Wild About Prince Harry

Even as children Harry was the naughtier brother and William was more serious.

Princess Diana and Prince Charles were very involved, loving parents to the boys. Their own upbringings affected the ways they parented the young boys. Prince Charles didn’t want his boys to have the same experience with boarding school which was very lonely for him. Princess Diana smothered her boys with love and affection.

Princess Diana was keen that her boys were well rounded and exposed to the world outside the palace walls. She gave them normal experiences and showed them real life situations and they met real people. She made sure to give both boys equal attention, because she didn’t want Harry to feel less important and special than William, who would one day be king.

When Diana and Charles divorced William and Harry leaned on each other to get through it together. Then at just 12 years old Harry and William, then 15, lost their beloved mother. The boys were shattered and their worlds came crashing down.

Harry had a hard time coping with the huge loss. He was a more serious boy after Diana’s death and wasn’t as carefree as he was previously. The boys went to school together at Eton boarding school to be close to one another. Harry was less academic than William was.

Around the age of 16, with Prince Charles away a lot, Harry began partying and experimenting. And at 18 with no plans to go to college Harry had more time to party. He was drinking and going to clubs late at night. He was receiving bad press and it wasn’t good for the royal family. He was dubbed the Party Prince. He lost his mother and didn’t really have a purpose so he was vulnerable to bad influences.

By 19 years old he met Chelsy Davy and they began dating and she provided emotional stability for him. And at 20 years old he joined Sandhurst, the equivalent of America’s West Point and he became disciplined and grew up.

At 23 he was able to serve on the front lines in Afghanistan. However his tour of duty was cut short by 2 months when the American media revealed his whereabouts. It posed a threat to him and his unit and was forced to go back home to London. Having served his country he proved himself to be more than just a party boy.

He and Chelsea dated on and off for 7 years but broke it off for good after he returned home from Afghanistan. Upon his return home Harry did charity work involving service men and women who have been injured on the front lines.

He also does charity work abroad in many important causes. He also started a charity in Lesotho working with underprivileged children, which was touched upon in the documentary about Prince Harry and Prince William titled, the Brother Princes, which I watched last month.

Through his charity work it is evident to see that he has his mother’s caring and compassionate ways in him. He is able to talk and relate to all sorts of people. He seems very down to earth and sweet.

And now that William is married and a father, the attention turns to Harry to choose a bride and start a family. And I for one, am very interested to see who he chooses. Whoever she is, she’s a very lucky lady.

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Snowdon & Margaret

Princess Margaret was the younger sister to Queen Elizabeth II. She grew up as the adored favorite of her father, King George VI, and was the naughtier sister. She grew up in a loving, stable family.

Antony Armstrong-Jones, later referred to after his marriage to Princess Margaret, as Lord Snowdon, came from a completely different background. He loved the bohemian lifestyle and was an upper class rebel, pushing the boundaries of sex, race, and class.

Tony grew up feeling rejected by his mother, who divorced his father when he was 5 years old. She remarried and had other children and didn’t have time for Tony anymore. The rejection had a profound effect on his character and he constantly sought out his mother’s love and approval. The other formative instance in his early life was when he was struck down with polio at 16. He forced himself to walk again. Polio gave him more drive and determination and he became super active and involved in rowing, skiing, and riding a motor bike.

People who knew the couple said that they relationship was doomed from the start. He couldn’t survive in her traditional world. They were very different people. He became a photographer at age 20 and exploited his social contacts and became a society photographer. He became very sexually active especially through his line of work where we worked with lots of women.

Princess Margaret and Tony met at a dinner party. She was at a vulnerable place in her life because she was recovering from the relationship with Group Captain Peter Townsend. They wanted to marry but he was divorced and in the 1950s divorce was a scandal. If she chose to marry him she would have had to give up her title as a Princess.

Tony and Margaret began dating secretly after her photographed her. He introduced her to a new world. He was never a one woman man and didn’t stop dating the other woman when he began dating Margaret. When they got engaged Tony’s mother was so thrilled and finally gave him some attention, because he had fulfilled her social climbing dreams. Sadly, Margaret pinned all her marital dreams on a man who was unstable and promiscuous.

The public was happy for Princess Margaret who was finally marrying for love. In the beginning of the marriage it was obvious they were in love, always next to each other at events. Tony followed royal protocol and attended all events with his wife, dutifully. He gave up his career as a photographer in the early days of his marriage.

 

Next week I’ll watch Part 2 of this doc.

