Prince Harry Just Gave an Interview About Why He and Meghan Markle Stepped Back

Ahead of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s upcoming tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey, the duke had a chat with Late Late Show host James Corden about his decision to move his wife and son, Archie, away from the royal family, and he seemed to downplay rumors of a “rift” between himself and the other royals. 

The pair took a trip around Los Angeles atop a double-decker sightseeing bus while dining, of course, on tea and sandwiches. In the extended segment, they visit the house from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and Prince Harry, an actual prince, pops in for a pee. 

On the subject of his and Markle’s recent “departure” from the royal family, Prince Harry says, “It was never walking away, it was stepping back rather than stepping down.” 

He continued, “It was a really difficult environment, as I think a lot of people saw. We all know what the British press can be like. It was destroying my mental health.” 

Prince Harry didn’t seem to blame his family so much as the situation and environment, which he called “toxic,” explaining, “I did what any husband and what any father would do, which is ‘I need to get my family out of here,’ but we never walked away.”

Prince Harry also opened up about how dating as a royal is “flipped” backward; first, he and Meghan Markle spent time one-on-one at home, and then, only after becoming an official couple, could they go out to restaurants and bars. He called their courtship “a beautiful thing,” saying, “We went from zero to 60 in the first two months.”

As for the future, Prince Harry reaffirmed his commitment to working with charities in a civilian capacity, noting, “I’ll always be contributing. My life is public service, so wherever I am in the world, it’s going to be the same thing.” That’s Princess Diana’s son for you. A life of service, and a commitment to family.

Corden, another U.K. transplant living and working in Los Angeles, is a fitting host for the prince’s first late-night appearance. He’s known the couple for years and attended their royal wedding in 2018.

Prince Harry also revealed what gift his grandmother, the queen, sent his son for Christmas: a waffle maker. Apparently that’s what Archie wanted. Now the soon-to-be-family-of-four can start every morning with waffles topped with yogurt, jam, berries, honey, syrup, and the like. “Archie literally wakes up in the morning and goes, ‘Waffle,’” Prince Harry said. 

Other tidbits we got from the segment: Markle’s nickname for her husband is “Haz,” Archie’s first word was crocodile, and Prince Harry wants Damian Lewis to play him on The Crown. A very solid casting choice, in our opinion.