Is Prince William and Prince Harry’s Relationship on the Mend Since Harry Returned to the U.K.?
All eyes are on the royal family since Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh’s death. There are a few things that bring families back together despite the circumstances, funerals are one. With Prince Philip’s funeral looming, Prince Harry has made his way back to the United Kingdom. There have been notable issues within Prince William and Prince Harry’s relationship for a while now. Have they spoken since Harry has been home?
Prince William and Prince Harry’s relationship
Prince Harry’s standing in the royal family has been a bit shaky since he and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex left their positions as working members of the royal family.
Harry revealed in an interview with Oprah Winfrey how the conversations with his family before the exit went.
“When we were in Canada, I had three conversations with my grandmother and two conversations with my father and — before he stopped taking my calls — and then [he] said, ‘Can you put this all in what your plan is?” Harry said.
Eventually, Harry had to do what he felt was best with his family.
“By that point, I took matters into my own hands. It was like, ‘I need to do this for my family.’ This is not a surprise to anybody. It’s really sad that it’s gotten to this point, but I’ve got to do something for my own mental health, my wife’s, and for Archie’s, as well, because I could see where this was headed.”
In the same interview, Harry and Meghan spoke about how William’s wife, Catherine Duchess of Cambridge, had made Meghan cry leading up to their wedding and how someone in the royal family had expressed concern about how dark Archie would be when he was born. None of this made William happy.
“William is devastated by this interview. Don’t forget that the Duchess of Cambridge is being dragged into this whole saga and William will hate that and of course, relationship between father and son is of course at an all-time low,” royal expert Katie Nicholl told Entertainment Tonight. “I think that the idea that Kate’s being dragged into this will be upsetting for Kate who behind the scenes has tried really hard to be a peacemaker between William and Harry. She has been deeply saddened by the brothers’ falling out. Don’t forget she was incredibly close to Harry herself.”
Harry is going to the funeral, has he spoken to William?
During the Oprah interview, Harry revealed that he and William were taking space from one another.
“I love William to bits,” Harry told Oprah. “He’s my brother and we’ve been through hell together but we were on different paths.”
“The relationship is space at the moment and time heals all things hopefully,” he continued.
With Prince Philip’s death, Harry is back in the U.K., but he is not expected to see his brother until Prince Philip’s funeral on Saturday. He is currently quarantining at Frogmore Cottage. He and William have had contact over the phone, though, a source told the outlet, but whether Prince William and Prince Harry’s relationship was the topic of conversation remains to be seen.
“I think there is every hope that this will be the beginning of the thawing of the rift between William and Harry,” Nicholl said. “I think the feeling certainly amongst senior royals and those who know the royals well, is that this will be an opportunity for the brothers to be together, to spend some much-needed time together.”
