When you think of British royal family gatherings, things that come to mind are complicated millinery, Easter egg pastels and protocols that result in tight-lipped smiles and drab chit-chat. I would never once think that the name "Ali G" would be spoken from Prince Harry's mouth to the Queen Mother's ears, and yet, here we are! I've just learned that in Harry's autobiography, Spare, the princeling does just that.
Prince Harry Taught His Great-Grandmother How to Do an Impression of Who?!
"Respec"
Published Dec 26, 2025
•2:00pm
ayne Fincher/Princess Diana Archive/Getty Images
Since the 2023 publishing of Spare, the public has learned quite few royal family secrets—like a physical altercation with his brother in 2019, views on his step-mother's relationship with the tabloids, and of course, that frostbite situation involving his nether region. But, now that we're a few years since the book hit the shelves, another story has found its way circulating again.
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Prince William had actually mentioned the incident previously at the time of their great-grandmother's passing in 2002. The story goes that during one Christmas before her death, the boys were watching Da Ali G Show when the Queen Mother walked in. Completely unaware of who Ali G was—let alone Sasha Baron Cohen, the comedian who portrays himself as the namesake idiot hip-hop reporter—the brothers taught the nearly centenarian how to flick her fingers and say "respec" the Ali G way.
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In the autobiography, Harry writes about the moment not just because it was funny, but because it holds a place in his heart as a time when he felt like he was truly part of his family. Writes Prince Harry in Spare: "She had this amazing flick of the wrist. And I will never forget that barbecue night. It was wonderful, I felt like I was part of the family."
The royal goes on to say, "I felt very different to what I felt before that. I felt slightly isolated. I felt slightly different. I dunno what was going on. And maybe that was, again, the sort of the suppression of the trauma and the grief but I had a proper laugh with my… with my Gan-Gan then."
Here's hoping Harry and family can find some of those laughs again (we're looking at you, Sasha Baron Cohen!).
