He was once one of the most popular members of the royal family, with strong bonds with his father and brother and a tight-knit bunch of close friends. But today, Prince Harry – who left the UK for California with his wife Meghan Markle four years ago – is worlds away from his former self – something an old friend shone a light on last week in an interview.
Revealing how he believed Harry had become ‘an angry boy’ who is seemingly too stubborn to make amends, the friend added that things were so bad between him and his older brother, that the latter probably wouldn’t even invite Harry to his eventual coronation, lamenting, "They are estranged, which is dreadfully sad."
On top of that, fans and royal watchers had noticed how miserable Harry had seemed at times on his and Meghan’s recent tour of Colombia, with one posting, "You hardly ever see him smile or look happy. This wasn’t how his life was meant to pan out" – which was liked over 7,000 times.
And following his old friend’s sentiment, an insider tells Closer that Kate Middleton is also feeling deeply sad and regretful over how fractured the relationship has become between Harry and her husband Prince William. The princess has been focused on her own health over the past half year, following her shock cancer diagnosis, which she revealed in March.
But now that she’s catching up on the minutiae that she’s missed, sources tell Closer that she’s devastated to see how pained and despondent Harry, 39, has seemed in public and, as a result, she’s trying her best to help forge a way forward to thaw frosty relations, particularly with his brother William, 42.
"Kate has been shielded from the increasing drama with the Sussexes because people just didn’t want to stress her out, so she was not getting briefed on much," a source reveals. "But she doesn’t want to be out of the loop anymore so she’s catching up on everything that’s been going on in her absence, and she’s very concerned.
"Kate looks at Harry and sees a very lost soul. She’s so saddened that it’s come to this situation where he’s completely excommunicated himself from the whole family and and seems trapped in a miserable position. There now seems to be this wall that can’t be broken down."
And insiders say that Kate is delicately encouraging William to reach out to Harry – but her suggestions are very much falling on deaf ears.
"It’s something Kate really wants William to try to fix, for everyone’s sakes, but he’s refusing and is adamant that anything they do will just be manipulated by him and Meghan," our source explains. "In his view, the best course is to keep quiet and get on with their lives, but Kate is absolutely opposed to that way of thinking. As far as she’s concerned, life’s too short for grudges."
While the brothers were once inseparable – having both served as each other’s best man – their relationship has taken a nosedive. Harry’s relationship with Kate was also once uniquely special, with Harry calling his sister-in-law, "The sister I’ve never had and always wanted." After he and Meghan wed in 2018, the two couples were duly nicknamed ‘the fab four’.
However, since moving to the US, Harry and Meghan have consistently voiced complaints against the royals. In their 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, they expressed how unhappy they were within The Firm, and even took aim at Kate, accusing her of icy behaviour, and detailing a disagreement about Princess Charlotte’s flower girl dress. In Harry’s memoir Spare, Harry accused William of attacking him and a book translation error reportedly named Kate as the rumoured ‘royal racist’, who debated what colour Archie’s skinwould be before he was born.
And the source says that despite everything, Kate – who has been undergoing preventative chemotherapy – still cares about Harry, and her recent health woes have illuminated things further.
"Kate has never been someone that could just turn off her feelings with a switch and going through cancer has only made her more sensitive and caring," our source explains. "Back when she first started dating William, it was Harry that went the most out of his way to make her feel welcome and put her at ease. She can’t simply forget all that. Yes, it’s hurtful that things have fallen apart, but at the same time she doesn’t blame him for taking his wife’s side, because she would expect William to do exactly the same thing if the roles were reversed."
While it seems that the rift may be too far gone, the source adds that Kate is determined to fix things before it’s too late.
"Now more than ever, she has this very strong sense that life is too short to hang on to anger, especially when it’s so clearly causing such torment," the source adds.
"She sees the pain that Harry’s in and although William might put on a tough front, Kate knows he’s hurting too. There’s a feeling that if anyone will be able to put this right, it’s her."