Prince Harry 'Sees the Pain' of His Wife Meghan Markle and 'Wants to Sort It Out'
Prince Harry is taking a stand to protect wife Meghan Markle.
After the 35-year-old royal dad announced he was taking legal action against the British tabloids, Harry spoke out about how negative press attention has hurt their family in the new documentary Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, which debuted in the U.K. on Sunday.
“He sees the pain of his wife and the attacks she faces, and he wants to try to sort it out,” a source close to the royal household tells PEOPLE in this week’s cover story.
Prince Harry’s distrust of the media stems back to the 1997 death of his mother, Princess Diana, who was relentlessly hounded by paparazzi.
“Look, part of this job and part of any job, like everybody, means putting on a brave face and turning a cheek to a lot of the stuff. But again, for me and for my wife, of course, there’s a lot of stuff that hurts — especially when the majority of it is untrue,” he told ITV’s Tom Bradby in the documentary.
“But all we need to do is focus on being real, focus on being the people we are and standing up for what we believe in. I will not be bullied into playing a game that killed my mum,” he added, referencing the 1997 death of Princess Diana.
Says of friend of Princess Diana’s: “There is an element of [the press] being ingrained as the enemy. He is trying to protect them all. He is doing what he can.”
In the documentary, Harry also opened up about the pressures of his royal role and how his mother’s memory was at the forefront of his mind throughout the Africa tour.
“I think being part of this family — in this role, in this job — every single time I see a camera, every single time I hear a click, every single time I see a flash, it takes me straight back,” said Harry, adding that it is a “wound that festers.”
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Harry continued, “In that respect, it’s the worst reminder of her life as opposed to the best.”
“Being here now 22 years later trying to finish what she started will be incredibly emotional. But everything that I do reminds me of her,” he continued. “But as I said — with the role, with the job and sort of the pressures that come with that — I get reminded of the bad stuff.”
