‘It was destroying my mental health’: Prince Harry opens up about stepping back from royal family

‘It was a really difficult environment as I think a lot of people saw,’ says Duke

The Duke of Sussex has opened up about his decision to step back from the royal family, explaining that it was “destroying [his] mental health”.

Speaking to James Corden on The Late Late Show, the prince clarified that he hasn’t severed ties completely.

“It was never walking away,” he said.

“It was stepping back rather than stepping down. It was a really difficult environment as I think a lot of people saw.”

The 36-year-old went on to specifically reference the British media’s treatment of him and his wife, the Duchess of Sussex.

“We all know what the British press can be like,” he said.

“And it was destroying my mental health. I was like, ‘This is toxic.’ So I did what any husband and what any father would do and was like, ‘I need to get my family out of here.’”

Harry continued: “But we never walked away. And as far as I’m concerned, and whatever decisions are made on that side, I will never walk away.

“I will always be contributing. But my life is public service. So wherever I am in the world it’s going to be the same thing.”

Harry and Corden filmed the interview while riding an open-top bus through Los Angeles, where Harry and Meghan moved last year with their son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.

The couple revealed that they would officially not be returning to their roles as working members of the royal family earlier this month.

A spokesperson for the Sussexes said in a statement at the time that Harry and Meghan “remain committed to their duty and service to the UK and around the world and have offered their continued support to the organisations they have represented regardless of official role”.

They added: “We can all live a life of service. Service is universal.”