Prince Harry Reveals That His Royal Life Was a Mix Between ‘The Truman Show’ and Being in the Zoo

Have you ever wondered what it must’ve been like for members of the royal family to grow up in the limelight?

In a recent Armchair Expert podcast episode, The Duke of Sussex, Prince Harry, opened up about what it was like to grow up in the spotlight. His answer? “A mix between ‘The Truman Show’ and being in a zoo.”

The Truman Show revolves around a regular old guy (Truman) who doesn’t know his life is a TV show—but when he finds out, he tries to escape. So how is that the same? Prince Harry explains that Truman was born into it—the same way Harry was.

“The biggest issue for me was that being born into it you inherit the risk, you inherit the risk that comes with it — you inherit every element of it without choice and because of the way that the UK media are, they feel an ownership over you” he said. While some people might deem his situation as a privilege, it’s hard for other people to understand unless they’re in the same situation. Imagine—being born into something you can’t control, and then getting ridiculed when you try to leave!

“Literally — like a full-on ownership — and then they give the impression to some, well most, of their readers that that is the case, but I think it’s a really dangerous place to be if you don’t have a choice,” he continued. But then of course people, quite rightly, will turn around and go, ‘So what if you didn’t have a choice? It was privilege.’”

To hear more about Prince Harry’s struggles amid the walls of the royal family, check out the video below.

What do you think of Prince Harry’s description of being a royal? Were you born into a situation you couldn’t control? Tell us about it!