In his new book, Spare, Prince Harry’s portrayal of his stepmother, Camilla, who is now Queen Consort, is perhaps most critical. She married then-Prince Charles in 2005, although the two have been on-and-off romantically for decades. Princess Diana famously referred to Camilla as the “third person” in their marriage, and Prince Harry hasn’t forgotten that.
She was portrayed as “the bad guy” by the tabloids, Harry Anderson Cooper said during her 60 Minutes interview. “She was the third person in their marriage. She had to rehabilitate her image.”
“You and your brother asked your father directly not to marry Camilla?” Cooper asked.
“Yes,” said Harry. “We didn’t think it was necessary. We thought it would do more harm than good, and if he were on his person now that’s – certainly enough. Why go so far if you don’t absolutely have to? We wanted him to be happy. And we saw how happy he was with her. So it was ‘ok’ at the time.”
“They wrote that she started a campaign in the British press to pave the way for marriage,” Cooper said. “And you wrote, ‘I even wanted Camilla to be happy. Maybe she would be less dangerous if she were happy.’ How dangerous was she?”
“Because she needs to rehabilitate her image,” Harry said. “It made her dangerous because of the connections she made within the British press. And there was an open willingness on both sides to exchange information. And with a family built on hierarchies and with her on the way to the queen consort, Because of this people or corpses would be left in the streets.
Harry says he’s been one of those bodies over the years. He accuses Camilla, and sometimes even his father, of using him or William to get better tabloid coverage for himself. Prince Harry writes that Camilla “sacrificed me on her personal PR altar”.
“If you think being on the front page as a family member, having positive headlines and writing positive stories about you, will improve your reputation or increase the chances of you being accepted as a monarch by the British public, then it is what you – you will do,” said Harry.
60 Minutes reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment. Palace officials requested that we send them our report prior to airing before considering comment, which 60 Minutes does not.
CBS Mornings will have more of Anderson Cooper’s 60 Minutes interview with Prince Harry on Monday.
Prince Harry: The 60 Minute Interview 26:59