Royal Family saw his popularity plummet.
The 39-year-old’s explosive memoir Spare, which was released in January, was just announced as the best-selling of 2023 in the UK, according to Amazon. The hugely controversial book documented all aspects of his life, including his fractious relationship with his father, King Charles, and his turbulent sibling rivalry with big brother Prince William.
Harry and his wife Meghan Markle have seen their popularity in the US and UK dwindle after they stepped down from senior roles in the Royal Family back in 2020. They relocated to California to raise their family, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, and since leaving the monarchy, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have received criticism for their interviews about life as a royal.
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Spare was released in January (Getty Images)Their interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021, in which they claimed an unknown member of the Royal Family made asked about their unborn baby's skin tone, sparked huge backlash, with many venting their fury at Harry and Meghan. His memoir Spare did little to rebuild his reputation, as the book contained jaw-dropping details about his military career, his struggle with grief after the death of his mother, Princess Diana, and his sex life.
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Harry wrote about his fraught relationship with his big brother, and stunned fans when he claimed William attacked him after he called Meghan “difficult”, “rude” and “abrasive”. Harry wrote: “It all happened so fast. So very fast. He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor,” he recalled.
Harry detailed his turbulent relationship with estranged brother William (Getty Images)He also discussed his military career, and admitted he had killed 25 people while on his second tour of duty in Afghanistan from 2012 to 2013. “So, my number is 25. It’s not a number that fills me with satisfaction, but nor does it embarrass me,” he candidly wrote. He described the killings as “chess pieces removed from the board,” adding that “bad people” were “eliminated before they could kill Good people.”
In another part of his memoir, he revealed he was forced to go along with the “bare-faced lie” that he was William’s best man when the Duke of Cambridge married Kate Middleton in 2011. Harry claimed he was made to “act out” the role at the royal wedding in an effort to distract attention from William’s ‘real’ best men, close pals James Meade and Thomas Van Straubenzee.