When James Corden takes Prince Harry on a tour of LA following his and Meghan’s stepping back from the royal family, there’s always going to be a lot to discuss. Honestly, the conversation was almost as open as the open-top bus. They chatted about Harry’s thoughts on The Crown, the British press, the Queen buying Archie a waffle maker, and everything in between, all whilst having a blast. Oh, and there’s a surprise FaceTime to Meghan Markle in there, too (who looks incredible, by the way).
Read on to see some of the highlights, and watch the full 17 minute video above.
On How Prince Harry Knew Meghan Was “The One”
“How did you know Meghan was the one?” James asked. “The second date, I was starting to think, wow, this is pretty special,” Harry replied. “It was just the way that we hit it off with each other and so comfortable in each other’s company. Dating with me or any member of the royal family, I guess, it was kind of flipped upside down,” he explained.
“All the dates become dinners, or watching the TV, or chatting at home. And then eventually, once you become a couple, you venture out to dinners, to the cinema, and everything else. So everything was done back to front with us. We got to spend an enormous amount of time, just the two of us. Rather than going to friends’ houses or out to dinner where there were other distractions, there was no distractions, and that was great. It was an amazing thing,” he added. “We went from 0 to 60 in the first two months.”
On a Regular Night In For Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
But what exactly does a regular night in look like for Harry and Meghan? Pretty standard stuff, to be honest, and we wouldn’t expect anything less from the most relatable royals out there. “Depending on how busy the day has been, we do Archie’s tea, give him a bath, read him a book, put him down, go downstairs, might cook a meal, order a takeaway, go upstairs, sit in bed, turn the TV on, watch jeopardy, maybe watch a little bit of Netflix,” Harry said.
Prince Harry on His Feelings About The Crown
Something we’ve all asked ourselves at one point: what does the royal family think about the hugely popular Netflix show The Crown? Thankfully, James asked for us. “How do you feel about The Crown“? James asked. “Um, they don’t pretend to be news; it’s fictional, but it’s loosely based on the truth,” Harry replied. “It gives you a rough idea about what that lifestyle, what the pressures of putting duty and service above family and everything else, what can come from that,” he added. “I’m way more comfortable with The Crown than I am seeing the stories written about my family, or my wife, or myself. It’s the difference between: [The Crown] is obviously fiction, take it how you will, but this [Harry and Meghan’s real life] is being reported on as fact because you are supposedly news. I have a real issue with that,” he admitted.
When Harry was asked who he would like to see play him on the show, both him and James agreed that Damian Lewis would be a great shout.
“We all know what the British press can be like, and it was destroying my mental health.”
Prince Harry on Fatherhood
“My son is now just over a year and a half. He is hysterical. He’s got the most amazing personality,” Harry gushed. “He’s already putting three, four words together, already singing songs.” Typically, a kids first word is “mama” or “dada”, and maybe at a push a pet’s name. But not Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor: his first word was “crocodile”, yep, that big old three-syllable word.
Aside from saying impressive words, Archie’s other favourite thing is waffles (another relatable royal it appears), courtesy of the Queen. Yup, that’s right: Harry’s “grandmother” sent a waffle maker over to LA for the family to enjoy. “Archie wakes up in the morning and says ‘Waffle?'” Harry said.
On Harry and Meghan’s New LA Life
“What is life like in LA — what do you want it to be life?” James asked. “I have no idea,” he replied. “A slightly different version of what we were doing in the UK anyway. My life is always going to be about public service, and Meghan signed up for that, and the two of us enjoy doing that; trying to bring some compassion, and you know, try to make people happy and try and change the world in any small way that we can.”
Prince Harry on Stepping Back From Traditional Royal Family Life
“It’s such a monumental decision to have walked away from the royal family — why did you feel that that was necessary and the right thing to do for you and your family?” James asked Harry. “It was never walking away. It was stepping back rather than stepping down,” he shared. “It was a really difficult environment, as I think a lot of people saw. We all know what the British press can be like, and it was destroying my mental health. I was like ‘this is toxic’, so I did what any husband and what any father would do. I thought, ‘I need to get my family out of here'”, he confessed. “But we never walked away and as far as I’m concerned, whatever decisions are made on that side, I will never walk away. I will always be contributing, because my life is in public service, so where ever I am in the world, it’s going to be the same thing.”