After two decades of silence, James Hewitt has denied unfounded conspiracy theories that he is the father to Prince Harry.
Speaking to Australia’s Channel Seven to mark 20 years since Diana’s death, Mr Hewitt firmly denied the rumours and paid tribute to the late Princess of Wales.
Asked by host Melissa Doyle if he was the biological father to the Prince, he replied: “No I’m not.”
Ms Doyle pressed him further, asking him why the rumours keep getting repeated.
He responded saying “It sells papers.”
When asked whether it is difficult to keep hearing these rumours, he said: “It’s worse for him [Harry] probably. Poor chap.”
It is unknown what the circumstances for the interview were, and why he has now decided to speak out. A spokeswoman for Channel Seven said it wouldn’t comment on whether Mr Hewitt was paid by the network to participate.
She told Fairfax Media: “We don’t discuss arrangements with any of the people we interview on Sunday Night.”
Mr Hewitt is a former army officer who served in the Queen’s Life Guard Regiment. He came to the attention of the media when he became romantically involved with Diana, Princess of Wales. The pair met at Buckingham Palace where he was later contracted to teach her horse riding lessons.
Diana’s former butler, Paul Burrell, who has been filling the media with gossip over the past few weeks, also appeared in the show.
He said it was not possible for Hewitt to have been Harry’s father as he didn’t even meet Diana until the young Prince was a toddler.
The rumours appear to be based on nothing more than Harry and Hewitt’s apparent physical resemblance to one another.
Prince Harry resembles must more closely his uncle, Diana’s brother, the Earl Spencer. That’s where the red comes from. Wills is a Windsor, Harry a Spenser. Hewitt and Burrell are cads. Profiteers. Of course Channel Seven paid Hewitt. Otherwise they’d have said they didn’t.