Prince Harry’s ‘incredibly raw’ response to Princess Diana questions mirror Prince William’s ‘microexpressions’ of emotion years before

Prince Harry reportedly had a “raw” response when asked about Princess Diana in recent interview, mirroring Prince William’s body language from years earlier.

• The Duke of Sussex got candid during a recent interview with Hoda Kotb for the Today Show about his late mother the Princess of Wales. 
• Analysing his response, a body language expert has suggested that Prince Harry displayed insightful “microexpressions” that are similar to Prince William’s.
• This royal news comes as Prince Charles' heartfelt tribute to his mother the Queen showed their close bond.  

The Duke of Sussex has often spoken out about Princess Diana over the years, so it’s perhaps no surprise that she came up during his candid recent interview with Hoda Kotb for the Today Show. Over the past year alone he shared more emotional insights as Prince Harry revealed he can feel Princess Diana’s presence with him and opened up about Princess Diana’s pain during his and Meghan Markle’s Oprah interview. 

Now in his latest interview appearance he was asked about whether he felt his mother’s presence. In response Prince Harry replied, "It's constant, it has been over the past two years, more so than ever before. It's almost like she's done her bit with my brother and now she's very much helping me. She's got him set up now she's helping get me set up, that's what it feels like. He's got his kids, I've got my kids. The circumstances are very different.”

He added, “I feel her presence in almost everything I do now. But definitely more so in the last two years than ever before, no question. She's watching over us."

The Prince also revealed he talks to his children about their "Grandma Diana" and it seems his body language during the interview when asked about her showed how “raw” his feelings of loss still are.

Analysing Prince Harry’s response on behalf of Slingo, body language expert Darren Stanton believes there was a “sudden change”. He suggested that whilst the Queen’s grandchild had been “reserved”, he showed warmth when discussing his mom. 

“For the majority of the interview, Harry appeared reserved, his body language was closed and he displayed gestures of self-reassurance—a sign that he was uneasy and uncomfortable to share too much detail when discussing his private life at home with Meghan and their kids and his relationships with other members of the Royal family,” Darren explained. 

“However, speaking about Diana there is a warmness about Harry,” he went on. “As he heard Diana’s name, Harry dropped his head down and his eyebrows came together, we saw flashes of sadness across his face—his microexpressions alluding to his true state of mind.”

The expert also expressed his belief that the loss of his mother is still “incredibly raw” for Prince Harry even after all these years as he keeps her close in his heart.  

“Even though he lost his mother over 25 years ago, the feelings he has are clearly still incredibly raw,” Darren stated. “This was visible when Harry was told by the reporter that Diana would be proud of him. Harry’s voice broke slightly and his pitch went up as he agreed, responding: ‘I’m sure she is'”.

Prince William’s body language shows the “same change” of emotion  

Whilst the late Princess Diana’s sons couldn’t seem more “different” in many ways, when it comes to discussing their mom, they display a very similar “change in emotion”. Speaking to womanandhome.com, Darren remarked upon Prince William’s body language as he got candid in the 2017 documentary, Diana: Our Mother, Her Life and Legacy. 

"It appears on the surface that William and Harry are very different characters, however, when talking about their late mother, it’s clear from their body language they still feel a very close and strong bond with Diana,” Darren explained, before going on to delve into how the future King appears to almost “brace himself” for this poignant subject. 

"When William is asked about Diana, you see him immediately taking a breath,” the expert revealed. “This signifies a sudden change in emotion and he is almost bracing himself, as it seems it’s still very raw for him to speak about his mother after all these years. Almost simultaneously, we see a fleeting change of emotion in William, a micro-expression of sadness suggesting it’s a topic he finds difficult to discuss.”

Comparing this to Prince Harry’s own “micro-expressions” during his Today Show interview, Darren added, “We saw this same change in Harry when he discussed Diana recently. William, like Harry, was seen looking down and towards the left hand side, suggesting he is drawing memories from his feelings as opposed to visual memories.”

This is something that the body language expert believes is “not surprising”, as he observes this trait in not only both brothers, but their mother too. 

He continued, “It’s not surprising that this is something both Harry and William do, as Diana herself was also a kinesthetic person - someone who makes decisions and takes actions very much based on how they feel.”

And it seems that just as Princess Diana is an “integral presence” in Prince Harry’s life today, the expert perceives a similar “close connection” when Prince William talks about her. However, unlike Prince Harry, the elder brother is reportedly more “reserved”. 

He shared, “It’s clear Harry still loves her very much and she still plays a very important part in his life. His response to Diana being proud of him spoke volumes and proves he is clearly missing her—now more so than ever. Had he not, he wouldn’t have had that much of an emotional response.”

"It’s clear he holds a sadness that Diana isn’t here to meet wife Meghan and their two children, but to Harry, Diana still has an integral presence in his every day,” he added. 

In comparison, Prince William is apparently more “controlled” with how he speaks about his mother’s enduring importance in his life and that of his children. 

“It’s clear William still feels a very close connection to Diana, however he appeared to be a lot more reserved when discussing her,” Darren stated.  

“Harry is far more animated and uses hand gestures when speaking about Diana—this is almost a sign of frustration because he wants to get his words out quickly and is determined to get his point across. Whereas, William is a lot more controlled and considers what he says and his actions more carefully," Darren declared.

Ultimately, whilst Prince William is said to show more considered signals when discussing Princess Diana, both he and Prince Harry still reportedly display “raw” emotion and highlight how she's still a huge presence in their lives.