Prince Harry "Buried Emotion" After Princess Diana's Death: "I Still Didn't Even Want to Think About It"

The royal was 12 years old when his famous mother was killed in a car crash

By Samantha Schnurr Dec 20, 2016 1:28 PMTags
Prince William, Princess Diana, Prince Harry, Olga Powell, 1993Tim Graham/Getty Images

Nearly two decades later, Prince Harry is opening up old wounds. 

In a new ITV documentary, Prince Harry in Africa, the youngest son of the late Princess Diana recalls how he suppressed the sudden death of his mother after she was famously killed in a car crash in 1997. At the time, the royal was only 12 years old. 

"I never really dealt with what had actually happened, so there was a lot of buried emotion and I still didn't even want to think about it," he said during the project.

Anwar Hussein/WireImage

Today, the 35-year-old philanthropist has used his power and influence to spearhead several foundations, including the mental health charity Heads Together and Sentebale, a Lesotho-based charity focused on preventing and destigmatizing AIDS and supporting the country's youth.

The latter is particularly close to Harry's heart as his mother championed on behalf of the same causes while she was alive. Princess Diana was a famously avid supporter of those fighting the virus early on in the epidemic despite public fear and misonception. Most memorably, she hugged and held hands with patients without wearing gloves, becoming the first royal to do so. 

"I've got a year off. I want to do something really constructive with my life," Harry said during the documentary, recalling inspiration for starting the foundation. "I want to do something that makes my mother proud." 

In the past year, the royal set up a charity concert with Coldplay, campaigned at the 2016 International AIDS Conference and enlisted Rihanna to take an HIV test in public with him to demonstrate how simple the procedure is and encourage people worldwide to join him. 

As Harry wisely said, "It's fun to be good and boring to be bad."