It’s not every day you get to hear just anyone speak so candidly about what they think of the British Royals over fear of being publicly humiliated. But not Prince Harry‘s pal James Haskell, who has one word to describe the Royals — “dysfunctional.”
The retired rugby player did not mince his words when he spoke about his experience spending time with British royalty in an interview with The Times. While he praised them for doing “amazing work,” he also pointed out that they’re “a modern family that’s very dysfunctional.”
Despite his brutal comment about the Royal Family, he also warned against the abolishment of the monarchy, as he believes it plays an important role in Britain. He said: “To those who want to get rid of the monarchy — once they’re gone, they’re gone. There’s no way back from that, so remember that they serve an important role. I love what they do.”
Elsewhere in the interview, the 39-year-old said that some Royals “aren’t as great as others” but didn’t drop names. Although, it’s unlikely he’s referring to Harry and Meghan Markle, as he was among the guests at their May 2018 wedding. He was also at Mike and Zara Tindall’s wedding in 2011 and he co-hosts The Good, The Bad & The Rugby podcast with Mike.
Speaking about the Tindall’s wedding, Haskell remembered it being “full of rugby players.” He said, “It was the perfect combination of ceremony and romance, coupled with the fact that both of them like to enjoy themselves.”
He also remembered making a cruel joke about Prince Andrew at their nuptials saying, “I told a joke about when I was at Mike’s wedding — Prince Andrew was sweating up a storm on the dance floor, but then he realized that everyone was over 18, so he left — It was inappropriate, but it was funny.”
Haskell’s joke is a reference to the Duke of York’s BBC Newsnight interview in which the Royal argued that he couldn’t have shared a sweaty dance with Virginia Roberts Giuffre at London’s Tramp nightclub because he has a medical condition that prevents him from sweating. Giuffre accused Andrew of sexual assault, which he settled out of court.
Last year, Haskell and Mike enjoyed chatting with Princess Anne, Prince William, and Kate Middleton on their podcast. Haskell was all praise for the Prince and Princess of Wales afterward, saying in an interview on Good Morning Britain: “That podcast was brilliant because we see them at their best, obviously they have a wicked sense of humor. In this country in particularly [sic] we obviously put people on a pedestal, but they are a regular family, an incredible family they do a lot for this country but a regular family.”
Haskell has long been vocal about his support for members of the Royal Family, including Harry. He defended the Duke of Sussex’s decision to write a memoir earlier last year, saying that it was Harry’s way of putting his narrative across under the restrictions of the royal decree of “never complain, never explain.” When asked what advice he would give the duke, he said, “You can’t let people keep walking over you. For someone like him, there’s so many conflicting narratives, I think you gotta put a tentpole in the ground. You’ve got to turn around and say…here is my truth. For me, I think it’s very important that he’s now put it out there and then he could move on. “