Celebs Who Can't Stand Prince Harry
He's the Windsor whose breakaway sparked upheaval, whose marriage to a Hollywood actor has provided even more column inches than that of his parents Charles and Diana, and perhaps most notably of all, whose glow-up led to the prestigious title of People magazine's sexiest royal. And it seems that every famous face, no matter how apathetic they've previously been to the British monarchy, now has an opinion on him.
Yes, Prince Harry has divided the showbiz world like no other in recent years. Although you could argue that the caliber of their detractors doesn't quite match that of their supporters. Indeed, Sir Elton John, Hugh Grant, and the royal's Apple TV+ collaborator Oprah Winfrey are just a few of the impressive names who have fought the corner of the man sixth in line to the throne.
In contrast, Harry's biggest critics are the usual motley crew of conservative news regulars, outspoken celebrities, and royal family connections happy to milk their connection for every cent. Here's a look at 14 of the most vocal.
Noel Gallagher dubs Prince Harry a 'woke snowflake'
During the peak of the Britpop era, Noel Gallagher was deemed by many — including Prime Minister Tony Blair — to be the voice of his generation. Indeed, even if you weren't a fan of Oasis' Beatles-aping indie-rock, you could always appreciate a snappy one-liner from their raconteur guitarist. But a quarter of a century on and the older Gallagher brother is in danger of sounding like the kind of dinosaur he used to rally against.
In a 2021 interview with The Sun, the High Flying Birds frontman eloquently described Prince Harry as a "f***ing woke snowflake" in response to his criticisms of the royal family. And referencing his own sibling rivalry with Liam Gallagher, Noel even admitted to sympathizing with Prince William, remarking, "I feel that f***ing lad's pain. He's got a f***ing younger brother shooting his f***ing mouth off with s*** that is just so unnecessary. I'd like to think I was always the William."
Noel Gallagher, who had a Greatest Hits collection to promote, also took aim at Meghan Markle, adding, "This is what happens when you get involved with Americans. As simple as that." He concluded his charm offensive by revealing that his recent Aussie press tour had been plagued by queries about "how much of a c*** is Prince Harry?"
Meghan McCain wants more respect from Prince Harry
Prince Harry certainly put the cat among the pigeons when he discussed one of America's most sacred constitutional rights during his 2021 appearance on the "Armchair Expert" podcast. "I don't want to start sort of going down the First Amendment route because that's a huge subject and one in which I don't understand because I've only been here a short period of time," he told hosts Dax Shepard and Monica Padman. "But, you can find a loophole in anything. And you can capitalize or exploit what's not said rather than uphold what is said."
The royal might not have wanted to expand on the issue. But several famous faces did feel that an extension of this conversation was necessary, mostly to take aim at the Duke of Sussex for his apparent disrespect toward the United States. No stranger to giving her opinion, Meghan McCain was one of his most vocal detractors.
She tweeted, "We fought a war in 1776 so we don't have to care what you say or think. That being said, you have chosen to seek refuge from your homeland here and thrive because all of what our country has to offer and one of the biggest things is the First Amendment — show some utter respect." McCain might not be Harry's number one fan, but just a few months earlier she did show some appreciation for his wife on "The View," much to her regular nemesis Whoopi Goldberg's bemusement.
Sean Hannity labels Prince Harry a 'royal pain'
Prince Harry's comments on "Armchair Expert" about the First Amendment also got another Fox News regular up in arms, too. "England's royal pain in the ass" was how Sean Hannity described the Invictus Games founder at the beginning of one of the episodes of his show in 2021.
After claiming that Prince William's younger brother needs an education, the conservative commentator addressed the royal directly: "Harry, we really don't need you coming from England to give us lectures on the First Amendment ... Understand this is the same First Amendment that allowed you and your wife to trash your own family in the Oprah Winfrey interview. You and Meghan were allowed to accuse your family of racism." Hannity also wondered aloud whether the source of his ire should relocate to a "place more compatible with your restrictive ideas."
