Prince Harry Isn't The Only Royal Family Member To Drop Bombshells During Interviews

This article includes mentions of suicide, sexual assault, and an eating disorder.

Prince Harry revealed intimate details of his life as a rebel royal during his press tour for his 2023 memoir, "Spare." The memoir itself is quite the tell-all. One of the book's most shocking takeaways is an alleged fight between Harry and Prince William. The Duke of Sussex wrote (as excerpted by The Guardian) that his brother insulted Meghan Markle and then physically attacked him. "It all happened so fast," Harry wrote in "Spare." "So very fast. He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor. I landed on the dog's bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me. I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out."

As you can imagine, certain royal family members allegedly aren't fans of the memoir. An unnamed source even claimed that the book strained Harry's relationship with his family back in the U.K., per Us Weekly. Although the Duke of Sussex has been at the center of a media frenzy for claims he's made in interviews in recent years, he certainly isn't the first royal to spill secrets. Royals have been opening up about the unthinkable for decades.

These are the biggest bombshells dropped by the royal family during interviews.

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.

Some might say that King Charles III and Princess Diana's marriage troubles were obvious by the time they embarked on their trip to South Korea in 1992. Tabloids were cluttered with rumors of an affair involving Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles, so many already suspected that his marriage was on the rocks. Charles addressed the speculation head-on during the 1994 ITV documentary, "Charles: The Private Man, the Public Role."

When interviewer Jonathan Dimbleby asked the then-prince if he had been loyal to his wife, he responded, "Yes. Until it became irretrievably broken down, us both having tried." The secret was more or less already out at that point, so it is perhaps no surprise that Charles was so quick to confess. Still, hearing a royal admit infidelity is likely jarring for anyone, no matter the circumstances.

Diana later confirmed in an interview that she had also had an affair, with James Hewitt, who was a British Army officer at the time. The late princess shared the shocking detail in her infamous 1995 BBC interview with journalist Martin Bashir. When asked about Hewitt, Diana stated, "Yes, I adored him. Yes, I was in love with him." 

Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, made headlines in 2010 after she was the target of a sting operation conducted by the tabloid newspaper News of the World. To recap, Ferguson was led to believe that a businessman wanted access to her then-husband, Prince Andrew, so she offered that access in exchange for over $600,000, per The Guardian. The "businessman" was actually the undercover News of the World reporter Mazher Mahmood. Ferguson fell for the scheme and even seemed interested in the opportunity.

News of the World reported (via The Guardian) that the Duchess of York gladly accepted the money. "That opens up everything you would ever wish for," she allegedly told Mahmood. "I can open any door you want, and I will for you. Look after me and he'll look after you ... you'll get it back tenfold." 

Ferguson reflected on the scandal in a shocking interview on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in 2010, explaining that she had not yet seen the entire video recording. "I haven't faced the devil in the face because I was in the gutter at that moment," Ferguson said of her hesitation to view the footage. Winfrey played the clip just moments later. Ferguson believed she had been drinking prior to the incident, and she expressed sympathy for herself as pictured in the video.

The aforementioned BBC interview with Princess Diana also covered the royal's physical reaction to her husband's affair. She shared that she developed bulimia amid the troubles. "It was a symptom of what was going on in my marriage," the princess explained (via Frontline). "I was crying out for help, but giving the wrong signals, and people were using my bulimia as a coat on a hanger. They decided that was the problem. Diana was unstable." Interviewer Martin Bashir then asked Diana what caused her eating disorder, to which she responded: "The cause was the situation where my husband and I had to keep everything together because we didn't want to disappoint the public, and yet obviously there was a lot of anxiety going on within our four walls." 

Media outlets speculated that Diana had developed bulimia even before she made the announcement in her BBC interview, but the royal's candor was still shocking nonetheless. Diana shared more about living with the eating disorder in audio recordings shared in NBC's special "Princess Diana: The Secret Tapes." She revealed that King Charles III would comment on her weight, which made her recovery all the more difficult. "My husband made me feel so inadequate in every way possible that each time I came up for air he pushed me down again," Diana said.

If you need help with an eating disorder, or know someone who is, help is available. Visit the National Eating Disorders Association website or contact NEDA's Live Helpline at 1-800-931-2237. You can also receive 24/7 Crisis Support via text (send NEDA to 741-741).

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle dropped a number of bombshells in their 2021 CBS interview with Oprah Winfrey. Meghan memorably addressed claims that she made Kate Middleton cry prior to her wedding to Harry. The Duchess of Sussex claimed that it was actually Middleton who brought her to tears. "And I don't say that to be disparaging to anyone, because it was a really hard week of the wedding, and she was upset about something," she told Winfrey. "But she owned it, and she apologized and she brought me flowers and a note apologizing."

Meghan added that she was shocked to see reports come out months later alleging she had made Kate cry. The mother of two had little to say about what the Duchess of Cambridge actually did to make her emotional, only acknowledging that it had to do with dresses for the flower girls. "I don't think it's fair to her to get into the details of that, because she apologized," she told Winfrey. "And I've forgiven her." 

The tearful conflict was brought up once again in Prince Harry's 2023 memoir, "Spare" (via Page Six), as Harry claimed that Kate admitted fault. He wrote that the Duchess of Cambridge privately said, "I know, Meghan, that I was the one who made you cry." According to Harry, William allegedly told King Charles III about Meghan and Kate's disagreement, which may have led to tabloids reporting on the false claims.

In the aforementioned CBS interview with Oprah, Meghan Markle outlined how difficult things really got during her time as a working member of the royal family. She shared that at one point, she confessed to Prince Harry that she was dealing with suicidal thoughts. "Look, I was really ashamed to say it at the time and ashamed to have to admit it to Harry, especially, because I know how much loss he's suffered," Meghan said (via ET). "But I knew that if I didn't say it, that I would do it. And I, I just didn't — I just didn't want to be alive anymore." 

Prince Harry and Meghan spoke about the hardship once again in their Netflix docuseries, "Harry and Meghan" (via Insider). Recalling his wife's mental health struggles, the prince began, "I was devastated." He continued, "I knew she was struggling. We were both struggling, but I never thought it would get to that stage — and the fact that it got to that stage, I felt angry and ashamed." In a separate episode of the series, the couple opened up about a miscarriage Meghan had in July 2020 (via People). "I believe my wife suffered a miscarriage because of what the Mail did," Harry said, referring to a lawsuit involving the couple and MailOnline's parent company, Associated Newspapers.

If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline​ by dialing 988 or by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255)​.