Highgrove : Alan Meets Prince Charles

Alan Titchmarsh is granted an interview with Prince Charles at his home, the Highgrove estate. It has a beautiful garden that is Prince Charles’s passion project. Alan is given unprecedented access to the 37 acres of gardens. Prince Charles planned everything and chose all the plants.

It is his country home and his private residence. The house was purchased in 1980 and was envisioned as a home to raise a family. The grounds are very flat and he saw it as a blank canvas. He started with large hedges to keep the press out. His garden follows organic guidelines and has a team of 12 gardeners helping him. He allows limited tours of certain gardens and the revenue is used for his charities.

 

Prince Charles said that gardening is therapeutic for him, good exercise, and teaches him patience. He also mentioned that it helps keep him sane. The media and public scrutiny must get exhausting at times, and this is a perfect hideaway from the world.

This documentary beautifully showcases the beautiful flowers in bloom, the birds chirping, a tree house, and bird feeders hanging from the trees. It’s incredibly peaceful and I can see why it is a great, private getaway. It was surprising to me that Prince Charles was so passionate about his gardening. And I thought it was great that he was so green and aware of organic principles, long before it was popular. I have just recently gotten interested in gardening and this doc was very inspiring. I would love to have a garden of my own someday when I buy a house. But for now the balcony on my apartment will have to hold me over.

William & Kate : The South Seas Tour

I’m so used to watching older documentaries, so this one was refreshing and recent, since it came out in 2012. It went over the itinerary of the couple 9 day tour of 4 different countries (including Malaysia, Singapore, Tuvalu, and the Solomon Islands).

In Singapore William and Kate saw an orchid that was named after Princess Diana, who passed away just two weeks before she was due to visit.

The hostess of the doc follows the couple as they go from each event. She talks to people in the audience as well as people who met them.

In Malaysia they visited a hospice and it’s clear to see the special connection they both have with children. Kate is a patron of a children’s hospice in the UK.  Each event they go to they bring with them lots of publicity and are able to highlight issues that are close to them, such as conservation and hospice.

Sadly during this tour it came out that a French tabloid was publishing photos of Kate sunbathing topless during a vacation. It is a terrible violation of privacy and the House of Windsor was not amused. Throughout the ordeal Kate remained calm and kept her composure. The UK after all is known for the expression, “Keep Calm and Carry On.”

My favorite part of the doc was when William and Kate were in Tuvalu dancing. They are such a sweet couple and are so down to earth. I love that they participate in all sorts of activities. They are definitely a modern couple for the British monarchy. I can’t get enough of them together. Long live the (future) King!!

What’s Next for Prince Harry?

Prince Harry did a four month tour in Afghanistan and he did interviews about his life abroad on the front lines as an apache pilot. He has been on two tours of duty. Harry joined the army after his gap year.

He is under major scrutiny at all times and has had to grow up with the constant limelight.  He is the spare to Prince William’s heir. He has a less defied role than that of William’s. The sibling next to the heir have always held a difficult position, such as Princess Margaret, sister of the Queen, and Prince Andrew, Prince Charles’s brother. William has had to bear much more of a burden knowing that he will one day be King, since he was a child. The brothers are incredibly close and share a strong bond. One of Harry’s role will be to support his brother when he becomes King.

Prince Harry said he has 3 lives, his army life, his private life, and his family life. Harry bring a lot of publicity to events that he attends and is generous with his time. He is involved with lots of charity work. He enjoys being in the army for the anonymity that it gives him and the camaraderie.

He is incredibly charming and has a very level head on his shoulders. I really enjoyed this look into his life and he looks quite handsome in his uniform.

Britain’s Royal Weddings Documentary

I really enjoy watching documentaries of all kinds. I love learning about current events as well as the past. I am immensely interested in The Kennedys, politicians and their families, and the British Royal Family. I have watched numerous documentaries of these topics among others.

YouTube has some great docs. The quality isn’t always great but I love that you can watch full documentaries there. Most recently I watched Britain’s Royal Weddings which was a two part documentary. It chronicles the evolution of the royal weddings and how TV allowed millions to witness these grand events all over the world. It goes as far back as the wedding of the Queen Mother in 1923 to Prince Albert up until Prince Charles’s second wedding to Camilla Parker Bowles in 2005.

Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon and Prince Albert, 1923

Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip, 1947

Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1960

Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips, 1973

Prince Charles and Princess Diana, 1981

Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, 1986

Prince Charles and Camilla, 2005

The documentary interviews many people who were there at the weddings and they talk about their involvement and personal memories. It’s super interesting and has lots of great footage. If you’re a fan of weddings and the British royal family, I’d highly recommend this doc.

Britain’s Royal Weddings: Episode 1

Britain’s Royal Weddings: Episode 2