The Duke of Sussex hasn’t touched down on British soil since April, but he’ll soon touch down in his home country to make several significant appearances. The King’s youngest son is set to arrive in the UK on 8th September and will attend the WellChild Awards (of which he’s been Royal Patron since 2007).
Prince Harry will then travel to Nottingham the next day to announce a substantial donation to Children in Need at a charity event. Although his schedule is busy, there have been whispers in recent weeks that the royal could potentially have time to squeeze in a visit to King Charles.
Father and son haven’t seen each other face-to-face since February 2024 and according to royal biographer Tom Bower, Prince Harry has a “huge mountain to overcome” to achieve the reconciliation with the King he so wants.
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Speaking candidly to OK!, Tom claimed that any potential meeting whilst the Duke of Sussex is back in the UK would be filled with “huge levels of emotion”.
“Harry has a huge mountain to overcome,” Tom alleged. “On a human basis, he used to get on very well with Charles, so particularly from Harry’s perspective, he needs reconciliation.”
The royal biographer added, “There would be huge levels of emotion involved if they meet. Whatever Charles is facing, he would much prefer to have a good relationship with his son, so I’m sure he wants reconciliation. But he must bear in mind that he’s dealing with someone who could sabotage everything and embarrass him enormously.”
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When the Duke of Sussex last visited the UK in April it was when he appealed against the High Court’s ruling over whether he is entitled to have taxpayer-funded protection when he’s in the country. It was after this appeal was turned down in May that he gave an interview to the BBC in which he said he wanted a “reconciliation” with his family.
Reflecting upon the court case, Tom Bower alleged that this could reportedly be a factor that continues to influence the King and Prince’s relationship even now.
“The fear with the court case was that Harry could invent something the King said about the case – and it would cause a constitutional crisis,” Tom claimed. “That fear has prevented any meeting until now, but even now the case is over, the fear still remains.”
Whilst Tom thinks a potential meeting between King Charles and Prince Harry might be very emotional and complex, I do think it’s likely that it could come to pass whilst the Duke of Sussex is in the UK.
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His visit comes on the third anniversary of his beloved grandmother Queen Elizabeth’s passing and a week before his own 41st birthday. Having made it very clear in his BBC interview that he wants to have a closer relationship with his family, it seems possible that Harry or his team might have reached out to the Palace to try and organise a visit with the King.
What’s perhaps less likely is that we could see Prince Harry meeting with his big brother Prince William. The Prince of Wales has visited the National Federation of Women’s Institute (WI) in Sunningdale to commemorate the three-year anniversary of the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
He was joined by the Princess of Wales and it’s not known when they will be leaving London and heading back to Adelaide Cottage.
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