Active Stocks
Thu Mar 28 2024 15:59:33
  1. Tata Steel share price
  2. 155.90 2.00%
  1. ICICI Bank share price
  2. 1,095.75 1.08%
  1. HDFC Bank share price
  2. 1,448.20 0.52%
  1. ITC share price
  2. 428.55 0.13%
  1. Power Grid Corporation Of India share price
  2. 277.05 2.21%
Business News/ News / World/  Diana did her best but ….: New debate sparks around Prince Harry's memoir Spare
BackBack

Diana did her best but ….: New debate sparks around Prince Harry's memoir Spare

As a future Queen, it was sometimes said, Diana’s duty was to produce an ‘heir and a spare’

This image provided by the Random House Group shows the cover of “Spare,” Prince Harry's memoir. The book is an object of obsessive anticipation worldwide since first announced last year, is coming out Jan. 10. (Random House Group via AP) (AP)Premium
This image provided by the Random House Group shows the cover of “Spare,” Prince Harry's memoir. The book is an object of obsessive anticipation worldwide since first announced last year, is coming out Jan. 10. (Random House Group via AP) (AP)

Prince Harry's upcoming memoir ‘Spare’ became controversial minutes after the publisher released the first glimpses. Within hours, debates sparked around the title ‘Spare’, why it was chosen and its significance. 

For the uninitiated, the phrase 'The Heir and Spare' is often used to describe William and Harry based on their positions within the line of succession. In fact, as a future Queen, it was sometimes said, Diana’s duty was to produce an ‘heir and a spare’. And it speculated that the title refers to that particular phrase

Title reveals what Harry really thinks about himself: Royal biographer

Royal biographer Angela Levin claims naming the book after the cruel jibe reveals what Harry really thinks about himself, and predicted the account is likely to be “nasty" towards the Royal Family.

She told The Sun: "It tells you what he thinks about himself with some great deep shame that somehow he didn't feel he was better than that.

"Diana did her absolute best [so] that he wouldn't feel like that. She tried to tell him there were more options, more things would be open to him.

"He's got freedom. But obviously that hasn't worked."

A fitting choice for the memoir: Pauline Maclaran

Meanwhile, Professor Maclaran of Royal Holloway, University of London, said she believed the title to be a fitting choice for the memoir.

She told Express.co.uk: “My initial thoughts are that this is a good title for the book.

“The spare heir has long been recognised as a difficult position to sustain and often the spares go astray – we can think of Princess Margaret and Prince Andrew here for starters."

She continued: “I see this memoir as likely bridging his past life with his new one as, from the website, he seems to be carving out his identity as a humanitarian and reaching out to people on the basis that he is just like them."

Raw, unflinching honesty…

The book has a striking cover image of Harry and at the top, it's written Prince Harry and ‘Spare’ at the bottom The will cost £28 for a hardback, with the audio book, voiced by Harry himself, priced at £20.

Random House says that it will take "readers immediately back to one of the most searing images of the twentieth century: two young boys, two princes, walking behind their mother’s coffin as the world watched in sorrow—and horror".

It further promises, “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"

Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!

Catch all the Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
More Less
Published: 28 Oct 2022, 10:19 PM IST
Next Story footLogo
Recommended For You
Switch to the Mint app for fast and personalized news - Get App