Birthday wishes extended by King Charles III and Prince William to Prince Harry—once seen as gestures of reconciliation—are now suspected to be more superficial than they appear, according to a report by The Daily Beast. Behind the outward display of goodwill, insiders suggest that tensions within the royal family remain unresolved.
As Prince Harry prepares for his upcoming visit to the UK on September 30 to attend the WellChild Awards, no senior royals are scheduled to meet with him. This apparent snub comes despite Charles’ recent attempt to reach out. Royal sources say Harry, who has grown more distanced from the family since stepping back from royal duties, is unlikely to stay in any royal residence during his trip. Instead, he is expected to stay at a central London hotel.
Earlier reports by Katie Nicholl, a royal correspondent for Vanity Fair, indicated that King Charles had personally reached out to his son on his birthday in an effort to mend their fractured relationship. “It was always the king’s intention to publicly acknowledge his son’s 40th, and I am sure that the king will have spoken to Harry on his birthday,” Nicholl shared.
However, hopes of a family reunion seem slim. According to sources cited by The Daily Beast, Harry is not expecting any personal invitations from the King or his brother William during his visit. This is especially true for Prince William, who remains deeply hurt by the revelations in Harry’s 2023 memoir, Spare. The book contained critical commentary about William and his wife, Kate Middleton, and strained the brothers’ relationship further.
A close friend of William and Kate confirmed to The Daily Beast that William is focused on his immediate family and has no plans to meet with Harry. “William’s focus is on his family right now, and he won’t be meeting up with Harry,” the source stated.
Among the grievances, William reportedly finds it particularly unforgivable that Harry’s memoir implied Kate was involved in racially insensitive comments regarding the children of Harry and Meghan Markle, deepening the rift between the brothers.
