The autobiography of. will be in all bookstores on October 10th Boris Johnson, Unleashededited by William Collins Books. In this book, some extracts of which have been published on Daily Mailthe former British prime minister revealed some anecdotes about the royal family, especially about Queen Elizabeth and Prince Harry. He is not the first former prime minister to open a breach in the centuries-old walls of the Royal Palace, but no one before him would have touched in such detail on particular themes that have profoundly influenced the history of the monarchy and had a great media impact such as Megxit and the death of Elizabeth II.
Two contrasting versions
Elizabeth II died on 8 September 2022 in Balmoral. Since that sad day, the media and public opinion have been wondering what her last hours of life were like and what, exactly, was the cause of the beloved sovereign’s disappearance. On the death certificate it is clarified that Elisabetta died for “advanced age”. In his memoir, however, Boris Johnson gave another version of the facts: “I had known for more than a year that (the Queen) was suffering from a form of bone cancer and her doctors were concerned that at any time she could experience a rapid decline.”. We also find the theory of death from cancer in recent biographies, Catherine. The Princess of Wales by Robert Jobson (2024) ed Elizabeth. An Intimate Portrait by Gyles Brandreth (2022). The latter spoke, to be precise, of “a myeloma, a bone marrow cancer”. Johnson, however, is the first (former) government official to give information on the cause of Elizabeth II’s death. For this reason his words have a weight and an echo that are impossible to ignore. For now Buckingham Palace has not released any comment on Johnson’s statements, but it is clear that we are faced with two versions that are in stark contrast to each other and a breach of protocol by the former prime minister.
The last hearing at Balmoral
In the memoir Boris Johnson, who held the role of prime minister from 2019 to 2022, recalled his last trip to Balmoral for the traditional weekly meeting with the sovereign, during which he resigned. It was September 6, 2022, two days before the death of Elizabeth II: “She appeared pale and hunched over, with dark bruises on her hands and wrists, probably from the IVs and injections. But his mind was absolutely free from the disease and from time to time, during our conversation, he still showed that broad, white smile of soothing beauty.”. The former prime minister defined the hearings in the presence of Queen Elizabeth “a privilege” And “a comfort”.
“You would have died for her”
Until the end, the sovereign kept her incredibleness intact sense of dutya more than admirable quality according to Johnson: “She had known since the (previous) summer that she was going to leave, but she was determined to hold on and complete her last duty.” Then he added: “She radiated such an ethic of service, patience and leadership that you truly felt that if necessary, you would die for her. It might sound crazy to some people (and completely obvious to many others), but that loyalty, primitive as it may seem, is still at the heart of our system. We need someone who is kind, wise and above politics, to personify what is good in our country. She did it beautifully.”
“The Queen wouldn’t have wanted it”
Boris Johnson’s decision to address in his book such a delicate issue as the last days of the Queen Elizabeth has divided royal commentators. The opinion of Chris Ship, royal editor of, stands out above all Itv Newswhich a ABC News stated: “What former Prime Minister Boris Johnson did was share private information he got from the late Queen. She didn’t want to share her health condition.”. In fact, Buckingham Palace has always maintained the most absolute secrecy on this topic, carefully filtering, or rather sipping, the news intended for world public opinion. The question leads us directly to another issue that still divides experts and tabloids: the apparent contrast between the right to privacy which, at least in theory, belongs to all individuals and the burdens deriving from a public office, which would represent a limit to the request for confidentiality. As if, in a certain sense, a personality of the caliber of Queen Elizabeth was not totally in control of herself and her choices, but had to answer, at least in part, to the people over whom she reigns.
“Generational leap”
The question arose again, albeit in a different way, with the announcement of the cancer diagnoses of Charles III and Kate Middleton. Her Majesty and the Princess of Wales, while not clarifying the exact nature of their illness, have shared many details of their illness. The impression is that the King freely chose what to say and when to do it, while Kate would have been partially induced to reveal her real health conditions by the unstoppable tsunami of allegations and absurd conspiracy theories that spread across the media between February and March 2024. In this regard Chris Ship commented: “There has been a generational leap (with) the current King sharing his cancer diagnosis and Kate telling us she needs to undergo chemotherapy treatment.” For the expert, the contradiction between privacy and public duty would have a single solution: “It is up to the individual (to decide) how much they want to share with the public and the late Queen was someone who wanted to keep her medical condition as private as possible.”
Prince Harry’s resignation
“After many months of reflection and internal discussions this year we have decided to implement a transition to begin to progressively carve out a new role within this institution. We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen…”. With these words, written on their Instagram profile on 8 January 2020, Harry And Meghan announced their resignations as active members of the royal family. A family and media storm ensued that no one at court could stop. Not even Queen Elizabeth. According to the Daily Mail, on January 6 of that year, a meeting was even called at Frogmore Cottage during which the Sussex staff tried to convince the rebel dukes to wait before communicating their intentions to the whole world. It wouldn’t have been of any use. The collaborators, however, would not have been the only ones to attempt dialogue with Harry and Meghan.
“Hopeless”
In the memoir “Unleashed” Boris Johnson revealed that he had received a request from the royal family and the government to try to persuade the Prince Harry to stay in London. The meeting, a face-to-face meeting that lasted twenty minutes, took place on the sidelines of the UK-Africa Investment Summit in London, on 19 January 2020. Precisely the day after the charity dinner during which Charles and Diana’s second son, as he The Guardian reported, he gave a speech “not as a prince or duke, but as Harry”revealing that he had not “no other options” if not that of resignation. Regarding that private conversation, Boris Johnson wrote: “(It was) an absurd feat…when they made me try to persuade Harry to stay. A kind of pep talk between men. Completely useless.” The then prime minister would have praised the prince’s work and commitment to the Crown, but Harry was no longer interested in compliments.
While Prince William received the guests of the UK-Africa Investment Summit at Buckingham Palace, the BBC recalled, Harry took the first flight to Canada, determined to start a new life outside the walls of the Royal Palace.