The strained relationship between King Charles and his former wife, Princess Diana, has been a constant topic of discussion in every tabloid and gossip column over the years, and there have been numerous revelations in recent times.
For the untold, Charles and Diana enjoyed a marital bliss of 15 years, of which there had been more than one instance of a strained equation between the two. In fact, the then-Prince’s relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles also became one of the sour points in their marriage, from which it only went further south.
And now, a recent report by The Mirror claims that a heartless remark by Charles to Diana while the latter was still in her hospital bed, after the birth of their secondborn, Prince Harry, became the final nail in the coffin for their dying marriage.
Coming back to the vivid recollection by Paul Burrell, who used to be the royal butler for the ex-couple, he mentioned how Diana actually broke down, recalling the hurtful memory when Charles came to visit her and Harry after the latter’s birth at the hospital.
Re-quoting Diana’s words in the newly released book The Royal Insider, Paul said, “[Diana told me] Charles came into the hospital, looked in the cot and said ‘Oh, red hair’. Diana replied, ‘But, Charles, you know that’s the Spencer gene. We’ve all got red hair.” Paul adds: “Then [according to Diana] came the damning blow. He said, ‘Well, at least I’ve got my heir and spare now and…. I can return to Camilla.”
While such a statement by Prince Charles clearly gave a peek into his estrangement from Princess Diana, it also reflected a slight indifference he had towards his son, Harry. Moreover, Paul further spoke about the kind of shock the People’s Princess received after hearing such a statement from her husband.
Prince Harry’s meeting with King Charles is the first tentative step on the road to reconciliation. pic.twitter.com/dIDW5yALHy
— HopesFor People (@Hopes_times) September 11, 2025
Although she wasn’t surprised by his long-standing affection and love for a married Camilla Parker Bowles, she was still stunned that Charles would end up saying such a thing moments after she gave birth to their son.
Diana had further lamented the fact that her husband, to whom she had given four years of her life, would turn out to say such a thing at such a sensitive time. But with that one statement, she was sure that their marriage was over, and till the remaining time they were together, Diana had to maintain a facade in front of the world.
As Paul Burrell recalls the late Princess’s words, “Diana told me: ‘I cried myself to sleep that night knowing my marriage was over. She said: ‘Four years, Paul, I gave him four good years and he was gone. For the rest of the time, I had to pretend and put on a facade to the world.”
Later on, Paul mentioned in the book how he reluctantly had to share all of these stories about Diana to Prince William and Harry when they had arranged for a secret meeting with him in 2017, on the occasion of their mother’s fatal car crash, which had occurred almost 20 years earlier.
A lot of William’s petulance and anger comes the fact that Prince Harry and King Charles mostly just ignore him.
And so he tries to force himself into the conversation wailing about how he hates Harry and will never forgive him. Or how he’ll ban the king from speaking to him. pic.twitter.com/CKzwKxn0ir
— Alexis is sowing discord in the West (@ArchewellBaby) September 11, 2025
Sharing Prince Harry’s response on hearing this tale about his parents, Paul added, “Harry stared straight at me, poker-faced. He couldn’t believe what I was telling him. I said to him, ‘Harry, it’s the truth. I wouldn’t tell you that unless it was exactly what your mother told me. ’ This happened just before Harry became engaged to Meghan. I think that powered him and gave him the fuel to move forward with everything he felt. “[And it’s] probably why he called his book Spare.”
