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Prince Harry and cover of his book, Spare© Getty

Prince Harry to release new version of memoir Spare - but there's a major change

The Duke of Sussex's book was first released in January 2023

Danielle Stacey
Online Royal CorrespondentLondon
August 27, 2024
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The Duke of Sussex's memoir made for explosive headlines when it was first published in January 2023 – and now it's set to be released in a new format this autumn.

Prince Harry's book Spare will be published in paperback on 22 October in the US and on 24 October in the UK, Penguin Random House confirmed on 27 August.

And while it's common for paperback editions to include extra chapters or updates, the publishing house said the "new edition will have the same cover image as the hardcover edition, a newly designed package and the contents of the book are unchanged". 

Revelations in Harry's autobiography included claims that his brother, the Prince of Wales, physically attacked him and that the King put his own interests above Harry's. He also branded his stepmother Queen Camilla "dangerous" and criticised her attempts to rehabilitate her image at his cost, saying she sacrificed him on "her personal PR altar".

WATCH: Key revelations from Prince Harry's memoir Spare

In an interview with Bryony Gordon for The Telegraph in January 2023, Harry said of his 416-page memoir: "It could have been two books, put it that way."

He said that there were things he revealed to ghostwriter JR Moehringer "for context", but there was "absolutely no way" they would be included in the book.

Prince Harry's Spare memoir© Getty
The paperback version of Prince Harry's Spare will not contain any additional material

The Duke added at the time that it was impossible to tell his story without referring to family members.

He added: “But there are some things that have happened, especially between me and my brother, and to some extent between me and my father, that I just don’t want the world to know. Because I don’t think they would ever forgive me. Now you could argue that some of the stuff I've put in there, well, they will never forgive me anyway."

Harry was pictured sitting three rows away from William and Kate at the coronation© Getty
Harry was last publicly reunited with his brother at the King's coronation in May 2023

Spare also saw Harry express his frustration at being the "spare to the heir", his anger at the UK media, his unresolved trauma over the death of his mother, his mental health struggles, his lonely life before meeting Meghan, and the breakdown of his family relationships.

The book became an international bestseller, selling more than six million copies, in all formats, across the world. It also holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest selling nonfiction book of all time. 

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales & Prince Harry look at a mobile phone as they watch the athletics during the Invictus Games© Getty
William, Charles and Harry in 2014

The publication of the book in paperback may coincide with the King and Queen's upcoming royal tour of Australia and Samoa this autumn.

Samoa will host the Commonwealth Head of Government Meeting (CHOGM) from 21 to 26 October, and Charles and Camilla are expected to attend. 

The CHOGM brings together delegations from 56 countries in Africa, the Caribbean and Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Pacific.

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