Princess Diana's best friend's desperate plea to Harry amid …
Former royal butler and Princess Diana 's 'best friend' Paul Burrell has said Prince Harry "has a problem" after confirming he will attend the King's coronation, as "the Windsors don't forgive". The former aide and confidante to Princess Diana warned that Harry can expect a "cold and icy" reception after he goes "to sit amongst family who he's pushed under the bus". Burrell served as butler to the Prince and Princess of Wales at Highgrove House in Gloucestershire, and moved to Diana's staff at Kensington Palace after her divorce from Prince Charles.
Burrell said that Diana, Princess of Wales, had described him as "the only man she ever trusted," but Diana's mother, Frances Shand Kydd, disliked him, branding him as "just another hanger-on grasping at Diana's celebrity". Speaking on behalf of Spin Genie, the ex royal staff member said he "felt sorry for Charles" but warned that Prince Harry could just be attending the Coronation to "gather information for [his] next book".
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Paul Burrell former butler to Diana Princess of Wales has been accused of exploiting his links to Diana (Ian Vogler / Daily Mirror)
"I think the King would've been sad not to see both his sons in the congregation but it was Harry's decision. He's made tougher decisions than that, Harry's abandoned the country to live in America, he's almost American.
He's left the royal family to become a celebrity, he'd rather be a celebrity than a royal so he's carved out a different role for himself. "I feel sorry for the King, he has to walk a very strange tightrope, thinking about what will the people say on one hand because he's king and on the other hand, what do I feel as Harry's father. So now he's witnessing what the Queen had all her life, this dilemma of splitting family and people because you can't always do both and the Queen found herself in dilemmas sometimes between family and the people.
"When you're monarch you really have to put the people first and this is going to be a hard lesson for the King and he's not had this problem in the past because he hasn't been monarch but now the weight is fully on his shoulders." When asked why he thought Harry and Meghan had taken so long to confirm whether they would attend the coronation or not, Burrell said the couple were "titillating" the media with months of speculation.
Camilla, Queen Elizabeth, Meghan, Harry and William watch the RAF flypast on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on July 10, 2018 (Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
"I think what they were doing was titillating the media by not saying, so they were keeping everyone guessing because it's part of what they do. Their only reason for surviving in the public eye is the fact they're royal and they are still on the edges of being royal because of Harry's connection with his family.
"That is their greatest asset and that's the one that they can use and tease because America loves our royal family and the minute Meghan and Harry aren't involved with our royal family at all, America might start to go a little bit cold on them because then they will look toward the core royals again instead of Harry and Meghan. "Harry might think 'it'll be a good thing if I go because then I've got more information to write in my next book'. I'm being cynical but nothing seems to be private.
But Harry's got a problem because he's going to have to sit amongst family who he's pushed under the bus and criticised and what kind of reception is he going to get? "A very cold and icy one because the Windsors don't forgive, they do hold a grudge.The family do push people out on the margins if they don't conform and follow the party rules. The King has laid down the rules and Harry should follow them."
The Duke of Sussex has told his father he will not stay for the weekend of celebrations following the historic ceremony on May 6.
Instead of attending the May 7 gig at Windsor Castle, he will rush to be with his family in California and belatedly celebrate his son Archie's fourth birthday, sources revealed.