Prince Harry in tears after 'real damaging blow'

Royal commentators have highlighted the real blow to Prince Harry after the Duke's new interview about his relationship with the royal family.

The media's alleged "betrayal" in leaking that the Duke of Sussex was on the front lines in Afghanistan has been labelled "one of the nails in the coffin" of his relationship with the press.

Speaking on GB News The Royal Record, Cameron Walker and Svar Nanan-Sen detailed just what happened in Helmond - and how "angry" it left the future Duke of Sussex.

Cameron said: "Prince William was not allowed to do that because he was the future King... There was a question mark over Prince Harry, and it was eventually decided that yes [he would go], but there would be a media blackout and nobody would know he was there.

"So all of the British and international media who followed the Royal Family were told that Prince Harry was going on to the front line in Afghanistan."

The commentator added: "The agreement was that there was a media blackout on this - no one is going to run the story for Prince Harry's safety, in exchange for, when he does finish the tour, we can talk about it and you'll be given loads of access to pictures or copy or whatever.

"Unfortunately for Prince Harry, an Australian magazine published that he was serving on the front line and he regrettably had to be pulled out early from that tour for his own safety.

"He speaks about it in his memoir, 'Spare', just how angry he was that that had happened - and I think that was perhaps one of the nails in the coffin in terms of Prince Harry's relationship with the media - understandably so.

"He was incredibly frustrated, didn't want to leave his team, but it was when he was being flown back - when he was accompanying wounded [troops], and the coffins of soldiers who had been killed in Afghanistan - which sparked the idea for the Invictus Games."

 "Harry's on record saying it was something that infuriated him and it deeply hurt him as well. He was eventually deployed and Harry did do another tour - but as you said, that moment was a real damaging blow in his relationship with the media - obviously the Australian magazine betrayed the Royal Family's trust in reporting that."

It emerges when "Tabloids on Trial", an ITV documentary about Harry's war with press, aired on Thursday.