Prince Harry will 'have a hell of a fight on his hands' to keep tell-all book from coming out: royal expert
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left their roles as senior royals in 2020
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Amidst deafening silence from the royal family about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle since Queen Elizabeth's funeral in late September, questions surrounding Prince Harry's tell-all book continue to arise, including speculation over whether the exposé will ever actually reach shelves.
Royal expert Duncan Larcombe told Fox News Digital that despite any misgivings Harry may have, it is too late to pull the book. He says Harry's publisher, Penguin Random House, has invested "a lot of time, effort, money and so on in producing the book, addressing and doing all those things to it," so they will not acquiesce to growing pressure Harry may be feeling from his family to "soften" his book.
"It could be their best-selling book of all time. Who knows," says Larcombe of Penguin Random House. "So they won't want to just turn around and say, 'Fair enough Harry. Yeah? You don't want to rock the boat anymore at this time.' Simply doesn't work like that. They're in a business commercial world now."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He says, "If Penguin want their book, and they've got the manuscript, Harry might have a hell of a fight on his hands, to contain anything of his plans."
Prince Harry's book deal with Penguin Random House reportedly featured a hefty down-payment in return for a manuscript. (Karwai Tang/WireImage)
Larcombe's opinions deeply contrast those of royal biographer Tina Brown, who shared with The Telegraph that she believes Harry's "book won't see the light of day."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}While Larcombe believes the publisher has the upper hand, Brown is not so sure, writing "They are now in this bind, where they’ve taken all this money and Harry has made this book deal where he’s supposed to spill everything about his horrible life as a royal, but now he’s actually tortured about it because he understands there is no way back if he does it."
Brown went so far as to say she believes King Charles III would have to pay back the advance sum Harry was paid if he does not want his son's claims to see the light of day.
King Charles and Prince Harry have maintained a tumultuous relationship, which could only get more complicated by the release of Harry's book. (Samir Hussein/WireImage)
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}However, Larcombe tells Fox News Digital, "It's gone past the point now where the publisher is just okay about having that money paid back."
The book, which was originally slated to be released before the holiday season, has been speculated to be under review by Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, who are considering retracting some previously written statements.
"It's just the question, really, of how much has the queen's death meant that Harry and Meghan have had to have a rethink," says Larcombe.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Duke and Duchess of Sussex did attend Queen Elizabeth II's funeral in England. (Danny Lawson - WPA Pool)
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"I think it's inevitable with delays that people will start to speculate as to what that means. ‘Has Harry developed a conscience?' ’Has he found his old conscience back?'… I really don't think there's any likelihood that Harry would even be able to stop Penguin from publishing, to be honest. It's all under contract and it's all signed and done, you know?"
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Per the publishing website, the book is still scheduled to be released "globally in late 2022."