Ex-Vanity Fair editor Tina Brown condemns Prince Harry after claiming he wants ‘reconciliation’ with royal family

Prince Harry has been condemned for not apologising to the Royal Family in his bombshell interview after losing a High Court case.

Tina Brown, British former editor of Vanity Fair magazine, has added to criticism for the Duke of Sussex after his latest barbs at his family – which included claiming his father King Charles was refusing to speak to him.

Harry also said, in a lengthy interview with the BBC, that he did not not know ‘how much longer’ there was left for his father, who is battling cancer – while the Duke also said he wanted ‘reconciliation’.

Now Ms Brown, formally known as Lady Evans after the 2004 knighthood for her late husband Sir Harold Evans, has accused Harry of ‘doubling down’ on errors.

As well as editing Tatler, Vanity Fair and the New Yorker, she has also written various books on the Royal Family including several on Harry’s mother, the late Diana, Princess of Wales.

Earlier this year Ms Brown gave an excoriating review of the recent Netflix series starring the Duke’s wife Meghan.

The British-American writer suggested the only show that would have worked would have been one in which ex-actress Meghan admitted ‘what a flaming flop the last five years have been’.

Now she has spoken out following Harry’s BBC interview that followed a legal defeat for the Duke in a bid to keep his former taxpayer-funded security when in the UK. 

Ex-Vanity Fair editor Tina Brown has criticised Prince Harry for not apologising to his family

The Duke of Sussex gave a bombshell interview broadcast by the BBC last Friday

Harry is pictured here with his wife Meghan after attending the wedding of Princess Eugenie a and Jack Brooksbank at Windsor Castle in Berkshire in October 2018

On Friday, the Court of Appeal threw out Harry’s attempt to reinstate his 24/7 police protection while in Britain.

That prompted an angry backlash from the prince, who labelled the ruling an ‘Establishment stitch-up’ during his BBC interview.

In a follow-up statement, the Duke declared: ‘Given my profound concerns over this issue, I will be writing to the Home Secretary to ask her to urgently examine the matter and review the Ravec [Royal and VIP Executive Committee] process.’

After quitting official Royal duties in 2020 and moving to California, Harry and his wife Meghan were no longer granted security provided for senior royals in the UK.

The High Court ruled in February last year this decision was ‘legally sound’ – a move challenged by Harry at London’s Court of Appeal, only for him to lose again on Friday.

Speaking to the BBC afterwards, Harry said: ‘What I’m struggling to forgive, and will probably always struggle to forgive, is that a decision that was made in 2020 that affects me every single day, and that is knowingly putting me and my family in harm’s way.’

He said he could only come to the UK if ‘invited’ and that the King should ‘step aside and allow the experts to do what is necessary’.

Despite the criticism he has faced, Harry insisted he still wanted reconciliation – though added: ‘My father won’t speak to me.’

Tina Brown (second from left) made the latest comments during an interview on BBC1 with the corporation’s former political editor Laura Kuenssberg (left)

Harry is seen here outside London’s High Court last month for his case against the Home Office

He also said he did not know ‘how much longer’ his cancer-afflicted father had and admitted there had been ‘so many disagreements’ with brother Prince William while also saying he had ‘forgiven’ his elder sibling.

His comments have faced a backlash from officials and Royal experts – with Ms Brown, 71, now expressing her scorn.

When asked for her reaction by the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, she said: ‘Well, what I thought was, after five years Harry is still at war with his original mistake.

‘And every time he goes on the air, he makes another one – so it’s like he is now trapped in this terrible cycle of doubling down on the original mistake.

‘He was told so clearly when he was considering leaving, by the Palace at that time, the security won’t be paid for anymore.

‘He was told it again and again. He didn’t want to hear it – he didn’t want to listen to it.

‘I think he thought he could just blow it off and in his reckless, sort of hot-headed Harry Hotspur way charged out of the Royal Family with all of these issues completely unresolved.

‘There was no way that this court was going to go against the findings of the security, the police.

Prince Harry, pictured here with King Charles at London’s Natural History Museum in April 2019, has now said his father no longer speaks to him

Meghan Markle has posted a photo in an apparent show of support for her husband Prince Harry in the aftermath of his bombshell interview

Tina Brown is pictured with her late husband Sir Harold Evans in New York City in June 2013

‘They’re not going to go against that and they’re not going to go up against the police, against the Royal Family or the police.’

