Prince Harry gets fresh about leaving royal duties, living in California
Harry talks The Crown, tours L.A. with talk show host James Corden
Prince Harry said he didn't walk away from his royal duties, in an appearance on The Late, Late Show with James Corden that aired early Friday.
Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, stepped away from full-time royal life in early 2020. Buckingham Palace confirmed last Friday they will not be returning to royal duties, and Harry will give up his honorary military titles.
Harry told Corden he decided to step away from his work as a front-line member of the royal family to protect his wife and son, as well as his own mental health.
"It was stepping back rather than stepping down," he said. "It was a really difficult environment, which I think a lot of people saw, so I did what any father or husband would do and thought, how do I get my family out of here? But we never walked away, and as far as I'm concerned, whatever decisions are made on that side, I will never walk away."
Harry and Meghan moved from England to California last year.
The appearance on Corden's show marked Harry's first interview since his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, stripped the prince and his wife of their remaining royal duties. Corden's segment trumped Oprah Winfrey, whose interview with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex is scheduled to air March 7.
During the segment, Harry and Corden tour southern California in an open-top bus, at one point arriving outside the mansion where the 1990s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was filmed.
"If it was good enough for the Fresh Prince, it's good enough for a real prince," Corden said.
The two then proceed to sing the show's iconic theme song.
Views on The Crown
At one point, Corden asks Harry what he thinks of the Netflix series The Crown, which delves into the personal lives and public actions of the Royal Family. At times, the show has been criticized for its depictions of real people.
"Of course it's not strictly accurate," Harry said, "but loosely ... it gives you a rough idea about what that lifestyle, what the pressures of putting duty and service above family and everyone else, what can come from that."
But he noted, "I'm way more comfortable with The Crown than I am seeing the [media] stories written about my family or my wife or myself."
