The notion of a reconciliation between Prince Harry and Prince William has been dismissed as “total fantasy” by a friend of the brothers.
Despite the fact that Harry met with his father, King Charles, for up to an hour in London on Tuesday, another source also said they thought it was “highly unlikely” that the brothers would meet, and said relations between the two were still “non-existent.”
While there had been some speculation that Harry’s arrival in the U.K. to be with his father after his shock cancer diagnosis might lead to a rapprochement between the brothers, informed sources have uniformly urged caution at such speculation to The Daily Beast.
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William is understood not to have spoken to his brother since the publication of Harry’s memoir, Spare, which made multiple highly personal criticisms of William and his wife Kate Middleton. It subsequently emerged that Harry believes Kate and Charles were the people who raised “concerns” about the likely skin color of Harry and Meghan Markle’s then-unborn first child, Prince Archie.
Palace sources told the Mail there were no plans for a meeting between Harry and William, with William focused on caring for his wife and children as Kate recovers from abdominal surgery, and preparing for his first day back doing public-facing duties tomorrow. However, a source close to Harry struck a conciliatory tone, telling the outlet, “The duke’s primary reason to travel to the UK is to visit his father. If the opportunity were to arise to see the Prince of Wales then the duke would have gladly accepted it.”
One old school friend of both William and Harry, who has remained loyal to William and not spoken to Harry since he emigrated to the US, told The Daily Beast: “The news about their father is absolutely shocking, but I don’t think it means William wants to meet up with Harry and shake hands for the cameras. If the papers want to write that they are going to be having pints together and a heart to heart, they will, but in reality, the idea that William and Kate are ever, ever going to let Harry back into their lives, or trust him with any personal information ever again is a total fantasy. It’s simply not possible to exaggerate how bad and how damaged the relationship is, and how angry William is at Harry for betraying him for money.”
Asked if his father’s illness would not concentrate the mind on the importance of family bonds, the friend said: “This isn’t just two guys falling out. The point is, Harry betrayed the monarchy. He can’t be trusted, he is out.”
A former staffer who worked with Harry and William told The Daily Beast: “I gather it is considered highly unlikely they would meet. The relationship is non-existent because of the allegations made against his wife.”