And she was critical of an apparent lack of contrition from the Prince, adding: ‘I didn’t hear two very crucial words in that entire sort of jeremiad about, you know, “I’d like to reconcile, I’m sorry”.

‘I mean, he never said, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry I caused my family all of this pain”. That is really what they’re upset about, not the security.’

Just hours after Harry’s BBC interview aired, Meghan posted a black-and-white photo of Harry walking through their California garden.

The Duke was seen holding Archie’s hand and carrying Lilibet on his shoulders.

The image was shared without comment but was widely seen as a response to his claims about not returning to Britain.

Buckingham Palace issued a rare public statement following Harry’s BBC interview on Friday, saying: ‘All of these issues have been examined repeatedly and meticulously by the courts, with the same conclusion reached on each occasion.’

Government insiders rejected the Duke’s demand that the Home Secretary Yvette Cooper ‘urgently’ investigate the committee behind the decision to downgrade his security.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are pictured here in New York City on April 23 this year

Harry and Meghan are pictured with their children, Archie and Lilibet, in California 

Whitehall sources highlighted how the body was designed to be strictly independent from political influence.

A Government spokesman said: ‘All members work together to advise the independent chair on the protective security of the Royal Family and key public figures.

‘As part of long-standing arrangements these decisions have been taken by Ravec, not the Home Secretary.’

The BBC, which spoke to Harry near his home in California, has admitted a ‘lapse’ in editorial standards over its coverage of the interview on Radio 4’s Today programme.

The corporation said: ‘Claims were repeated that the process had been “an Establishment stitch-up” and we failed to properly challenge this and other allegations.

‘This case is ultimately the responsibility of the Home Office and we should have reflected their statement.’

Reports have suggested the BBC only expected a maximum of 10 minutes with the Duke, who went on to triple that and talk for about half an hour.

The Times said that, unlike previous controlled interviews with the Duke, nothing was off-limits in his chat with journalist Nada Tawfik.

Harry told of wanting a ‘reconciliation’ with his family in the new interview with Nada Tawfik

Sir Geoffrey Vos, Master of the Rolls, pictured on Friday as he rejected Harry’s appeal

She later told of Harry appearing agitated, tapping his foot during their conversation, and that she was caught off guard by how ‘candid and forthcoming’ he was.

Sources said the Duke appeared ‘subdued’ but also ‘very keen to talk’ as he he levelled criticisms at his family and the British government.

Palace insiders have since warned that Harry’s TV outburst could deepen the rift with his family – adding that his comment ‘doesn’t know how much longer [Charles] has left’ was in poor taste.

Meanwhile, a Mail on Sunday poll yesterday found overwhelming backing for the King in his row with his youngest son.

According to the survey, by Find Out Now, 64 per cent of voters are behind Charles, while just 36 per cent support Harry.

He and Meghan had an informal agreement with the late Queen Elizabeth II to stop using the word ‘Royal’ and their HRH titles after they withdrew from official duties and emigrated to the US to become ‘financially independent’ from the Crown.

It was revealed last week that former Suits actress Meghan had sent a food hamper with a note that said: ‘With the compliments of HRH The Duchess of Sussex.’

Meghan called herself Her Royal Highness to friends but denied it flouted the ‘Megxit’ deal because it was not for commercial ends.

Meghan is seen here alongside the late Queen Elizabeth II at the Catalyst Museum in Widnes, Cheshire, in June 2018

Prince Harry is pictured here with his father Charles at Windsor Castle in September 2022

The latest Mail poll suggested 67 per cent of people would like to see the HRH titles formally removed, while 33 per cent disagreed.

The survey also found wide variations according to party affiliations.

Some 70 per cent of Tory voters and 61 per cent of Reform voters sympathised more with Charles, against only 28 per cent of Labour voters sharing that approach.

Simon English, of pollsters Find Out Now, said: ‘It is heartbreaking to hear that Prince Harry no longer talks to his father.

‘It would be interesting to know what people think he should do to win back his father’s support.’