An interview from Prince Harry‘s 21st birthday has been released in which he refers to the “baggage that comes with me” when talking about his dating life.
The short video clip was part of a longer documentary during which Viscountess Hinchingbrooke Julie Montagu is seen speaking about Prince Harry and his love life — saying that she “wouldn’t say Harry was unlucky in love.”
The Duke of Sussex dated Cressida Bonas and Chelsy Davy before tying the knot with Meghan Markle in 2018.
His high-profile relationships were often the subject of unwanted media attention, as Chelsy Davy later described in a 2017 interview.
Davy famously dated Prince Harry for seven years and opened up four years ago about how she was chased by the paparazzi — an experience she described as “crazy scary and uncomfortable.”
The British actress explained: “Yes, it was tough. It was so full-on: crazy scary and uncomfortable. I found it very difficult when it was bad. I couldn’t cope. I was young, I was trying to be a normal kid, and it was horrible.”
Prince Harry responded by saying: “I can see how upset she gets. My girlfriend is somebody who’s very special to me, and yes, she’s gone through some very hard times.”
And the interview with Prince Harry, filmed in September 2005, gave deeper insights into how he wanted his private life to be separate from the media.
At around 8 minutes in the video, a young Prince Harry said that “girlfriend-wise,” this was his “private life,” and he was “very protective.”
Prince Harry confessed: “Girlfriend-wise, it’s my private life, so it’s a different story, but I’m very protective. Obviously, it is part of my life. It’s part of the baggage that comes with me.”
Many believe that Prince Harry indicated that even back then that he was struggling with the challenges and expectations of being born into the royal family.
Speaking in the video, Viscountess Hinchingbrooke said that those who marry into the royal family are expected to “give up so much individually as a person.”
She added that she did not think Prince Harry had been unlucky in love, but until Meghan Markle came along, he “just hadn’t found the right one.”
She explained: “When you marry into the Royal Family, you have to give up so much individually as a person, or at least that is what is expected of you. I wouldn’t say Harry was unlucky in love. He just hadn’t found the right one until Meghan came along.”
When he started dating Meghan Markle, the Duke of Sussex issued a statement aimed at the British press, criticizing them for the “racial overtones” being introduced.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepped down from their roles as senior working members of the royal family in 2020, later revealing how much they had struggled.
