Prince Harry calls Prince William his ‘beloved brother and archnemesis’ in his upcoming memoir

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Prince Harry isn’t mincing words about his rift with Prince William in his upcoming memoir, according to Good Morning America. 

The Duke of Sussex’s “Spare” is set to be released on January 10. Ahead of its publication, Harry sat for an interview about the book with GMA’s Michael Strahan.

GMA aired a clip of the interview on Thursday, during which Strahan asked Harry about a section of the memoir where he refers to Prince William as his “beloved brother and archnemesis.”

“Strong words,” Strahan said of Harry’s phrasing. “What did you mean by that?”

“There has always been this competition between us, weirdly,” Harry said of himself and his brother. “I think it really plays into or was played by the heir-spare.” 

Strahan also said Harry shared that people called him “the spare” throughout his life, as William is the heir to the UK throne as King Charles’ first-born son, making Harry the backup. The title of the autobiography references the phrase as well. 

The GMA clip aired after The Guardian reported on Thursday that Harry’s book contains details of an alleged altercation between himself and William in the book. According to the outlet, Harry said that William physically attacked him during an argument over Meghan Markle in 2019.

Kate Middleton, Prince William, Prince Harry, and Meghan Markle at Windsor Castle on Saturday. Chris Jackson/Getty Images

The Guardian reported that Harry wrote of William calling Meghan “difficult,” “rude,” and “abrasive,” and that as the conversation escalated, William became violent. 

“He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor. I landed on the dog’s bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me,” Harry wrote, according to the excerpt obtained by The Guardian. “I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out. Representatives for Kensington Palace did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.

It is unclear how The Guardian obtained a copy of “Spare,” as Penguin Random House did not widely share copies of the memoir ahead of its publication.