Caroline Flack’s ex-agent hits out at Prince Harry for repeating ‘long forgotten slurs’ in memoir
Caroline Flack’s former manager has called Prince Harry’s description of his relationship with the presenter in his memoir, “disgusting” and “grotesque”, and called for him to be stripped of his titles.
Alex Mullen, the creative director of APM Media who previously worked with Flack, said it was “absolutely gross” the royal had repeated “old long forgotten slurs” in his book Spare.
The prince and Flack briefly dated in 2009, and the presenter was described as “a bit of rough” in tabloid coverage at the time.
Flack took her own life aged 40 in February 2020
The Love Island presenter took her own life aged 40 in February 2020.
In a lengthy post on Instagram, Mr Mullen, who says he worked with Flack over 12 years between 2008 and 2020, wrote: “It’s absolutely gross for Prince Harry to reveal such private details about Caroline Flack.
“The way in which the press spoke about her at that time and the reason they split are both very sad and it’s disgusting he’s brought up old long forgotten slurs she had to suffer in full view of the public around the world.
“Of course, Caroline reacted to them with humour and grace but privately she was deeply hurt; just the first of many injustices she didn’t deserve.
“Harry’s decision to remind all of the terrible things said about her to help sell his appalling book is grotesque.”
In the book, Prince Harry says he hadn’t known who Flack was when he first met her at a restaurant with friends – telling her “I don’t watch much TV”.
Calling her “funny and loving,” he mentions several dates the couple went on to have, but says they decided to end the relationship due to press harassment.
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He writes: “Very soon after [the photographers] papped me and Flack, those photos set off a frenzy. Within hours a mob was camped outside Flack’s parents’ house, and all her friends’ houses, and her grandparents’ house.”
He goes on: “She was described in one paper as my ‘bit of rough’, because she once worked in a factory or something. Jesus, I thought, are we really such a country of insufferable snobs?”
Flack also mentioned the relationship in her 2014 autobiography, Storm In A C Cup.
Later in the book, Prince Harry also mentions Flack’s death, writing: “Caroline Flack, a very good friend of mine, had taken her own life. By the looks of things, she couldn’t bear it anymore.
“The years of constant harassment by the press had killed her. I felt awful for her family. I can’t forget how much she suffered for her fatal sin of going out with me.”
Criticising the mention of her death, Mr Mullen wrote: “Perhaps worst of all, he writes as if he has any idea why Carrie took her own life, parroting media reports as if they’re reality. Blaming the press because that’s what he read about it. He knows nothing.”
In his post, Mr Mullen went on to call for the royal family to “strip [Prince Harry] of all titles immediately”.
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Spare is officially published tomorrow, however several leaks of the book – initially from America, and then from Spain – mean much of the content is already in the public eye.
Prince Harry has also been publicising his book through high-profile interviews on both side of the Atlantic, including on ITV in the UK, and in the US on CBS, ABC’s Good Morning America and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
They’re getting through 70kg of rice a day and the wholesaler has run out of noodles. Yes, Sumo returns to London on Wednesday.
It’s just the second time a Grand Tournament has been held outside of Japan – and this is a sport that has records going back more than 1,500 years.
It’s 34 years since the Royal Albert Hall hosted the only previous such event on foreign soil – and the appetite for tickets meant all five days sold out immediately.
Much of the focus is on the two grand champions or yokozuna, the 74th and 75th men to attain the rank.
They’re the Mongolian Hoshoryu Tomokatsu, plus Japan’s Onosato Daiki – who this year became the quickest wrestler to achieve the rank in the modern era.
“I’m happy that Sumo is back after so many years,” Onosato said. “I hope I can show the UK fans how fantastic Sumo is.”
“Being a yokozuna has a lot of responsibility,” Hoshoryu told Sky Sports. “We have to show everyone an example of what a yokozuna is – and that’s very difficult.
“My uncle was a yokozuna – and I’m happy to follow in his footsteps. But I came here to London as a yokozuna which he didn’t, so I’m even happier.”
The two are already great rivals.
Onosato Daiki became the quickest ever to achieve yokozuna rank. Pic: AP
At the recent Aki Basho – the most prestigious tournament on the sumo calendar – the pair finished with identical records after 15 days of bouts.
It all came down to a final play-off between the two yokozuna – the first time that had happened in 16 years. It was Onosato who came out on top on that occasion.
Hoshoryu says he is a big fan of basketball and football. He follows Chelsea, although his favourite players are going back a bit: “Didier Drogba and Petr Cech. He’s the ‘keeper. I like this guy!”
Early starts and a hearty stew: The life of a rikishi
The wrestlers – or rikishi – have a rigorous training regime.
They live in communal blocks called stables and practice starts early. Perhaps surprisingly, everyone skips breakfast. After training and practice – and for the younger rikishi, chores – the wrestlers all eat together.
The staple of their diet is chankonabe, a hearty stew packed with meat and vegetables. The feeding of the 40 rikishi who have come over for the five-day tournament is a challenge in itself.
Donagh Collins, the CEO of co-organisers Askonas Holt, said: “We are going through 70 kilos of rice a day. Somebody told me that the wholesaler for the noodles has run out of noodles. We’re really pushing the system here.”
The ring – or dohyo – is just 4.55m in diameter and quite small when two giant wrestlers leap at each other.
The aim of the fights is to either get your opponent onto the floor – or, more spectacularly, shove or hurl them out of the dohyo, so spectators in the ringside seats may be getting extremely up-close to the wrestlers.
The last time the tournament was in Britain, the massive Konishiki, known as the Dump Truck, took centre stage.
The giant Hawaiian was the heaviest-ever rikishi coming in at 287kg – or 45 stone. That’s a lot of wrestler to dodge if he comes falling out of the ring towards you.
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The Royal Albert Hall may be firstly a concert venue, but it has hosted the likes of John McEnroe, Lennox Lewis and even Muhammad Ali.
And for the next five days, the cream of the world of sumo will be thrilling the crowds – provided a new noodle supplier is found.
What is a yokozuna?
Yokozuna is the highest rank in sumo, with its name meaning “horizontal rope” and refers to the rope worn around a competitor’s waist as they enter the ring.
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