Ian McKellen Makes a Bold Declaration About Royal Family Feud Involving Prince Harry

Ian McKellen shared his honest thoughts on the royal family feud—and even took a declarative side—during a recent interview with The Times.

The topic came up when the London newspaper reporter interviewing the English actor showed up at his home and noticed a copy of Spare, the memoir Prince Harry published in early 2023, among his collection of reading materials.

The 85-year-old said he is “most definitely on Harry’s side” when it comes to the feud between the Duke of Sussex and other members of the royal family, which experts and fans alike have speculated about for years.

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The Lord of the Rings actor, who told the interviewer he is eager to return to the stage following a mid-performance fall in June at the Noël Coward Theatre in London, England, made bold declarations about other members of the royal family during the interview, which The Times published on Friday, Sept. 6.

After speculating that being part of the royal family must feel like being “in prison” because the royals “can’t do anything normal,” McKellen revealed that the late Queen Elizabeth II was “quite rude” to him when they’d met years ago. Meanwhile, he believed her oldest son, King Charles III, seemed “clearly damaged.”

“As for Harry, he’s probably not bright enough or doesn’t have the right friends to really help himself,” McKellen alleged of the 39-year-old son of the king and the late Princess Diana.

The royal family is believed to have fractured around the time of Harry’s 2018 marriage to actress Meghan Markle, with tabloid coverage of Markle and their relationship adding to the strain. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex later stepped back from their royal duties in early 2020 and moved to the U.S., adding physical distance between their growing family and Buckingham Palace.

The feud has continued in recent years, with royal sources recently reporting that Prince William’s wife, Kate Middleton, was “very concerned” about the ongoing tension between her husband and his younger brother.

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