Prince Harry has made a number of shocking allegations in his bombshell memoir Spare, which finally hit the shelves on 10 January.
As well as detailing an alleged physical assault between him and his brother Prince William and writing about his relationship with his sister-in-law, the Princess of Wales, Prince Harry opens up about his father, King Charles. Most poignant is an extract dedicated to the monarch's longest-serving companion - a teddy bear.
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Prince Harry recalls King Charles taking his teddy "everywhere", writing that it was the same teddy bear his father took to Gordonstoun - the school where the King was bullied as a boy.
His Majesty attended Gordonstoun, a boarding school in Scotland, from the age of 13, following in the footsteps of his father Prince Philip. And speaking on a recent ITV documentary called Charles: Our New King, one of Charles' former classmates claimed a young Prince Charles was regularly targeted by bullies, and was even physically attacked during a rugby match.
© Photo: Getty ImagesPrince Charles pictured at preparatory school in 1957
Harry writes in his autobiography: "Teddy went everywhere with Pa. It was a pitiful object, with broken arms and dangly threads, holes patched up here and there."
He added: "Teddy expressed eloquently, better than Pa ever could, the essential loneliness of his childhood."
While the idea of the monarch keeping a soft toy from his childhood may seem surprising to some, the act of keeping a sentimental 'cuddly' toy is not an unusual practice. A survey carried out in 2019 suggests that 44% of adults still have their childhood teddies and 34% still sleep with their soft toys every night.
© Photo: Getty ImagesPrince Harry recalls his father taking his teddy "everywhere"
Speaking exclusively to HELLO!, Principal Psychologist at DH Consulting Dannielle Haig, said: "We often instigate lifelong coping mechanisms in childhood. When things are difficult or anxiety-inducing, humans often use certain behaviours to help 'self-soothe' the uncomfortableness.
"Some people self-soothe with drinking, smoking, food, or shopping and of course, cuddling teddy bears."
Dannielle added: "There isn’t anything particularly unusual about finding comfort in a teddy bear and it can be far healthier than many other 'adult' coping strategies."
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