Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s shocking return to the UK on August 26 reignited questions about where they stand with the British royal family.
However, speculation over their relationship with Prince William and Kate Middleton was particularly intense, given the criticism the Sussexes directed at the couple through interviews and other media ventures over the years.
Now, a friend of the future king and queen has offered insight into how they plan to handle Harry and Meghan.
According to the source, no olive branch is being prepared or is likely to be extended anytime soon.
Prince William and Kate reportedly plan to keep their distance from Prince Harry and Meghan
Aaron Chown – Pool/Getty Images
The relationship between Prince William and Prince Harry, and by extension, Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton, fractured under the weight of personal and public misunderstandings that escalated between 2016 and 2020.
William reportedly warned Harry that his romance with Meghan was moving too quickly, while Kate and Meghan, per Harry’s 2023 memoir Spare, clashed over bridesmaids’ dresses for Charlotte ahead of the 2018 wedding.
According to Harry, Kate also told Meghan to mind her tone when speaking to her.
Tensions deepened as Harry felt that William, alongside the monarchy at large, had failed to protect Meghan and welcome her into the royal fold.
The rift between the brothers, per Harry’s book, yet again, turned physical in 2019 when William grabbed him by the collar and called Meghan “difficult,” “rude,” and “abrasive.”
The estrangement, according to an anonymous friend of William and Kate cited by the Daily Mail on September 3, is set to remain in place despite Harry and Meghan moving back home.
“It makes no difference if Harry and Meghan are in Oxfordshire, California or Timbuktu,” the pal insisted, adding, “William and Kate will continue their lives of public service.”
“They intend to lead by example.”
A veteran royal watcher believes William will not be able to ignore Harry for long
Richard Kay, a Daily Mail correspondent covering royal affairs, recently said that the brothers have no option but to engage with each other at some point.
However, he suggested that the greater responsibility for making that happen may ultimately fall on Prince William.
“I would have thought that in the first instance there would be a private meeting between Harry and William and presumably Catherine and Meghan too where they can sort of hammer out some kind of official line,” he said.
He believes William, as the future king, may face mounting public pressure to resolve the rift if the hostility continues, noting that the prince “knows that above all.”
“His responsibility to the monarchy, to the institution, has to take first place, so he’ll have to put whatever personal differences he has to one side,” Kay explained.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s return has reportedly “derailed” the Waleses’ lives
Harry and Meghan’s return to the UK was swift, with King Charles reportedly being informed about it only three days in advance.
The news reached Prince William even later and, according to a Vanity Fair source, rattled him considerably.
“There’s a sense that William is going to have to be watching over his shoulder the whole time. He doesn’t know what his brother is going to spring on them all next,” the source said.
“This was meant to be a happy time for him. Catherine is doing well, and George is about to start Eton. This has just derailed them,” they added.
King Charles, meanwhile, is said to be happy that Harry is back “because it means he will see more of him and his children.”
He is, however, “dreading the prospect of Harry resurrecting his battle with the Home Office over security” and senses that the “Harry and Meghan soap opera is about to start all over again,” the source divulged.
Currently, only working royals are granted state-funded police protection.
King Charles and Prince William are both said to be “completely aligned” on the view that there will be no change to Harry and Meghan’s status as nonworking royals.
Meghan Markle is expected to make an acting return, but Prince Harry’s next steps remain less clear
Reports emerged last week that Markle had been offered a role in Guy Ritchie’s Netflix crime drama The Gentlemen.
A deal has yet to be reached, according to industry insiders.
What is confirmed about Markle’s screen comeback, however, is that she will make a cameo as herself in Amazon MGM’s Close Personal Friends.
Harry, for his part, remains focused on next year’s Invictus Games and is expected to stick to his other charity work and business roles, including public speaking and his nonprofit sustainable travel initiative, Travalyst, as he maps out his future.
“William should stand his ground,” a netizen advised
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