James Middleton says he ‘cannot avoid who his sister is’ and admits he will ‘always be Kate’s brother’

In 2019, James spoke publicly about his mental health and said work was a “good catalyst” for him to speak out.

The author said that he can’t “ever avoid or hide away from who my sister is, I will always be her brother,” but added that the work Kate and William were carrying out for mental health made him feel “confident enough” to discuss his own troubles.

“When I first publicly spoke about my depression, they were launching their Heads Together charity and that was great for me to learn and understand and have a platform,” James told The Mirror.

“As I’ve said, I didn’t believe I was allowed to have mental health or depression and that work was a good catalyst for me to want to speak out because I can’t ever avoid or hide away from who my sister is, I will always be her brother.

“But it made me feel confident enough and supportive enough in what they were speaking about in what I felt.”

In his book, Princess Kate’s brother also shares how his cocker spaniel, Ella was an “emotional crutch” for him when he suffered from depression.

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The entrepreneur recalled ways his late pet aided him during his darkest days.

James said when he saw Ella on one evening in 2017, it helped him turn away from his suicidal thoughts.

“I have always had the desire to want to write more about my depression and my experiences with it – and whether it was published or not, it wasn’t necessarily the outcome,” he said.

“When Ella passed, we found out very shortly after that my wife was pregnant with our son Inigo.

In his latest book, the 37-year-old explained that he first confided in his family – including Kate – about his struggles in 2017

Instagram / James Middleton

“And in a way of processing the grief and the other reason for it was so Inigo could meet Ella because I wanted him to understand who this dog was and what an important role she played in his existence.”

James explained that his family’s support during his mental health struggles has been much of the same through their recent hurdles.

He said: “I think as a family, we are a close family and through the experiences of my mental health and challenges we’ve faced over the years, we’ve learned to be a support for each other and that comes in different shapes and forms. I think we are very much in that supportive place for each other, which I recognise we are really lucky to have as not all families have it.”

He added: “They all [his family] read the book a while ago. I think they are delighted for me to be able to share my story.

“They all recognise the role that Ella played in my life and they know that it is a huge tribute to such a wonderful dog and are continuing to be supportive, especially speaking out on what is a challenging subject. I think they see the greater good in which this story can go on to have.”