Prince Harry Discusses Mental Health and His Newfound Happiness in Rare Sit Down With James Corden

On Feb. 19, Buckingham Palace confirmed that Harry and Meghan Markle will not be returning as working royals. 

Prince Harry got candid during a chat with James Corden in an interview that aired Thursday, telling the late-night host that staying in England was compromising his “mental health,” as the pair enjoyed a proper cup of British tea, all above a double-decker tour bus.

“It was never walking away, it was stepping back rather than stepping down,” Harry told Corden during the rare one-on-one interview. "It was a really difficult environment as I think a lot of people saw," he said.  "We all know what the British press can be like. It was destroying my mental health.”

Longtime friends Corden and Harry spoke frankly.

"This is toxic, so I did what any husband and what any father would do which is 'I need to get my family out of here,'" Harry told Corden, adding that he preferred the depiction of royal life seen on Netflix show "The Crown" to the one depicted in newspapers, cited CNN.

Harry and Corden also made sure to have some fun. In one part of the interview, Harry gets a "true taste" of the city streets of Los Angeles when the tour bus hits a bump, sending a food cart crashing into Harry's lap, making him jolt, laugh and spit tea.

Harry told Corden, in fact, that this was his first time on an open tour bus.

On Feb. 19, Buckingham Palace confirmed that Harry and Meghan Markle will not be returning as working royals. The announcement was made just over a year after the couple first shared their plans to step down as senior royals. 

Despite the exit, Harry told Corden that he plans to be the same person he was when he was a working member of the royal family and that his dedication to humanitarian duties will not waiver. And, that he and the Duchess of Sussex will always be committed and devoted to helping others.

"I'll always be contributing,” Harry, 36, said. “My life is public service, so wherever I am in the world it's going to be the same thing.”

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