bitchy | Was Prince Harry only told about QEII’s passing five minutes before the public?

Last night, the Telegraph published and then deleted (rather quickly) a story about how Prince Harry was told about his grandmother’s passing last, even after the government was told. I wouldn’t be surprised. Remember, Harry was massively delayed as his father called him and told him Meghan was not welcome at Balmoral. Harry arrived hours after Prince William, the Duke of York and the Wessexes, all of whom traveled together on a private plane. Harry had to book his own private flight to and from Balmoral and he arrived in Scotland late in the evening. He arrived in Balmoral AFTER the announcement had been made too. So… why is Buckingham Palace trying to shut down this story?

Palace aides reacted angrily to claims last night that Prince Harry had been given just five minutes’ notice of his grandmother’s death before it was made public.

A newspaper report said the devastated royal had been the last to know about her passing – and was even told after Prime Minister Liz Truss. The Daily Telegraph suggested this was a further example of the rift between the prince and his family.

But there was clear irritation at Buckingham Palace that such claims had emerged on the eve of the Queen’s funeral, which was considered hugely disrespectful.

In a rare statement on such a private matter, a spokesman for the King stressed: ‘The public was only informed after every family member had been informed.’

The Mail understands that while it is true that Harry was told shortly before the news became public, the reason for this was because he was on a flight to Scotland and therefore not contactable.

Last night, the original story had been taken down from The Telegraph website. An amended one was then published claiming that Harry was not treated differently to other family members.

[From The Daily Mail]

I’ve been interested in the timing of everything on that day (September 8th), with Charles and Anne at Balmoral before QEII’s passing and then William arriving after her passing and Harry arriving much later. It’s very possible that Harry was told via a phone call or a text. But you also have to remember that the York princesses needed to be told, Zara and Peter had to be told, the extended family needed to be told. Did… did King Charles sent out a blanket email? Were aides texting people with the news? Anyway, I suspect that Harry seriously did learn about QEII’s death just minutes before it was announced. I also suspect that the information was released to the Telegraph as yet another act of cruelty to Harry, only this sh-t makes Charles look like trash too, obviously, which is why there’s pushback.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.