Blood-soaked copies of Prince Harry memoir ‘sold for five-figure sums’ – as artist plans coronation protest
An artist who soaked copies of Prince Harry’s memoir in human blood says he has sold some for five-figure sums – and is planning a further protest on the day of the King’s coronation.
Andrei Molodkin covered 25 copies of Spare in blood donated by Afghan people following the Duke of Sussex’s controversial remarks about his number of kills in Afghanistan.
A spokesman for the dissident Russian artist said the blood-smeared books went on display in Kennington, London, this week and seven copies have now been sold – each for at least $10,000 (£8,000).
The blood-soaked copies of Harry’s memoir Spare went on display this week
Fabien Nordmann, a long-time fan of Molodkin’s work, told Sky News he had agreed to pay more than the asking price as he wanted to secure “one of the first editions”.
“He’s a visionary,” Mr Nordmann said of Molodkin.
“He told me the price was $10,000 and I said: ‘What about to get the number 1 or 2?'”
Mr Nordmann, who lives in Paris and is currently working in the Ivory Coast, said he is yet to receive his blood-covered copy of Spare but will make arrangements to collect it when he returns to the French capital later this month.
The 77-year-old said he was not disturbed by Molodkin’s use of blood, saying it was “to shock” but insisting it was “less shocking” than Harry’s remarks.
Fabien Nordmann (R) pictured with artist Andrei Molodkin
Molodkin, an anti-war artist who lives in France, has previously said any money raised from the sale of the blood-soaked copies of Spare will be donated to Afghan charities.
The blood was originally donated to fill a sculpture Molodkin created of the Royal Coat of Arms, which was projected on to St Paul’s Cathedral in London in March.
Harry’s controversial comments
The duke faced criticism for revealing in his memoir that he killed 25 Taliban fighters while serving with the British Army in Afghanistan.
He wrote that it “wasn’t a number that gave me any satisfaction… but neither was it a number that made me feel ashamed”.
The prince also admitted that he did not think of those he killed as “people”, but instead as “chess pieces” that had been taken off the board.
Prince Harry pictured serving in Afghanistan in 2008
He wrote: “While in the heat and fog of combat, I didn’t think of those 25 as people. You can’t kill people if you think of them as people. You can’t really harm people if you think of them as people. They were chess pieces removed from the board, Bads taken away before they could kill Goods.”
Mr Nordmann said: “The son of the King said, like, it was a game. This is really shocking.
“You don’t kill like a game.”
Molodkin released photos as he smeared the books in blood
Mr Nordmann said he plans to keep his blood-soaked copy of Spare in his home “near a book of the Rolling Stones”.
It is the sixth piece he has bought from Molodkin over 15 years. “He has multiple talents and he knows how to express with quality,” he said of the artist.
“It’s like somebody from the Renaissance.”
The artwork contained blood donated by Afghans
Molodkin projected the sculpture on to St Paul’s Cathedral
Coronation protest
Molodkin is now planning a protest for the King’s coronation on Saturday when a video game will be available to access on mobile phones near Buckingham Palace.
The prototype game reflects “the very real atrocities that were committed in the Iraq and Afghani wars”, the artist says, and a link sent to selected people will only function within a mile radius of the palace.
Molodkin said the coronation was a ‘vulgar display of power and wealth’
It will use similar technology to that used by Molodkin last May, when he said an image of an anti-war sculpture containing the blood of Ukrainian fighters was live-streamed at Moscow’s Red Square, as Vladimir Putin oversaw Russia’s Victory Day parade.
On the King’s coronation, Molodkin said in a statement: “The money being spent on this vulgar display of power and wealth is built on the blood of victims around the world over many generations.”
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He added: “People are unable to feed their children and heat their homes so this display of pomp and ceremony should be seen for what it is.
“It is a violent assault on democracy through the monarchy’s quest to maintain its bloodline.”
Dean Cain has been branded the “worst superman ever” as he announced he will join the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) “ASAP”.
The 59-year-old, who was cast as Superman in the TV series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, announced he had joined the team amid the federal agency’s unprecedented immigration raids.
