Friends of Prince William have told The Daily Beast that reports that William will not invite Prince Harry to his coronation are accurate, adding that as things stand they next expect William to see his brother in the flesh again at King Charles’ funeral.
The friend told The Daily Beast: “Things are totally frozen between the two of them. It is hard to overstate how utterly William feels betrayed and hurt on a very personal level. The two brothers were so close growing up that they would finish each other’s sentences. Amid all the trauma of their mum dying and their dad being quite distant, it was an amazing thing to witness.
“Reading Harry’s book, I was really struck by how honest he was about the depth and the importance of his relationship with William when they were younger. It makes his decision to basically sell out his entire family, but particularly William, for a bumper payday even more inexplicable.”
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When The Daily Beast pointed out that Harry said in his book that he wrote it in order to explain why he had to leave the family, the source said, “I’m afraid I don’t believe that the primary motivation was that noble.”
Asked about the reports that Harry would not be invited to William’s coronation, the source said: “I believe it 100 percent. Why would William and Kate want all the distraction and circus that his presence would bring? I suspect that William will see Harry one more time in his life in the flesh—at their father’s funeral.”
A former Buckingham Palace staffer told The Daily Beast: “Planning for William’s coronation is well underway, and as I understand it there are no plans to invite Harry. It’s hardly surprising when you look at how poisoned the well has become.”
The complete breakdown of the relationship between William and Harry is now so bad that even minor issues, such as Harry and Meghan’s unwillingness to call William’s wife by her preferred name, Catherine (they called her Kate in a recent public statement) are fuelling William’s hatred and contempt for his brother.
Prince William, Princess Kate, Prince Harry, and Meghan Markle on the long Walk at Windsor Castle on September 10, 2022 in Windsor, England.
Kirsty O'Connor - WPA Pool/Getty ImagesThe Daily Beast, in common with many American media outlets, still usually refers to the Princess of Wales as “Kate,” “Princess Kate,” and “Kate Middleton,” as she is best known around the world.
It was reported in the London Sunday Times this weekend that William and Kate did not respond to Harry and Meghan when the California-based royal exiles sent well-wishes to Kate after she revealed her cancer diagnosis.
A source told The Daily Beast that William was annoyed when Harry and Meghan chose to refer to her as “Kate” in that March 2024 statement.
The brief statement said: “We wish health and healing for Kate and the family, and hope they are able to do so privately and in peace.”
A friend of William and Kate’s told The Daily Beast this week that it was “bloody rude” of Harry and Meghan to continue to call her Kate, saying “If Harry and Meghan were serious about healing their issue, a good first step would be to call her Catherine.”
Another friend said: “Of course it’s an utterly trivial thing, but those of us who know William know that it is one of the things that pushes his buttons. Pushing his buttons while he was going through his wife’s cancer seemed an entirely unnecessary and deliberate irritation.”
Representatives for both sides did not comment when contacted by The Daily Beast.
