Piers Morgan escalated his public feud with Prince Harry over the weekend, labeling the Duke of Sussex a "hypocritical little twerp" in a series of social media posts following Harry's BBC interview and legal loss over U.K. security protections. The remarks, posted to Morgan's X (formerly Twitter) account, drew widespread attention and mixed public reaction as debate continues over Harry's role in the royal family and his claims of being denied proper security.
The outburst came shortly after Prince Harry lost an appeal challenging the British government's decision to downgrade his official security while in the United Kingdom. The ruling followed years of legal battles and coincided with a BBC interview in which Harry discussed his estranged relationship with the Royal Family and reaffirmed his desire for reconciliation.
"My ask has been simple: that the standard protocols for security and risk assessments be applied to me in the same way they are to others - including people who have never carried out any public functions on behalf of the state," Harry said. He added: "In recent years my family and I have been subjected to well-documented neo-Nazi and extremist threats, including from al Qaida. There are individuals in prison on UK soil because of such threats."
Piers Morgan, a longtime critic of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, responded with a string of inflammatory posts. "That moment when you realise you're now a dead-eyed, drug-addled, *****-whipped, whiny, entitled, arrogant, hypocritical little twerp loathed by your own family," Morgan wrote, sharing a screenshot from Harry's interview.
In another post, he stated: "Prince Harry's issued a statement to accompany his latest whiny interview whacking his family. I have my own statement for him: 'Shut up, you pathetic little brat, nobody in Britain has anything but contempt for your despicable treatment of your family.'"
The BBC interview featured Prince Harry recounting how his family's refusal to address his concerns over safety had deepened his estrangement from them. "The stark difference is I was born into lifelong circumstances that create inherent security risks," he said. "My decade of military service, particularly two tours of duty in Afghanistan, as well as social and tabloid media frenzy, have only intensified those threats."
Harry also said: "Uncovering how my immediate family's safety was knowingly put at risk, as well as who was behind it and who sanctioned it, has been truly devastating. No matter where we may agree or disagree, I would never wish harm on anyone. These legal proceedings have revealed to me that this basic duty of care was not and is not applied to me."
Public reaction to Morgan's attacks was divided. One X user responded, "Gee... Piers! Come on. No member of the Royal Family is deserving of this kind of vehement vitriol from you." Others echoed Morgan's sentiment, criticizing Prince Harry for what they perceived as victimhood and hypocrisy.
Prince Harry has said that the lack of security makes it untenable to return to the U.K. with his family. "I cannot see a world in which I would be bringing my wife and children back to the U.K. at this point," he said. The security dispute has remained central to Harry's break from royal duties since he and Meghan Markle stepped down as working royals in 2020 and relocated to California.
