Prince Harry's claim that he was born to act as a potential organ donor to his older brother Prince William, made in his newly released book Spare, has stunned fans on social media, with many likening it to the plot of a movie.
Harry made the claim in his highly anticipated memoir which was released on Tuesday, writing: "I was brought into the world in case something happened to Willy [William]. I was summoned to provide back-up, distraction, diversion and, if necessary, a spare part. Kidney, perhaps. Blood transfusion. Speck of bone marrow. This was all made explicitly clear to me from the start of life's journey and regularly reinforced thereafter."
The claim was quickly picked up by social media users, with a clip taken from the audiobook recorded in Harry's own voice being uploaded to TikTok where it soon went viral.
"Prince Harry was literally born to provide spare body parts for Prince William," uploading user sugarnspicey told their followers in a post which has been viewed over 1.6 million times in just 24 hours.
Many responded with shocked comments, such as one user who wrote: "That family is so messed up and Harry was smart to get out."
While another added: "He's not wrong though [pleading face emoji]."
@sugarnspicey Prince Harry was literally born to provide spare body parts for Prince William #thespare #princeharry #princeharryandmeghan #meghan #royalfamily ♬ original sound - Tricia
Some users pointed out that Harry's claims closely resemble a plot point of the 2004 novel by Jodi Picoult titled My Sister's Keeper.
In the novel, and later the 2009 movie starring Cameron Diaz, a young girl sues her parents for emancipation after being told to donate a kidney to her critically ill older sister.
"Is that not the plot to My Sister's Keeper though [crying face emoji]," one TikTok user wrote.
"Sounds like he's read My Sister's Keeper," said another.
A key theme running throughout Harry's memoir is a reflection on his position as the younger brother of the heir to the British throne. This is so prevalent that the prince decided to title the book Spare, a reference to the English saying of "heir and a spare."
This saying is used to illustrate the dynastic safety of having a second child who could step into their older sibling's position should anything happen to them, thus continuing the family line.
Harry recounts that he was 20 when he was first told a story of the then-Prince Charles' reaction to Princess Diana when she gave birth to Harry in 1984.
"Wonderful, now you've given me an heir and a spare my work is done," he is alleged to have said.
Despite this clear focus on his position as the "spare," Harry insists that his position in the Windsor line of succession never bothered him.
"I took no offense, I felt nothing about it, any of it," he wrote.
"Succession was like the weather or the positions of the planets or the turn of the seasons. Who had the time to worry about anything so unchangeable? Who could bother with being bothered by a fate etched in stone?"
"Every boy and girl, at least once, imagines themselves as a prince or princess," he later continued. "Therefore spare or no spare, it wasn't half bad to actually be one."
As well as a number of personal reflections, Harry revealed in his book a number of intimate details about family members, including private conversations for which he has come under criticism, given his own quest for privacy.
Among these, he has revealed an insight into his wider relationship with Prince William including that he and his brother were never as close as the public were led to believe and that his brother physically attacked him in a 2019 argument over Meghan Markle.
So far, both Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace have adopted blanket "no comment" positions on Spare or the claims made within it.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
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About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more
