The mental health start-up where Prince Harry works as chief impact officer has been described by its staff as a ‘toxic trainwreck’ – but that’s only that latest setback the Duke of Sussex has faced this year, says Clair Woodward. The Sussex’s Christmases in Montecito are described by the Duchess, Meghan, as follows: ”Like any other family, you spend time having a great meal, and then what do you do? Play games, all the same stuff, someone brings a guitar – fun.”.
Oh, God, a Californian with a guitar, playing one of those slow, “sensitive” versions of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”. As if this year couldn’t get any worse for Prince Harry. Like his dear old Gan-Gan in 1992, Harry has had something of his own annus horribilis in 2024, which was packed with events that would have had even a top personal publicist banging their head against a wall in frustration.
Ever since his father, King Charles, was revealed in February to be undergoing treatment for cancer, the bad news for Harry has just kept on coming. The latest setback in a terrible 12 months for the Duke of Sussex – who turned 40 in September – came only this week, when the mental health start-up he works for as chief impact officer was branded a “toxic trainwreck” by current and former employees.
So, where best to begin? You might think being given an award for creating the Invictus Games for wounded members of the armed services would be a jolly good thing and worthy of recognition. But when Harry was named as the winner of the Pat Tillman Award by US sports TV network Espy, awarded to those who have shown excellence in “service, leadership, and community involvement”, it went down very poorly indeed.
