Royal expert Robert Hardman has placed the blame for the 'tiara-gate' row between Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and the late Queen squarely on the Duke of Sussex. Speaking on The Royalist podcast, Hardman discussed the tensions surrounding the selection of a tiara for Meghan's wedding to Harry in 2018.
Hardman, author of Elizabeth II: In Private. In Public. The Inside Story, explained that Queen Elizabeth II traditionally shared a ritual of choosing a tiara with a bride-to-be as a bonding experience. However, he noted that 'from the start, Meghan turned up with Harry so immediately that sort of intimacy wasn't there.'
The expert claimed that when a hairdresser arrived for a trial run and needed the tiara, a 'sudden demand' was made. Hardman said, 'By then, there'd been a lot of shouting. And it was always Harry doing the shouting, interestingly, never Meghan. She obviously got him to do this.' He suggested Harry's behaviour was acknowledged in his memoir, Spare.
Hardman also detailed concerns about the tiara's provenance, including fears that some diamonds might have been 'colonial loot' or sparked a scandal. The tiara was eventually dispatched under police escort, which Harry described in Spare as 'a little exaggerated' but necessary as 'time was running out.'
Summing up the incident, Hardman said, 'What should have been a happy, bonding moment turned into a stress point.' The row added to pre-wedding nerves and tensions that had not occurred with any other royal wedding.
