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Britain’s late monarch Queen Elizabeth II reportedly refused to speak privately with her grandson Prince Harry on the phone during the final years of her life, asking a trusted aide to remain present during their conversations, according to a new royal biography.
The claim appears in a book by royal historian Hugo Vickers, who says the Queen adopted the practice after Prince Harry and his wife stepped back from royal duties in 2020 and began publicly discussing their experiences within the royal family.
Witness Present During Phone Conversations
According to Vickers, the Queen asked her lady-in-waiting to stay in the room whenever Prince Harry called, ensuring there was another person present during the discussions.
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Sources cited in the report said the move was intended to provide the monarch with “moral support” and a safeguard to record what was said during the calls.
Insiders also claimed that the Queen often kept her responses brief during these conversations, at times replying with short answers such as “yes” or “no.”
Tensions After Royal Exit
Relations between Prince Harry and senior members of the royal family reportedly deteriorated after he and his wife Meghan Markle stepped down as working royals and moved to California in 2020. The situation intensified following the couple’s high-profile media appearances, including their interview with Oprah Winfrey and Harry’s memoir Spare, which discussed internal tensions within the monarchy. Vickers writes that these developments caused considerable distress for the Queen during the final years of her reign.
Other Reported Precautions
The biography also claims the Queen was cautious in other interactions with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. During the celebrations for her Platinum Jubilee in 2022, the monarch reportedly met the couple and their daughter Princess Lilibet of Sussex with a lady-in-waiting present and declined requests for a photographer to capture the moment. The Queen died in September 2022 at the age of 96, after a historic 70-year reign.
The Palace Has Not Commented
Buckingham Palace has not publicly commented on the claims made in Vickers’ upcoming book, titled Queen Elizabeth II: A Personal History, which is scheduled for release in the United Kingdom this month. The latest revelations add to ongoing public interest in the strained relationship between Prince Harry and the royal family following his departure from royal duties.