Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, have hit back at the author of a new book on Britain’s royal family, describing his writing as “deranged conspiracy and melodrama.” In a statement issued on Saturday, they said author Tom Bower “has long crossed the line from criticism into fixation.”
The dispute follows extracts from Bower’s book that were published in the Times of London on Friday. In those extracts, Bower claimed that Queen Camilla once told a friend that Meghan had “brainwashed” Harry.
Bower also alleged that Prince William and his wife Catherine “evidently saw Meghan as a threat rather than an ally” as tensions rose ahead of the Sussexes’ decision to leave Britain for the United States and split from the royal family.
In their statement, Harry and Meghan said Bower’s portrayal included “language that speaks for itself,” referring to what they said was Bower’s public claim that “the monarchy in fact depends on actually obliterating the Sussexes from our state of life.”
They added that Bower “has made a career out of constructing ever more elaborate theories about people he does not know and has never met.” The statement said, “Those interested in facts will look elsewhere; those seeking deranged conspiracy and melodrama know exactly where to find him.”
The Times of London excerpts also included passages critical of the couple’s financial situation, their charity work and Harry’s Invictus Games. The article described the Invictus Games as an annual sporting competition Harry founded for wounded, injured and sick military veterans.
Bower previously published “Revenge: Meghan, Harry, And the War Between the Windsors” in 2022.