Prince Harry shared that he, his wife Meghan Markle, and their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, honor his late mother Princess Diana's birthday with a special tradition: baking a lemon drizzle cake. Harry, 41, made these remarks on Saturday at Scotty's Summer Festival in Warwickshire, which marked his final public appearance during a recent trip to the United Kingdom.
"I think traditions are really, really important," Harry stated, "especially when they're sweet." Princess Diana's birthday is on July 1, and she would have been 63 this year. She died in a car crash in Paris in August 1997 at the age of 36.
Harry, who was 12 when his mother passed away, has previously spoken about how her death influenced his relationship with the royal family. In April, he cited his mother's tragic passing as a primary reason he initially did not want to be a working royal, believing her role as a royal contributed to her death. He expressed a strong aversion to the role, stating he was "very much against it" and "stuck my head in the sand for years."
However, Harry's perspective shifted when he considered the potential to use his privilege to effect positive change. He also reflected on what his mother would have wanted for him, a thought that significantly altered his outlook and eventually led to his and Markle's departure from royal duties in 2020.
In 2021, Prince Harry reflected on his grief in a foreword for a children's book, describing the loss of his mother as leaving "a huge hole inside of me." He wrote that while people cope with loss differently, the spirit, love, and memories of a parent remain. "They are always with you and you can hold onto them forever," he shared, offering words of comfort and encouragement to children experiencing similar losses. He added that feelings of sadness or anger would eventually pass and that talking about the experience could lead to feeling better and stronger.