But proving that there is a heart buried deep down there somewhere, the one-time Donald Trump advisor then appeared to express some sense of concern for Harry, adding, "In a way I kind of feel sorry for you because you seem torn between your new bride and your family back in England." Still, it was Hannity's indignation that colleague Laura Ingraham focused on during their handover, quipping, "I thought you were going to throw the Revolutionary War in his face."
Piers Morgan believes Prince Harry is a hypocrite
One could argue Piers Morgan's enduring vendetta against Meghan Markle — which appears to stem solely from the time she apparently ghosted him after one drink together — tanked his gig on "Good Morning Britain." But when he's not issuing diatribes against the "Suits" star, the former CNN host can be found spouting off against her husband.
Yes, Prince Harry has also regularly ended up in the crosshairs of the disgraced ex-newspaper editor. In the space of just one month in 2021, Morgan went on "Hannity" and claimed that the royal only criticized the First Amendment because he doesn't want to be held accountable by the press, tweeted that Harry's a hypocrite who makes money off his public family drama, and offered his support to Noel Gallagher's anti-Harry tirade.
Of course, Morgan had plenty of time to weigh in on the Sussexes. He walked away from his hosting gig on TV show "Good Morning Britain" live on air after fellow presenter Alex Beresford challenged his constant harassment of Markle.
Morrissey doesn't buy that Prince Harry is a hero
It's easy to forget that Prince Harry was capable of ending up in headlines long before he married Meghan Markle. There was the incredibly misjudged Nazi cosplay, for example. Or the time his father sent him to rehab aged just 16 due to substance abuse. But it was the royal's military service that got one of the British music scene's most candid names all in a tizz.
Speaking to News.com.au in 2016, Morrissey was asked whether he ever regretted previous derogatory comments he'd made about the royal family. It's fair to say that the answer was no. "I don't know anyone who likes the Boil Family," he replied. "Monarchy represents an unequal and inequitable social system. There is no such thing as a royal person. You either buy into the silliness or else you are intelligent enough to realize that it is all human greed and arrogance."
The often-problematic ex-frontman of The Smiths then took aim at one royal, in particular: "Harry killed 34 people in Afghanistan and the UK press called him a hero. If he ate 34 poor people in Haiti the UK press would still call him a hero. It is insufferable." Speaking to reporters in 2013 (via Reuters), the prince admitted to killing insurgents. "Yeah, so, lots of people have," he said. "Yes, we fire when we have to, take a life to save a life, but essentially we're more of a deterrent than anything else."
Laurence Fox calls Prince Harry and Meghan Markle 'narcissistic brats'
Born into a showbiz dynasty, Laurence Fox was once a half-respectable actor best-known for playing sidekick D.S. James Hathaway in the detective drama series "Lewis." But in recent times, the RADA graduate has become more renowned for his apparent quest to rid the world of wokeness: he even launched an unsuccessful campaign to become the mayor of London in 2021, with the Independent reporting that he "was beaten ... by YouTube prankster Niko Omilana" and got only 1.9 percent of the votes.
And the royal family's most high-profile couple have often been the subject of his tirades. Meghan Markle has received the lion's share of abuse, with Fox claiming in an essay for the Spectator (via Metro) that she left the U.K. for America with her husband simply in a bid to get more attention. But the ex-husband of Olivier Award winner Billie Piper isn't averse to including Harry in his insults, either. Take his reaction to the pair's interview with Oprah Winfrey, for example.
After describing the former "Suits" star as the "Duchess of woke victimhood" on Twitter, Fox added, "Her majesty should take the titles away from these greedy, hypocritical, freeloading, narcissistic brats. They are the exact thing they accuse everyone else of."
Paul Burrell argues Prince Harry is 'hurting his family'
You can always rely on the man who, as The Guardian recalled, "Princess Diana described as her 'rock'" to stick his oar in whenever there's a story involving a member of her family. Following the premiere of Prince Harry's mental health documentary series "The Me You Can't See" in 2021, former royal butler Paul Burrell unsurprisingly popped up to give his opinion. And he wasn't happy with what he'd heard.
