AMANDA PLATELL: It was the mother of a real hero who called Harry to account for failing his family and his country

The mother of an American war hero who was posthumously awarded both the Silver Star and the Purple Heart for his combat in Iraq and Afghanistan is shocked that Prince Harry is receiving an award in her son’s name.

Harry was nominated for the Pat Tillman Award for Service by the ESPY and will be honored at a glittering ceremony in Los Angeles later this month.

His alleged qualifications include his brief wartime experience – he was a veteran Apache helicopter pilot in Afghanistan – and his role in setting up the Invictus Games for wounded veterans and service members.

The award goes to Pat Tillman (pictured), whose mother has said she was not consulted

Mary Tillman, mother of Afghan war hero killed by friendly fire in 2004

But Pat’s mother, Mary Tillman, is unimpressed, questioning why he was chosen over more deserving candidates: “I’m shocked that they would select such a controversial and divisive person to receive the award when there are recipients who are far more fitting,” she said. And she’s not alone.

Mary Tillman speaks for countless others, as the internet has been awash with social media reactions condemning the decision, not only from outraged Americans and Britons, but also from countries like Australia, India and elsewhere around the world.

Everyone is stunned, not only that Harry is receiving such an honourable award, but that he has the audacity to accept it. One British veteran who served for 40 years posted on X that he was ‘furious’.

To understand why there is so much anger, it helps to compare Pat Tillman and Harry’s attitudes toward fame, fortune and duty.

The star American football player gave up a £3million NFL contract to fight for his country after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He joined the army and made the ultimate sacrifice, dying in Afghanistan in 2004, aged just 27.

Harry may have fought for his country too, but he gave up that country, along with his duties as a member of the royal family, for a life of money-hungry opportunity in California, thanks to his title.

Then he turned his guns on the monarchy – in that interview with Oprah Winfrey, in the Netflix series about him and Meghan, and in his memoir Spare. All for the chance to cash in. It’s pure treason!

As many have noted, including some of the 30,000 (and counting) Americans who signed a petition protesting Harry’s award, Pat Tillman left money and fame for honor and duty, while Prince Harry left honor and duty for money and fame.

After he left these shores, few members of his family were spared from his attacks.

Not his father King Charles, nor his stepmother Queen Camilla, nor his brother William to whom he was once so close, nor Kate whom he once described as the sister he never had. He and Meghan held no back when accusing them of racism, bullying and snobbery, and of neglect in their care of him and his emotionally fragile wife.

His late grandfather Prince Philip and grandmother Queen Elizabeth were also not spared the consequences and were no doubt devastated that the young couple abused Harry’s privileged position to undermine the monarchy.

Pat Tillman’s mother put it succinctly when arguing why Harry was not a worthy recipient of the award honoring her son’s legacy: “There are people in the veteran community who are doing wonderful things to help veterans … who don’t have the money, the resources, the connections and the privileges that Prince Harry has.”

And yet the Sussexes are so caught up in their own narcissistic hypocrisy, and so blind to criticism, that they don’t seem to realise how sensitive this subject is.

Why else would they put a statement on their official website saying that Prince Harry is one of the “esteemed recipients” of the ESPY award which “recognizes exceptional individuals who exemplify courage, perseverance and service.” Pass the barf bag!

It seems to me that Harry and Meghan are so desperate for recognition, and so eager to demonstrate their own oh-so-humanitarian virtues, that they will attend any opportunity where they can be praised and given an award, no matter how undeserved.

Prince Harry, who was pictured last month wearing a Household Division regimental tie and medals including his Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order cross, will receive a commemorative award at the ESPY Awards

In 2022, the Sussexes received an award from the American human rights organisation Ripple of Hope for people who ‘demonstrate an unwavering commitment to social change and work to protect and advance equality, justice and human rights’. A few days later, their Netflix series launched, in which they took the Royals to task for – I guess they call that justice and human rights!

Earlier this year, helicopter pilot Harry was absurdly inducted into the Hall of Living Legends of Aviation at an event hosted by actor and private jet pilot John Travolta.

In 2021, the ‘enlightened’ couple were hailed as ‘role models for the environment’ by British charity Population Matters, for their heroic decision to have just two children and thereby reduce their impact on the planet.

All that vain self-glorification!

It has not gone unnoticed that the ESPY ceremony in LA, where Harry will accept this new award, will be hosted and broadcast by his wife Meghan’s best friend, tennis legend Serena Williams.

Will she or Harry or someone else Real story of how the Invictus Games began? Hold your breath. Former BBC royal correspondent Michael Cole says Harry’s idea for the games would never have gotten off the ground without the support of his father Charles, brother William and sister-in-law Kate, who gave him their unwavering backing.

Harry is a pygmy who rides on the shoulders of giants. But this time, Mary Tillman, the mother of a real giant, has challenged him.