Princess Diana with Prince William and Prince Harry during a skiing holiday in 1993. Getty
Princess Diana with Prince William and Prince Harry during a skiing holiday in 1993. Getty
Princess Diana with Prince William and Prince Harry during a skiing holiday in 1993. Getty
Princess Diana with Prince William and Prince Harry during a skiing holiday in 1993. Getty

Prince Harry has 'blocked out' memories of Diana


Paul Carey
  • English
  • Arabic

Prince Harry claims to have “blocked out” memories of his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, who died in a car crash when he was 12.

He told the Netflix docuseries Harry & Meghan, which began streaming on Thursday, that he did not have many early memories of her, but did recall her “cheeky laugh”.

The prince and his wife used the programme to reveal how the royal family was “clouded” by her being an American actress and said they suffered racism from the outset of their relationship.

Archive footage of Diana and Prince Harry’s father — King Charles, who was Prince of Wales at the time — with the Duke of Sussex and his older brother Prince William at Prince Harry’s christening and during other arranged photo calls was shown in the tell-all series.

“My childhood, I remember, was filled with laughter, filled with happiness and filled with adventure,” he said.

“I don’t have many early memories of my mum. It was almost like internally I sort of blocked them out.

“But I always remember her laugh, her cheeky laugh, her always saying to me ‘You can get in trouble — just don’t get caught’.

“I’ll always be that cheeky person inside.”

Prince Harry also spoke about his experience of facing photographers as a child.

“The majority of my memories are of being swarmed by paparazzi,” he said.

He added that they rarely had a holiday without someone jumping out of a bush with a camera.

Princess Diana through the years — in pictures

“Within the family, within the system, the advice that’s always given is don’t react. Don’t feed into it,” he said.

The Duke of Sussex said he and his wife were keen “not to make the same mistakes our parents did” while bringing up their children.

In part two of the couple’s tell-all Nextflix documentary series, they spoke about how the breakdown of their parents’ marriages had affected their approach to raising son Archie, three, and daughter Lilibet, one.

The Duchess of Sussex said: “There is so much from anyone’s childhood that you bring with you into the present. Especially when you are the product of divorce.”

Prince Harry added: “What is most important to the two of us is to make sure that we don’t repeat the same mistakes that perhaps our parents made.”

He spoke of being “pulled from one place to another” during his parents’ divorce.

“I think most kids who are the product of divorced parents have a lot in common, no matter what your background is.

“Being pulled from once place to another or maybe your parents are competitive, or you are in one place longer than you want to be or in another place less than you want to be. There is all sorts of pieces to that.”

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The specs

Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo

Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm

Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm

Transmission: eight-speed auto

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On sale: now

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Starring: Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong

Rating: 3/5

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Get inspired

Here are a couple of Valentine’s Day food products that may or may not go the distance (but have got the internet talking anyway).

Sourdough sentiments: Marks & Spencer in the United Kingdom has introduced a slow-baked sourdough loaf dusted with flour to spell out I (heart) you, at £2 (Dh9.5). While it’s not available in the UAE, there’s nothing to stop you taking the idea and creating your own message of love, stencilled on breakfast-inbed toast.  

Crisps playing cupid: Crisp company Tyrells has added a spicy addition to its range for Valentine’s Day. The brand describes the new honey and chilli flavour on Twitter as: “A tenderly bracing duo of the tantalising tingle of chilli with sweet and sticky honey. A helping hand to get your heart racing.” Again, not on sale here, but if you’re tempted you could certainly fashion your own flavour mix (spicy Cheetos and caramel popcorn, anyone?). 

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo

Power: 178hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 280Nm at 1,350-4,200rpm

Transmission: seven-speed dual-clutch auto

Price: from Dh209,000 

On sale: now

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Uefa Nations League: How it Works

The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.

The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.

Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.

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The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm

Transmission: 9-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh117,059

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FFP EXPLAINED

What is Financial Fair Play?
Introduced in 2011 by Uefa, European football’s governing body, it demands that clubs live within their means. Chiefly, spend within their income and not make substantial losses.

What the rules dictate?
The second phase of its implementation limits losses to €30 million (Dh136m) over three seasons. Extra expenditure is permitted for investment in sustainable areas (youth academies, stadium development, etc). Money provided by owners is not viewed as income. Revenue from “related parties” to those owners is assessed by Uefa's “financial control body” to be sure it is a fair value, or in line with market prices.

What are the penalties?
There are a number of punishments, including fines, a loss of prize money or having to reduce squad size for European competition – as happened to PSG in 2014. There is even the threat of a competition ban, which could in theory lead to PSG’s suspension from the Uefa Champions League.

Updated: June 20, 2023, 8:26 AM`