The man who said in "The Way We Were" (via Daily Mail) that the Princess of Wales' mother, Frances Shand Kydd, believed he was "just another hanger-on grasping at Diana's celebrity" told Closer he was disappointed that Harry had once again aired his dirty laundry in public. "Doing what he's doing is only going to cause him so much more pain," Burrell said. "I don't recognize him now — he's almost become the center of his own world. He's hurting his family and saying things that I think he'll regret."
Harry had discussed several past traumas, including the tragic death of his mother in 1997, during the Apple TV+ series. And Burrell believes that the royal is only opening up in such a manner due to his wife: "Meghan has encouraged him to get therapy and change his way of thinking — but I think he'll be left broken when this all stops and he realizes what he's done."
Jeremy Clarkson feels Prince Harry 'should known better' than to complain about upbringing
Former "Top Gear" host Jeremy Clarkson has never been the most sensitive of souls. The TV personality has built a career on offending pretty much every minority group, after all. So it was little surprise that he didn't think much of Prince Harry baring his soul on his Apple TV+ docuseries in 2021.
"This man is an army officer, so he should know better than to make a program in which he waxes lyrical about the awfulness of his upbringing," Clarkson wrote in his regular The Times column, before adding, "'The Me You Can't See' is what it's called. Though 'The Me You Don't Want to See' is nearer the mark." He then put forward the theory that such "spoiled brats" will end up overshadowing those individuals who seriously need help with their mental health.
Clarkson then claimed that his stiff upper lip approach had worked wonders: "I'm happy to report that bottling it all up has never done me any harm." This is the same man who, as the BBC reported, once unleashed an "unprovoked physical and verbal attack" on a producer simply over the unavailability of any hot food.
Megyn Kelly says Prince Harry threw his family under the bus
Megyn Kelly's talk show was famously cut from NBC in 2018 after appearing to issue a defense of blackface. So probably not the most ideal person to offer a nuanced take on the allegations of racism that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made during their high-profile chat with Oprah Winfrey in 2021.
Of course, that didn't stop the former Fox News correspondent from giving her two cents' worth on Twitter. And everyone involved in the interview got it in the neck, too. Yes, even Oprah. Kelly argued that the talk show queen hadn't been specific enough in her line of questioning, while she also accused Markle of castigating the press, palace and her own pop without much reason. But the journalist saved most of her ire for the prince.
Kelly tweeted, "Harry refuses to say who in his family was concerned about the color [his] kids' skin would be. So they've basically thrown the entire royal family under the bus — with Harry adding they haven't done 'the work' he's done in educating himself." The podcaster then took aim at both of the Sussexes, adding, "Have you ever seen such privileged people wallowing in their own [perceived] victimhood like this?"
Sharon Osbourne claims Prince Harry is 'the poster boy' for white privilege
"I am with you. I stand by you. People forget that you're paid for your opinion and that you're just speaking your truth." Sharon Osbourne made it crystal clear whose corner she was fighting during the extremely one-sided Piers Morgan vs. Meghan Markle battle with a tweet defending her former "America's Got Talent" colleague.
And the backlash she suffered for supporting Morgan's behavior on the set of "Good Morning Britain" didn't appear to deter the one-time rock manager, either. While appearing on "Real Time with Bill Maher" in 2021 (via Mirror), Osbourne dismissed the claims of racism that Markle had made during her and Prince Harry's interview with Oprah Winfrey. And she then argued that the Duke of Sussex was "the poster boy" for white privilege.
Osbourne, who left daytime chat show "The Talk" in a racism row, added, "So you know, he sits there and says daddy cut him off and he's not on the wages anymore and he was boohooing about it ... You can't feel empathy for that. Because you're a healthy, bright, educated young man. You can do whatever you want to do. Your life is your own."
