ComScore

Prince Harry Says the Prince William ‘Best Man Reports’ Were a ‘Bare-Faced Lie’

The royal spare is speaking his truth

PureWow editors select every item that appears on this page, and some items may be gifted to us. Additionally, PureWow may earn compensation through affiliate links within the story. All prices are accurate upon date of publish. You can learn more about the affiliate process here.

Prince Harry Smiling at Older Brother Prince William CAT2
Toby Melville - WPA Pool/Getty Images

For years, royal fans believed that Prince Harry, 39, and Prince William, 41, were each other’s best men at their weddings. But in his bombshell memoir Spare, which hit bookstore shelves in January 2023, the Duke of Sussex finally set the record straight. 

In a passage taken from Spare (reposted by Buzzfeed News), Prince Harry shared that the palace made up the “bare-faced lie.” The reason? The public “expected [it].” 

Instead, Prince William’s close friends, James and Thomas, were his best men. And when it came time for the Duke of Sussex to tie the knot with Meghan Markle, his best man was his “old mate Charlie.”

Prince Harry with Older Brother Prince William CAT
Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Prince Harry also explained why his older brother didn’t want him to be his best man. He wrote, “In truth, Willy didn’t want me giving a best-man speech. He didn't think it safe to hand me a live mic and put me in a position to go off script. I might say something wildly inappropriate. He wasn’t wrong.” Well, at least there were no hard feelings.  

Speaking of Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding, Prince Harry also addressed the rumors surrounding the Princess of Wales’s engagement ring. Multiple reports claimed that the Duke of Sussex gifted his brother the ring once he learned their relationship was headed toward marriage. But, the royal spare debunked the statements, calling the rumors “absolute rubbish.”

“The papers published florid stories about the moment I realized Willy and Kate were well matched, the moment I appreciated the depth of their love and thus decided to gift Willy the ring I’d inherited from Mummy, the legendary sapphire, a tender moment between brothers, a bonding moment for all three of us, and absolute rubbish: none of it ever happened,” the duke wrote in the book. 

prince harry kate middleton engagement ring 1
CHRIS JACKSON/GETTY IMAGES

Glad to hear the truth, Prince Harry. 


Stay up-to-date on every breaking royal family story by subscribing here.


karelle headshot

Assistant Editor, News And Entertainment

  • Covers all things news and entertainment
  • Has over 5+ years of reporting on celebrity news and pop culture
  • Studied Journalism at Brooklyn College