Prince Harry has offered a poignant insight into his parenting, revealing that he mirrors the compassionate approach of his late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, when dealing with his own children. The Duke recalled how Diana and her brother, the Prince of Wales, hugged him “as tightly as possible,” a gesture he now gives to his son and daughter after a challenging day.In a recent podcast, Harry shared this meaningful moment before his children, Prince Archie (seven) and Princess Lilibet (five), visited their grandfather, the King. This marked their first meeting in four years, making the occasion even more significant for the family. The Duke was warm and honest in the interview he gave Celebrity Traitors star and former England rugby union forward Joe Marler about his parenting philosophy.
A parenting philosophy rooted in love
“The resilience of the kids is amazing, and the way they look at life is so refreshing,” Harry said on the Joe Marler Will See You Now podcast. He continued to narrate his daily practice. “And when a day is hard, one thing I do is always push my kids extra, extra tight.” This simple but effective act reveals the strong influence Diana’s way of raising her children had on Harry’s own parenting.
Harry shared that on difficult days, he hugs Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet more tightly, inspired by the way Princess Diana comforted her sons. Image credit (Instagram)
Light-hearted moments during the interview
In the fast-paced light-hearted podcast, Harry answers a stream of questions in the style of a mock therapy session hosted by “Dr Marler”. When asked to give his full name, he replied “Henry Charles Albert David, Duke of Sussex” and joked that his hair was not “pale” but “auburn”. When asked to name her favorite trashy TV show, she replied “Love Island”, adding “I didn’t watch Love Island, I watched Love Island.Asked which Harry he would be for the day between “Harry Styles, Harry Kane or Harry Potter”, he said “Kane for a day of victory”. He gave his prediction about England’s chances at the World Cup, saying “I think it will come down to home, not easy, not at all.”
During a candid podcast conversation, Prince Harry reflected on fatherhood, childhood memories and the importance of love, routine and emotional support in raising children. Image credit (Instagram)
Personal health habits and routines
When asked about his grooming regime, he replied “s***, shave, shower” and explained that “I trim my beard every five or six days, just to tidy it up a bit”. The balding duke added with a laugh “Nothing happened above, I had a haircut, otherwise I tried not to look at what happened.”The questions became more serious when he was asked how he dealt with the trauma. Harry replied, “Exercise, sport and finding time to take yourself somewhere, do something.Repetition is good, there is a routine.” He added “Boxing, another thing I like a lot, just to get rid of aggression, sweat. For me it’s always about sweating.”Harry and Meghan Markle live in Montecito, California, with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, after stepping down as senior working members of the British royal family in 2020.