Prince Harry’s bombshell book ‘risks serious blowback’ from royals

Prince Harry’s forthcoming memoir risks “serious blowback” from the Royal Family, Omid Scobie has said. The co-author of the flattering Finding Freedom biography on the Sussexes said there could be a fallout “no matter how carefully” the Duke “shares the parts of his story involving others” in his book, titled Spare and released globally in the new year.Mr Scobie claimed royal aides had told him senior members of the Royal Family feared the highly-anticipated memoir will “cause irrevocable damage to reputations and relations”.It comes as Harry and Meghan Markle are pursuing new lives of personal and financial freedom in the US after quitting royal duties two years ago.Writing in his column for Yahoo! News, the royal author said: “No matter how carefully Harry shares the parts of his story involving others, there is still the very real risk of serious blowback from the institution and family.”Palace aides recently told me about the ‘genuine fear’ amongst senior members that this book will cause irrevocable damage to reputations and relations.””But, for Harry, Spare’s larger intention appears to make that risk worth taking.” Harry’s memoir risks ‘serious blowback’ from the Royal Family, Omid Scobie says (Image: GETTY) Spare is released globally on January 10 (Image: PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE)When the Duke announced plans last year for his memoir, he said he was penning it “not as the prince I was born but as the man I have become”.He added: ‘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 firsthand account of my life that’s accurate and wholly truthful.”The tome, which will be published by Penguin Random House on January 10, has been billed as a book of “raw, unflinching honesty”. The book comes as King Charles is just months into his reign (Image: GETTY)The title is a reference to the phrase “the heir and the spare”.There has been speculation the release date was pushed back for Harry to make 11th-hour changes following the late Queen’s death as it was expected to hit bookshelves this year.A press release last month said: “Spare takes readers immediately back to one of the most searing images of the 20th century: two young boys, two princes, walking behind their mother’s coffin as the world watched in sorrow – and horror.”As Diana, Princess of Wales, was laid to rest, billions wondered what the princes must be thinking and feeling – and how their lives would play out from that point on. The Sussexes are living in California after quitting as working royals in March 2020 (Image: GETTY)”For Harry, this is his story at last. With its raw, unflinching honesty, Spare is a landmark publication full of insight, revelation, self-examination, and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief.”Buckingham Palace is likely to be steeling itself for revelations as King Charles is in the first months of his reign.It comes after Harry and Meghan made a series of claims about the monarchy in their Oprah Winfrey interview in March 2021.The Duke has been embroiled in an ongoing rift with his older brother Prince William and has a troubled relationship with his father Charles.