One should always be wary when Harold or his wife appear in public with paid for photographers, especially when they sport a smirk, and when it is to deflect from other news. Can we trust what we see at face value? Is it all smoke and mirrors from the Sussex camp and from BP, with a whiff of weed in air? I was skeptical when the Sussex PR had a statement ready to go because they didn’t have to issue a statement at all, so why did they except to take control and possibly to fool the public and the media with vague wording?
The popularity of King Charles III jumped overnight when the media reported that the Sussexes had been asked to vacate Frogmore Cottage. The People finally thought that the Sovereign was listening to them and was defending his family and the nation. However, we should rewind—the story started via The Sun, and the leak probably came from the Sussex camp. Their aim has always been to control the media, and by the smug looks on their faces may indicate that they think that’s what they are doing. Have the public been fooled by BP and the Harkles? Why else leak to a tabloid they hate and to make them look foolish?
I spoke to an accountant about the repayment the duo could receive as the lease on Frogmore Cottage is being cancelled, and they told me that this was a standard accounting practice to release tax free funds. They also said they were surprised that none of the media have bothered to look into this, or spotted it. Here are some of the hypothetical situations that may have arisen according to the accountant I spoke to:
The duo have been asked to vacate Frogmore Cottage by 1 July 2023. This has been possibly negotiated to allow them time to find an alternative property.
It is possible that the IRS do not deem Harold as domiciled or resident in the UK when he has a leased property that he has to renew annually, sublet to a third-party, while owning a property in the US. Therefore, Frogmore Cottage, or any other grace and favour property would be of no use to Harold for tax purposes. The IRS may have given Harold leeway in 2020 and 2021 due to Covid-19 lockdowns and restrictions on travel.
This means that Harold would have to purchase a property in his own name in order to fulfil the criteria of being resident or domiciled in the UK. We don’t know what his claimed status is. How can he find the funds to do that?
The repayment would be for works, upgrades, and refurbishments that were paid with their own funds (or invoiced to C3 and the Duchy of Cornwall). As we aren’t privy to the contract, we can only hypothesise based on standard contracts. We believe that the duo overspent the grant that had been allocated to them, and the repayment will be based on invoices that they will submit to the Crown Estate for repayment. This can include fees for interior designers, and specific flooring (such as marble floors or underfloor heating), but what checks and balances are there to ensure the invoices are authentic?
Technically, the repayment would be made in a lump sum in July, and would be tax free as it is a repayment and is not income. The IRS and HMRC cannot touch the money. Where will the repayment come from? It is unknown, but some is expected to come from public funds as the Crown Estate profits fund the Sovereign Grant.
How much will be repaid? It could be anything between £2-4 million depending on the invoices submitted. Even if the invoices were paid for by C3 or the late Queen, the funds would be paid to Harold as the lease is in his name.
The accountant suggested it was an easy and legitimate way to give tax free funds to Harold quickly, and quite possibly (not my words) by using public funds legitimately.
Both parties benefit. C3, in the public eye appears to be strong and is now more popular, while Harold gets a tax free lump sum of money that is supposed to be a repayment of his own money, but all invoices were probably paid for by the Duchy of Cornwall and possibly the late Queen as well.
Were the smiles because Harold thought he had got one over on the media that he hates?
Random House, and several distributors clubbed together to put on a publicity drive to push the book via a paid for (pre-recorded) virtual chat with Dr Gabor Maté, a doctor specialising in trauma on 4 March 2023.
Basically, you bought a copy of SPARE, and you got access to watch the trauma conversation. From what I gather, it was the same spiel rehashed, with Harold claiming he wasn’t looking for sympathy and that he is not a victim, yet he claims he was trapped and a prisoner within the RF.
Harold says that once he released to book he felt free, thus suggesting that he had been a victim and had been trapped. Is he profiting from his professed status as a prisoner within the RF, and making money from being a professional victim and from his alleged trauma? He claims he feared losing memories of his mother in therapy, and that’s an indication that his therapist did a poor job, and had the wrong type of help.
If we can encourage other people to be vulnerable themselves and be vulnerable to their family, the world would be a better place.
To be able to share the things in my life that I think is important feels good but like an act of service.
The deluded chap thinks his memoir is an act of service to the world, however, I doubt his grandparents would have agreed on that. Dr Gabor Maté, then diagnosed Harold with a series of issues ranging from PTSD, to anxiety—essentially he is stating that Harold is a highly unstable person with issues that haven’t been addressed. Harold should be in a white jacket and not a beige one.
What is more disturbing is that he suggests the use of marijuana as being helpful, which is not only dangerous but can also be considered misinformation. His words could encourage younger users, and addicts can use his spiel to justify their use— this can only be seen as an irresponsible act. The fact that he has been using drugs since he was a teenager should also be a concern considering that he was in the army during this period. There are claims that Harold was exempt from random drug testing, and in his book even he was surprised that he passed the drug tests (perhaps he didn’t?).
How does it look when Harold is patron of Scotty’s Little Soldiers, WellChild, and the Invictus Games—all entities that do not support drug use? Isn’t it dangerous for a child to look up to Harold, hear him say that using weed can be useful and then use it because Harold said so? How can a parent argue with that?
It puts into question whether the army acted responsibly if they were aware of drug use and still permitted him to use weapons and to fly aircraft in a war zone? I’m halfway through SPARE, and to spare my mental health I have taken breaks. The overriding pattern is that Harold has a distorted view of what he believes has happened. He played down the Las Vegas incident, claiming that his pals were to blame and he just went along with things and actually wanted an early night. Later, he claims it was no big deal because the army didn’t do or say anything and his father didn’t even reprimand him, and he claims only the media had a problem with his behaviour. Yet, recollections vary because I recall at the time that Harold made an apology, and the entire country was disgusted at his behaviour, and in the apology, Harold apologised to his family for the embarrassment caused. We all know he was told to say that, and now we know it was a fake apology and he didn’t mean it.
If the charities and entities choose to continue their association with a known drug user who advocates the use of drugs, then they will lose further support. How can people support their work when their patron endorses the use of drugs? They should think carefully about their own reputations rather than cling to a toxic royal connection that is unpopular.
