King Charles has faced fresh calls to strip Prince Harry of his royal titles following the duke’s latest unusual appearance on a US talk show. The Duke of Sussex made a surprise cameo on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert this week.
Harry took part in a comedy sketch that aired on Wednesday night, playing himself as he “auditions” to become a Hallmark-style Christmas movie prince, even cracking jokes about US President Donald Trump. In the clip, the duke strolls through the studio pretending to be lost while looking for the set of “Gingerbread Christmas Prince Saves Christmas in Nebraska.”
Colbert then asked why a real prince would want to appear in a film like that, to which Harry replied: “You Americans are obsessed with Christmas movies, and you’re clearly obsessed with royalty, so why not?”
When Colbert challenged the idea of an American “obsession,” Harry replied: “Really? I hear you elected a king,” seemingly alluding to the “No Kings” protests aimed at the Trump administration.
Referring to CBS’s recent settlement with Mr Trump, the duke joked that he would “do anything” to secure the role, adding: “I’ll record a self-tape, I’ll fly myself to an audition, settle a baseless lawsuit with the White House — all the things you people in TV do.”
Colbert responded, “Hey, I didn’t do any of those things,” prompting Harry to fire back: “Maybe that’s why you’re cancelled.”
The sketch then shifted into a full festive scene, with Christmas trees appearing and sleigh bells ringing as Harry encouraged Colbert to “just believe.”
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The Daily Beast’s Tom Sykes wrote on his Royalist Substack: “I think the Royal Family has no real choice. Harry believes he’s free to speak his mind now that he’s no longer a working royal.
“I think if he were truly living as Harry Wales, a private citizen, that argument would hold water. But he isn’t Harry Wales. He’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex.
“And in the American imagination, he still carries the full aura of a prince — a representative of the monarchy.”
He continued: “A global audience does not understand that Harry is no longer part of the Windsor family business. Charles and William may be hundreds of miles away in Balmoral or Windsor, but in the American mind they are standing just offstage as Harry delivers his punchlines.
“The titles must be removed, not as punishment but for clarity. Removing them creates a clear division between Prince Harry the royal and Harry the private citizen. It protects the monarchy from his unpredictability.”
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