Battle of the brothers
It's William vs Harry - but who is winning the PR war?
Whether its William and Kate on their charm offensive tour of Scotland, or Harry and Meghan sharing their mental health struggles, there isn’t a week goes by without the brothers in the headlines at the same time.
Last week William muscled-up for a covid vaccination photo call and surprised the world with his royal guns, hours before Harry dropped another truth bomb from California on his new series The Me You Can’t See. A PR war is taking place, with one side lobbing a missile and the other promptly returning fire, writes Kerry for this week’s Saturday Telegraph.
Ever since Harry and Meghan gave their bombshell interview to Oprah in March - and if the British press is to be believed, declared war on the Royal Family - the brothers have continued to battle and appointed PR chiefs as their generals.
Team Kensington changed strategists recently, following the departure of communications director Christian Jones after a year and the high-profile resignation of former communications director and head of Royal Foundation Jason Knauf, who alleged Meghan had bullied staff. Their new PR chief is Victoria O’Byrne, a go-getter who joined them from the NHS and lists “crisis communications” amongst her skill-set. She is obviously encouraging them with their continued championing of the health system, including Catherine’s video thank you to nurses on Monday. They’ve also recently advertised for a senior communications officer, showing they are looking for more new blood.
Team Sussex has also gone for a new approach, with head of communications Christine Schirmer, formerly of Pinterest, but crucially, also UK-based James Holt, executive director of Archewell. Holt was formerly their communications chief and PR boss of The Royal Foundation, so is the key link to the palace they left behind. And the teams clearly liaise on some issues – they co-ordinated their response to last week’s Dyson report on the Panorama Diana interview.
The Cambridges have deployed a charm offensive, supporting the NHS, showing their fun side in Scotland this week, including going land yachting, William driving a racing car and Kate DJing, as well as letting the public see more of their family. They have been posting intimate photos and videos on Instagram for their 12.8 million followers, such as the image of Prince Louis on his bike heading to nursery in April and a video of the family in Norfolk, for their 10th wedding anniversary, which clocked up 8.6 million views.
The Sussexes, meanwhile, having eschewed social media – Harry called it a “threat to democracy” - release initiatives via their Archewell website. They are also posting more photos and videos of Archie, including a snap of him for his second birthday urging followers to donate for vaccine equity, which raised USD$3 million. And Archie appeared in the trailer for Harry and Oprah’s Apple TV series, which had 1.1 million views in a week.
As to who is winning the PR war, depends which country you are in. The Cambridges are more popular in the UK and Australia, says Brittani Barger, deputy editor of Royal Central, while the Sussexes are bigger in Hollywood. “In the UK, Meghan and Harry are not popular and William and Kate are winning the PR war by far,” she says.
But it’s a different case in the USA. “Americans closely align Harry with Diana, someone who was very much ‘the queen of people’s hearts’ in the USA,” says Jane Ridley, senior features writer on the New York Post. “Most will never shake the image of 12-year-old Harry walking behind his mother’s coffin - a custom many now perceive as borderline child abuse.”
As to what is next, the brothers have loaded their biggest weapon yet, their mother. Despite reportedly pledging they weren’t going to talk about Diana, both are increasingly doing so. Harry frequently references his mother, recently revealing Archie’s first words were “Grandma Diana” and admitting he was afraid what happened to his mother would happen to Meghan. Meanwhile, William and Kate have begun to talk about Diana more, even posting Mother’s Day cards dedicated to Granny Diana from their kids, on social media.
Due to reunite again shortly for the unveiling of her statue to mark Diana’s 60th birthday on July 1, it is hoped the brothers can declare a ceasefire, after Harry admitted he was “afraid” to return to the UK last month for Prince Philip’s funeral.
It’s the only way both sides will find peace.
Will & Kate’s Scottish love-in
A month after celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary, William and Catherine took their loved-up union on an action-packed seven-day tour of Scotland and captivated a nation, perhaps showing Scotland what they’d be missing if they one day voted for independence and left the Union.
William gave a heartfelt speech to the Church of Scotland. “I was in Balmoral when I was told that my mother had died,” he said. “Still in shock, I found sanctuary in the service at Crathie Kirk that very morning and in the dark days of grief that followed I found comfort and solace in the Scottish outdoors… Alongside this painful memory is one of great joy because it was here in Scotland, 20 years ago this year, that I first met Catherine. Needless to say, the town where you meet your future wife holds a very special place in your heart.”
With so many special moments on their tour, we’re pretty sure they’ve won a place in Scottish hearts. Our five fave tour treats are…
1. Racing land yachts on West Sands Beach, St Andrews
Kate yelled, “Come on, grandad,” as she raced passed William, who was stuck in wet sand. William went on to win.
2. Haddock fish supper for two (and ice cream), please
Taking a trip down memory lane, the couple helicoptered in to Anstruther for their tea on a quayside bench. As students at St Andrews, they were regulars at award-winning Anstruther Fish Bar.
3. Meeting ‘Princess’ Mila
Keeping her promise to meet five-year-old Mila Sneddon wearing a pink ‘princess’ dress, Catherine had tea with the leukaemia patient and her family at the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Mila is one of the 100 images in her Hold Still lockdown project.
4. Making music with DJ Duchess
After laying down a track at Heavy Sound in East Lothian, Catherine’s verdict: “Delete it, delete it, delete it”, while William jokingly said, “It’s hurting my ears.”
5. Hosting a drive-in cinema night for NHS workers
We’re not sure what they made of Disney’s new Cruella, but we loved Catherine’s tartan Holland Cooper coat. And got emotional seeing William driving one of Prince Philip’s beloved Land Rovers.
Charles’ holey coat
One of our favourite photos this week is that of Prince Charles in his patchy coat. Charles was photographed for Country Life sporting a bedraggled old tweed jacket with bald pockets and holes, whilst doing a spot of gardening.
The make-do-and-mend prince might be worth millions, but certainly likes to get his money’s worth out of his clothes and after all, it’s only sensible to wear things you don’t mind getting mucky if you’re pruning one’s petunias.
Charles has a reputation for recycling – he is the green prince – often wearing patched-up jackets and memorably one worn-out dressing-gown coat that looked like a hand-me-down from Hagrid. For more pics, see here.
Sophie tackles taboos
Could we love Sophie, Countess of Wessex any more? To mark her new role as Patron of women’s health charity Wellbeing of Women, she tackled the taboo of menopause and periods. “Nobody talks about periods. Nobody talks about the menopause. Why not?” she said on a call to professionals and volunteers recently.
Sophie, 56, opened up about her experience with menopause. “You suddenly can’t remember what on earth it was you were talking about,” she said. “Try being on an engagement when that happens. Your words just go. It’s like someone has just gone and taken your brain out for however long before they pop it back in again, and you try and pick up the pieces and carry on.”
She also wants the narrative around menopause to change. “Really, we should be celebrating the fact that we don’t have to have periods anymore. It should be a liberation. But it feels like it’s a shackle. Because it’s described as something that’s incredibly negative,” she said. Watch her video call here.
The Coronation cold snap
It’s 68 years since the Queen’s coronation on June 2, 1953. The date was picked on the advice of meteorologists as statistically it was the date most likely to have the best weather. It rained and was unseasonably cold AKA a typical British summer’s day. Watch the Queen here talking about her big day and the problem with crowns.