Prince Harry, reportedly, used to complain that he was the spare "third wheel" to Prince William and Kate Middleton and saw himself as the gooseberry until Meghan Markle entered his life.
A royal expert said that this was the recurring theme for the Duke of Sussex, which was also discussed in the book Finding Freedom. Despite his popularity with the media and how much his brother and sister-in-law made him "part of the team," Prince Harry apparently needed to be "his own person."
Royal journalist Katie Nicholl said that she heard Prince Harry complaining about being the spare wheel and that he didn't really want to be in a trio dynamic. Meghan became the catalyst that would give the Duke of Sussex the confidence to chart his own path and break away from Prince William and Kate.
Nicholl, also, shared her insights to Finding Freedom. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, the royal expert said that the biography has plenty of "compelling and fascinating" revelations but it might also bring back old wounds.
The royal journalist also said that Finding Freedom dispelled rumors that the British tabloid press reported about the Sussex pair in the last two years. It, also, showed that Meghan was not to blame for the royal exit because Prince Harry was unhappy with his role and purpose in the royal family for quite some time.
But, Nicholl said it's impossible not to think Prince Harry and Meghan had something to do with the book since the level of details and personal accounts are quite specific, based on the excerpts released from The Times. A spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex said that they were not interviewed by authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry made his first public appearance since the publication of the Finding Freedom excerpts. On Thursday, July 30, the Duke of Sussex was in a virtual summit for Travalyst, his eco-tourism initiative and spoke via video conference from his home in Los Angeles.
Prince Harry urged the travel industry to "build back better" as he pushed for green tourism. The Duke of Sussex wants those in the business of traveling to be environmentally responsible in shaping their system to benefit all people and the future.
But, Prince Harry's call was met with criticisms. Norman Baker, the former transportation minister of the U.K. said that the duke had a good message but it sounded tone deaf. The critics said that Prince Harry doesn't get that there are people in the travel industry who are struggling due to this pandemic crisis. Instead of calling for eco-friendly travel, the critics said that Prince Harry must address job losses in the travel industry.
