It was classic Harry: unbuttoned, excited, gloriously himself. No formalities here. Photo / AP
It was classic Harry: unbuttoned, excited, gloriously himself. No formalities here. Photo / AP
Comment by Bryony Gordon of the Daily Telegraph
It was just after 2pm in the UK when the "It's a boy!" announcement came on Instagram, swiftly followed by a beaming Prince Harry speaking to cameras outside some stables near Windsor Castle.
It was classic Harry: unbuttoned, excited, gloriously himself. No formalities here.
He was almost boyish himself in his enthusiasm, and here was a reminder of why the public love him so much, why we feel so invested in his story.
"I'm very excited to announce that Meghan and myself had a baby boy earlier this morning, a very healthy boy."
"How any woman does what they do is beyond comprehension," he almost gasped. "But we're both absolutely thrilled and so grateful to all the love and support from everybody out there. It's been amazing, so we just wanted to share this with everybody... As every father and parent will ever say, you know, your baby is absolutely amazing, but this little thing is absolutely to die for, so I'm just over the moon."
The television and radio talk shows had frothed themselves into a rage in the last week, caterwauling about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's insistence on having a private birth, as if this might mean we wouldn't get news of the new baby until it set off for university at 18.
"THE PUBLIC HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW!" they screeched furiously, the idea of a woman keeping the state of her cervix to herself almost too much to bear. Imagine, in the year 2019, a mother-to-be wanting to do childbirth her way!
Harry will make the most wonderful father, having already had some practice with "five or six" godchildren, not to mention his niece and nephews. Photo / AP
But in the end, we only had to wait about nine hours before the happy couple announced their happy news via their Instagram page - the usual way for parents nowadays to communicate such things.
Could anyone really begrudge them those nine hours? What a gift this was to be able to give their child, surely the loveliest of all.
Forget baby blankets or the latest buggy: here was the gift of precious time when nobody in the world but his parents - and those who had helped them through the birth - knew he existed.
Harry, I know, will make the most wonderful father, having already had some practice (he told me has "five or six" godchildren, not to mention his niece and nephews).
In the end, we only had to wait about nine hours before Meghan and Harry announced their happy news via their Instagram page. Photo / AP
"Are you a really awesome godfather?" I once asked him.
"I'd like to think so," he replied. "The key to that is to grow up but also be in touch with your..."
"Yeah, your childish side. If that means going to someone's house and sitting down and playing PlayStation and kicking the a*** of their son on Counter-Strike or Halo or whatever it is then I will try and do that... But of course I would love to have kids."
There has been a nasty undertone to many of the stories about supposed tiffs between the princes and their wives. But this has reminded us that our favourite royal story of all is a happy one.
Prince Harry holds a special place in the public mindset because he has always seemed the most heartfelt member of the Royal family - be it partying in his 20s without an apparent care in the world, through to revealing, two years ago, that, actually, he had all the cares in the world, and had been extremely close to a breakdown, due to not dealing with his grief after his mother's death when he was just 12.
I remember telling him that he deserved all the happiness in the world.
As he announced his new baby, he had grasped it with both hands.
Congratulations, Harry and Meghan. May the three of you have many, many more private hours of blissful joy.
