To Avoid More Drama, Prince Harry Should Wait At Least A Decade To Release His Memoir Like His Relative Edward VIII Did, Suggests Expert
Though Prince Harry's memoir is expected to release next year, royal expert Anna Pasternak believes he would be better off waiting a bit in order to let the dust settle.
Delaying his book would be following in the footsteps of his great great uncle Edward VIII, who debuted his work, A King’s Story, The Memoirs of The Duke of Windsor, more than 10 years after he abdicated the throne to wed a non-royal.
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"The Duke of Windsor and Harry also share, along with their love and loyalty to their dominant American wives, an ambivalence about their heritage," Pasternak pointed out while speaking with The Telegraph. "However, unlike Harry, who self-exiled from the royal family 15 months ago, choosing love and family over monarchical duty, the Duke of Windsor waited 15 years before publishing his account of abdicating to marry Wallis Simpson. "
Edward and his wife on their wedding day.
Edward gave up his spot in the line of succession in 1936 and worked with a ghostwriter to publish his own memoir in 1951, earning him what would have been equivalent to £3.5 million or $4.89 million today.
Similarly, Harry is also using a ghostwriter and is said to be earning at least $20 million for his book.
"In contrast with Harry's alleged book deal, the memoir was the last word that the Duke ever wrote on his life or the abdication. He died 21 years later," the expert added. "He did not detail his bitterness over his life in exile, nor his pain towards his unyielding family."
"Judging by his recent form, such restraint seems unlikely with the memoir that Harry will produce. If only the Duke of Sussex would take note," Pasternak concluded. "Once the royal drawbridges have gone up behind you, in literary terms, less is always more."