Candace Owens can't forgive Prince Harry for his racism accusations
Conservative commentator Candace Owens has never been one to mince her words. The Daily Wire regular has been fiercely critical of everything from the Black Lives Matter movement to the COVID-19 vaccine since rising to infamy in the late '10s. So it wasn't unexpected when she delivered one of the most scathing responses to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's talk with Oprah Winfrey.
After putting forward the theory that the Duke of Sussex was in an "emotionally abusive relationship," Owens tweeted, "Meghan Markle is less than 25% black. Her son is less than 12% black. Her and Harry implying that everything that happened to them is because of her blackness is a sickening level of scapegoating. What Harry is doing to his family [who cannot respond] is unforgivable."
She also got a dig in at Harry following the premiere of his Apple TV+ venture "The Me You Can't See" two months later. Referring to the mental health documentary series, Owens tweeted, "It's been three days since Prince Harry has offered another exclusive interview regarding how much he and Meghan hate his family. Can somebody check on them?"
Keshia Chanté believes Prince Harry is a hypocrite
It wasn't just Americans that took umbrage with Prince Harry's remarks regarding the First Amendment. Keshia Chanté, host of "Entertainment Tonight Canada," also joined the likes of Meghan McCain and Sean Hannity by attacking the prince for commenting on an issue that he fully admitted he knew little about on podcast "Armchair Expert."
The presenter, who resides in the United States, told "ET Canada" viewers, "You have to respect the laws and constitution. I think it is strange to be upset over paparazzi given the very public life that he has lived in the UK his whole life. It is strange to me because you have this life and you chose to move to L.A. I live in L.A, this town is completely insane and it is a beast when it comes to paparazzi and a beast when it comes to the press."
Chanté then offered some advice for the Duke of Sussex: essentially stay in your lane. The Juno Award winner said, "To just say you don't understand and then speak on it when it is meant to be about basic freedoms, I would rather just say you don't understand it and wait until you do before you comment."
Charlie Kirk questions Prince Harry's masculinity
One of the most eye roll-worthy responses to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's interview with Oprah Winfrey came from Charlie Kirk. The political commentator, who co-founded conservative organization Turning Point USA while still in his teens, took aim at both parties on his eponymous podcast. But while his vitriol toward the Duchess of Sussex was nothing other detractors hadn't said before, his comments about the Duke were a little more distinctive.
"We know Prince Harry is a metrosexual beta male and really is lacking in almost all testosterone," Kirk told his listeners, no doubt believing he'd netted something of a slam dunk against the royal. It didn't quite turn out that way, though. After a clip of this tirade went viral, those outside his fanbase were keen to call out his remarks.
"Prince Harry was an Apache helicopter pilot who served two tours in Afghanistan," tweeted the Daily Beast contributing editor Justin Baragona. "Charlie Kirk once cried about being violently attacked and threatened by antifa when a protester poured water on his head at breakfast."
Jason Williamson tells Prince Harry to stay out of his hometown
Best known as the frontman of cult punk duo Sleaford Mods, Jason Williamson went the extra mile when it came to showing his dislike of Prince Harry: he wrote a scathing open letter that was published in Britain's most left-wing newspaper.
Described by Pitchfork as "one of the most sharp and funny chroniclers of his country's widespread slump into disillusionment," Williamson chose to vent after learning that the royal was due to visit his Nottingham hometown alongside Meghan Markle. As the BBC reported, for their first joint official engagement, the pair headed to the city to witness various charity initiatives in action. But it seems fair to say that Williamson wasn't feeling particularly charitable in his response.
The outspoken frontman described Harry's engagement to Meghan in The Guardian as "heinously over-publicized," brought up the murderous tendencies of his ancestors and referred to him and his family as both "psychopaths" and "monsters." He concluded, "We are the apologists, the never-ending apologists, who will gush at Harry's perceived interest in the youth program he is currently involved with in the St Anne's area. He doesn't give a toss about those people. This only serves to strengthen his family's position as relevant and merciful. Go home, Rambo. Nottingham doesn't need you." Way to mince those words.