Prince Harry’s friends are ‘very hurt’ by his bombshells, Rebecca English tells PALACE CONFIDENTIAL

The Duke of Sussex’s absence from the wedding of one of his closest friends reflects the ‘sad situation’ Prince Harry finds himself in when it comes to those formerly closest to him, according to the Daily Mail’s Diary Editor Richard Eden.

‘We don’t know if Jack Mann’s become estranged from Harry or not, but in Harry’s memoirs, at the end he talks about how he was “chastised” – in his words – after the interview by some of his closest friends,’ he tells this week’s episode of Palace Confidential.  ‘He’s done a lot of damage to those old relationships.’ 

The Daily Mail’s Royal Editor Rebecca English says that the fallout from his former friends has been profound.

‘From what I hear there are a lot of people who are genuinely disgusted by what he’s done since leaving the Royal Family,’ she tells the programme. 

‘They feel very hurt by some of the revelations that he’s made. As they were growing up William and Harry created a very close-knit circle of friends around each other.

The Duke of Sussex stood shoulder to shoulder with his best man, Jack Mann, and his other closest confederates in the ‘band of brothers’ photograph at Windsor Castle on the night of the royal wedding (Pictured from left: Adam Bidwell, Lord Vivian, Henry Warhurst, Prince Harry, Charlie Gilkes, Jack Mann and Mark Dyer)

‘There was almost a kind of omertà between them. There are people who said “we’ve been very loyal to him over the years and we don’t feel that loyalty’s been repaid”’.

The Duke of Sussex stood shoulder to shoulder with Jack Mann and his other closest confederates in the ‘band of brothers’ photograph at Windsor Castle on the night of the royal wedding. Also in the snap were financier Adam Bidwell, PR guru Lord Vivian, car collector Henry Warhurst, nightclub entrepreneur Charlie Gilkes, Mann and Prince Harry’s long-time mentor Mark Dyer.

And, after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s nuptials, it was suggested that Mann was not just one of the ushers but was, in fact, his ‘real’ best man, rather than Prince William. 

So there was disappointment at the weekend among royal fans that Harry and Meghan were not present at Mann’s own big day.

The Duke of Sussex’s absence from the wedding of one of his closest friends reflects the ‘sad situation’ Prince Harry finds himself in when it comes to those formerly closest to him, according to the Daily Mail’s Diary Editor Richard Eden. Pictured, Harry and Meghan Markle in December 2022

The paper’s Royal Editor Rebecca English (pictured) says that the fallout from his former friends has been profound

Mann, 40, exchanged vows with osteopath Isabella Clark at St Peter’s church in Stutton, Suffolk, where guests included Harry’s friend Thomas van Straubenzee, godfather of Princess Charlotte. 

Van Straubenzee was accompanied by his wife, Lucy, an assistant head at Charlotte and Prince George’s former school, Thomas’s. 

It’s not clear how close Harry remains to Mann, whom he met at Sandhurst where both were commissioned into the Blues and Royals.

Jack is the son of Simon Mann, a SAS officer turned mercenary, who was jailed for five years for allegedly trying to overthrow the government in Equatorial Guinea in 2004. 

Harry’s friend served with the British Army for tours of Iraq and Afghanistan. After leaving the army he worked in Libya as a country manager for a UK security company called Aegis Defence Services. He went on to create his own private security company in 2015 called Alma Risk. 

The Duke admits in his memoirs, Spare, that he fell out with some of his old pals after he attacked the Royal Family on television.

Prince Harry was this week pictured with his daughter Princess Lilibet at an Independence Day parade in Montecito just hours before King Charles III attended his second Coronation ceremony in Edinburgh. 

The Duke of Sussex first became pals with Jack Mann during their time together at Sandhurst

Prince Harry played polo with Jack Mann when the pair were younger (pictured in May 2015)

The Duke of Sussex appeared to underline his retirement from The Firm as he took his daughter to the California celebration on July 4, as the US marked its independence from British rule. 

But as he was showing two-year-old Lilibet the Montecito Association’s Village Road Show, his father King Charles was preparing for one of the most important moments of his rule: a second Coronation in the country his beloved second son once called home.

Accompanied by family members including Prince Harry’s brother Prince William, the King and Queen Camilla were honoured in a prestigious event at St Giles’ Cathedral, attended by senior royals. But the Duke himself was nowhere to be seen.

Prince Harry did attend his father’s official Coronation, the first in the UK in 70 years, but was only on UK soil for a matter of hours before he returned to the US to celebrate his son Archie’s birthday, which fell on the same day. 

His American wife Meghan Markle and two children remained in the US at their Montecito home. 

Sources previously said the decision by Meghan to remain in California had come as a relief in some circles, following fears her presence could have heightened family tensions. 

WHO IS JACK MANN? PRINCE HARRY’S ‘SECRET BEST MAN’ 

JACK MANN: PRINCE HARRY’S ‘REAL BEST MAN’

Prince Harry befriended Jack Mann at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. He is the son of Simon Mann, a SAS officer turned mercenary, who was jailed for five years for allegedly trying to overthrow the government in Equatorial Guinea in 2004.

Close friend: The Duke of Sussex first became pals with Jack Mann during their time together at Sandhurst. Right: However the Prince wasn’t at Mann’s wedding to osteopath Isabella Clark in Suffolk over the weekend

Harry’s friend served with the British Army for tours of Iraq and Afghanistan.  After leaving the army he worked in Libya as a country manager for a UK security company called Aegis Defence Services. He went on to create his own private security company in 2015 called Alma Risk.

This weekend, Mann, 40, exchanged vows with osteopath Isabella Clark at St Peter’s church in Stutton, Suffolk, where guests included Harry’s friend Thomas van Straubenzee, godfather of Princess Charlotte.