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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Kyle O'Sullivan

Unapologetic Harry's excuse for drug shame and photographer scandal as he passes blame

Unapologetic Prince Harry blamed his wild partying phase, in which he faced drugs shame, on everyone apart from himself - saying he wasn't supported.

Highly-anticipated six-part series Harry & Meghan has landed on streaming giant Netflix, with the prince and wife Meghan Markle making a series of shocking allegations.

In the first episode, Harry speaks candidly about the death of his mother, Princess Diana, before addressing his wild antics as a teenager.

While he was at Eton, stories emerged of Harry's illegal drug-taking - and King Charles was reportedly shocked by how often he used cannabis.

"Not every story was false but there was a lot of typical exaggeration and rehashing," claims Harry in the docuseries, but he fails to reveal exactly what wasn't true.

Prince Harry's antics hit the headlines in 2002 (Mirrorpix)
The young Prince was boozing and frequenting night clubs (PA)

Harry has spoken candidly about his drug taking in the past, telling Oprah Winfrey that he was "willing to take drugs" while struggling to process the death of Princess Diana.

Harry told Oprah: "I was willing to drink, I was willing to take drugs. I was willing to do the things that made me feel less like I was feeling.

"But I slowly became aware that, ok, I wasn't drinking Monday to Friday but I would probably drink a week's worth in one day on a Friday or a Saturday night.

"And I would find myself drinking not because I was enjoying it but because I was trying to mask something."

In the Netflix documentary, pictures are shown on the screen of certain headlines, including one in which he's labelled 'Hellraiser Harry'.

Harry being interviewed in the docuseries (Netflix)

Sarcastically speaking about some of the claims made against him, he says: "He's bouncing between the walls, he's taking drugs, he's out late, he's clubbing. He's got a girlfriend here and there. What's going on?"

"It's difficult to accept there is a level of interest in this family and then being chased down the road on foot which happened 30 or 40 times when I was younger," he adds. "It was too much."

Attention then moves to Harry's 'scuffle' with a photographer which happened outside a nightclub in October 2004.

At the time, royal officials said the young prince was hit in the face with a camera in the incident, which occurred in the early hours of a Thursday morning outside Pangea nightclub.

Prince Harry relaxes in his bedroom at Eton (AFP/Getty Images)

"Prince Harry was hit in the face by a camera when photographers crowded around him as he was getting into a car," a royal spokesman said at the time.

"In pushing the camera away, it's understood that a photographer's lip was cut."

A Scotland Yard spokesman said police were aware of the incident but no complaint had been made.

Speaking about that time, Harry says: "Everything that was happening in the UK was so intense."

He then claims he did not get enough support, stating: "I was trying to balance the whole experience of being a young boy who was trying to deal with the loss of his mum without much support or help or guidance. It didn't seem fair."

The first three episodes of Harry and Meghan landed on Netflix today amid much controversy.

They featured emotional reality TV-style confessionals, unseen photos and a behind-the-scenes look at the couple's private lives.

The second set of episodes will drop at the same time next week and are expected to feature even more drama - with the date set to clash with the Princess of Wales's carol concert in memory of the late Queen.

Harry and Meghan have been nickname "The Kardashians" by some palace insiders as they "they want all the attention they can possibly get".

The dramatic trailer for the Netflix offering dropped late last week, with another coming at the start of this one.

The Prince and Princess of Wales were in Boston ahead of William's Earthshot Prize ceremony, and he rushed back to London to hold crisis talks with his dad King Charles ahead of the show's release.

A senior royal source said: "There is a completely united front from the King and his family concerning the numerous attempts to privately make peace with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, which sadly have once again resulted in the other side wishing to air their repeated grievances to the world.

"If there is a need to respond to anything in the upcoming series then you can be assured that response will be swift and robust."

What are your thoughts on Harry & Meghan? Have your say in the comment section below.

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