He told Fox News on Wednesday his recruitment video on Instagram had gone viral and since then, “I have spoken with some of the officials over at ICE and I will be sworn in as an ICE agent ASAP”.
“You can defend your homeland and get great benefits,” he said in the Instagram post where he appealed for his followers to join ICE.
Speaking with the Superman theme song in the background, he said “hundreds of thousands of criminals” had been arrested since US President Donald Trump took office.
He then told his followers they would get a series of benefits if they joined ICE, including a $50,000 (£37,407) signing bonus and student loan repayment.
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“If you want to help save America ICE is arresting the worst of the worst and removing them from America’s streets,” he said, before adding: “I voted for that.”
ICE agents are under pressure from the White House to boost their deportation numbers in line with Mr Trump’s campaign promise to crack down on illegal immigration.
Cain’s post on Instagram received some backlash, with one user commenting: “Worst superman ever”.
Another said: “Shame on you Dean – that’s the most un-Superman thing you could possibly advocate.”
One fan turned against him and said: “Until I saw this I was such a fan. What a sad human being you must be.”
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Oasis gig at Murrayfield in Edinburgh beats Taylor Swift for most ‘ground-shaking’ concert
Oasis provided the most “ground-shaking” performance at Edinburgh’s Murrayfield Stadium when they last performed there in 2009, according to analysis of seismic data.
The Gallagher brothers’ last Scottish gig has topped the chart for the most powerful seismic concert at the venue in the past 20 years, the British Geological Survey (BGS) said.
Oasis’ June 2009 gig beat the Red Hot Chili Peppers in June 2004, Kings of Leon in June 2011 and Taylor Swift in June 2024 – when measuring the peak earthshaking power of each event.
Noel Gallagher. Pic: PA
The measurements were taken from a seismic monitoring station, some 4km from the venue.
At peak power of 215.06kW, the Oasis gig was more than twice as powerful as the next strongest one by the Red Hot Chili Peppers at 106.87kW.
Murrayfield Stadium’s most seismic concerts:
• Oasis: 17 June 2009, 215.06kW
• Red Hot Chili Peppers: 14 June 2004, 106.87kW
• Kings of Leon: 26 June 2011, 96.18kW
• Taylor Swift: 8 June 2024, 82.56kW
• Foo Fighters: 8 September 2015, 78.65kW
• Harry Styles: 26 May 2023, 65.38kW
• Beyonce: 20 May 2023, 29.31kW
• Robbie Williams: 31 May 2025, 14.18kW
• Bon Jovi: 22 June 2011, 13.20kW
• Spice Girls: 8 June 2019, 10.63kW
• One Direction: 3 June 2014, 6.82kW
The rankings were revealed ahead of Oasis’ return to the Scottish capital this weekend as part of their comeback tour.
The power output is not related to the volume of the band or the crowd; rather, it is the movement of fans jumping and dancing in time to the music, with the height of the jumping and weight of the crowd also potential factors.
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BGS seismologist Callum Harrison said: “In 2009, seismic signals generated by Oasis fans were consistent with a crowd energy of 215kW at its peak – enough to power around 30 of the scooters featured on the iconic Be Here Now album cover.
“Our network of sensors around the country is sensitive enough to pick up ground movement from a source miles away that may not be detectable to humans – and precise enough to register exact timestamps for when the events occur.
“The peak energy reading was recorded around 8.30pm on that June evening back in 2009, which correlates to the time the band first took the stage and performed Rock ‘N’ Roll Star, which couldn’t be more fitting in terms of topping our seismic music chart.”
The BGS keeps an archive of continuous ground motion recordings from seismic sensors around the country, dating back several decades.
Mr Harrison said: “Improving our understanding of historical earthquakes is an important part of BGS research in trying to understand and mitigate the seismic risk around the country.”
Oasis will take to Murrayfield’s stage on Friday, Saturday and Tuesday, so there is potential for another “shakermaker”.
Mr Harrison said it is “certainly possible” the band could top their 2009 gig, adding: “We’ll just have to wait and see.
“The main contributing factors are going to be how energetic the crowd is. If they’re jumping along with the music, how high or how fast are they jumping?”
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