Prince Harry is taking his desire for privacy "to the extreme," and even reportedly plays dress up to avoid being spotted out and about in Britain.
"Harry is completely obsessed with the idea that any visit to the U.K. is fraught with security difficulties — hence his continued legal action to challenge the U.K. government’s decision not to fund his security," royal author Tom Quinn shared.
Regarding Harry's apparent phobia of public lodging, Quinn added: "Harry hates the idea of hotels — last time he stayed in a hotel on a visit to the U.K. he had to leave and arrive virtually in disguise. The problems are even bigger if he plans to stay with friends, as he’s convinced, he is always being watched by the media and that they will find out where he’s staying."
This "bizarre" insight follows the California transplant's failed court bid to obtain British taxpayer-funded security for himself and his family while in the United Kingdom — even though the 39-year-old nor his wife or children work for the Crown or live in Britain. Shortly after the verdict in late February, the fiery-haired prince's legal team announced his intention to appeal.
"The Duke of Sussex will appeal today's judgment which refuses his judicial review claim against the decision-making body Ravec, which includes the Home Office, the Royal Household, and the Met Police," a rep said in a statement then. "Although these are not labels used by Ravec, three categories — as revealed during the litigation — comprise the 'Ravec cohort': the Role Based Category, the Occasional Category and the Other VIP Category."
The representative continued: "The Duke is not asking for preferential treatment, but for a fair and lawful application of Ravec's own rules, ensuring that he receives the same consideration as others in accordance with Ravec's own written policy. In February 2020, Ravec failed to apply its written policy to the Duke of Sussex and excluded him from a particular risk analysis."
On June 6, the royal rebel was legally granted the right to appeal the High Court's ruling, which will be one of several set to go back and forth in trials as it joins the Duke's claims against heavy hitters in the British press.
"His attempt to pay personally for extra police protection has the obvious disadvantage that it would create a two-tier system and, as expected, failed in court." royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told an outlet. "However, he is haunted by what happened to his mother, and there is a threat by far-right extremists to him and his family."
He added: "The granting of full taxpayer-funded protection for those who are not full-time working royals is likely to be difficult to obtain, but in his particular case, there will be some sympathy for what he sees as his predicament."
Daily Mirror reported on Quinn's insights.
