Homesick Harry's reflections on veterans seem increasingly sad

The bond, the banter, the bravery, the bacon - all the b-words that render us British. Just as the era of the personal essay seemed finally to have been put to rest, a surprising new voice emerged this week in the form of Prince Harry, contributing some touching thoughts and a lot of alliteration to the public sphere to coincide with the run-up to Remembrance Sunday.

- Emma Brockes

Monday

Unlike his blockbuster memoir, Spare, the essay, which runs to 650 words, seems to be all the prince’s own work and, as well as his observations about the role of veterans, offers us a poignant insight into his life in California.

Or rather, into what appears to be one man’s homesickness for simple British pleasures not readily available in Montecito. Namely, wrote the prince, “stoic spirit”, “self-deprecation and humour”, the “banter of the mess, the clubhouse, the pub” and a “cuppa or a pint”. Good luck finding an adequate cup of tea in that part of the world. But the misty-eyed list of blitz-era national characteristics would seem to speak to a more generalised sense of estrangement that brings to mind a line from an EL Doctorow short story about a man “simply dying of the wrong life”.

While back in Britain, the royal family pressed on with its grim and overdue task of banishing the former Prince Andrew, Harry’s random intrusions into public life look by contrast increasingly blameless. One assumes the prince would rather be at the Cenotaph this Sunday, alongside other members of his family - just as one assumes he would be happier running after pheasants in a field in Gloucestershire than going to an LA Dodgers game - but instead he will be in Toronto engaging with veterans.

A few years ago, at this time of year, Harry laid a wreath in a private ceremony at the Los Angeles National Cemetery. There is nothing wrong with either of these gestures, but I’ll say it: they seem rather sad.

Tuesday