He celebrated his 30th birthday surrounded by his nearest and dearest, with brother William and Kate Middleton throwing a special private party for the occasion. But fast-forward a decade and things couldn’t be more different for Prince Harry.
In what should be a happy time as he gets set to turn 40 this week, his family – including William and Kate – will be noticeably missing. Instead, they are now estranged and live thousands of miles away from Harry, who is based in California with wife Meghan Markle and their two children.
Closer previously reported how Kate, 42, who was once extremely close to Harry, has been trying to act as peacemaker between the brothers, urging William, also 42, to extend an olive branch.
And now Paul Burrell – former butler to the Harry and William’s late mother Princess Diana – says he believes that the Princess of Wales will be agonising over wanting them to make amends, especially on Harry’s milestone birthday.
Paul tells Closer, ‘Kate has always been a mediator and she always sees fairness, so I’m sure she wants nothing more than for William to reach out and wish Harry a happy 40th birthday, and for them to make amends and have a relationship again. But the problem is, Kate has to understand the way William is feeling. This is a very sensitive subject for William – he does not like betrayal, and as far as he’s concerned, Harry has totally betrayed him. So, Kate has to be onboard William’s train 100%. She knows she can’t do much more because she knows how William feels – even though she’ll naturally feel torn about sending a birthday message. William’s put the shutters down on Harry and there isn’t room for negotiation at this time in his life. He’s got enough on his plate and so has Kate.’
Relations between the brothers have been strained for years, but their rift became even more apparent when Harry and Meghan, 43, spoke out against the Royal Family during their interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021 – where they claimed Kate had made Meghan cry ahead of her 2018 wedding in an argument over bridesmaid dresses.
Harry then made a string of bombshell claims about William in his controversial memoir, Spare, last year, claiming that William had once ‘knocked him to the floor’ in a physical fight and that he had also pointed his finger in Meghan’s face and branded her ‘rude’.
William and Harry are no longer on speaking terms, and it’s thought that they kept their distance when they recently attended the funeral of their uncle, Lord Robert Fellowes, in Norfolk. They could also cross paths again later this month, with reports that they’re both due to be in New York City at the same time.
And Paul predicts that there will be no chance of a reunion any time soon. ‘William has cut Harry out and he doesn’t have a place in his world. He’s not the man he grew up with, and he’s not the man he thought would stand by him and look after him and help him on the way to being King,’ he says. ‘William is not going to spoil his and Kate’s life by inviting someone into it who will betray them yet again – because he would. He can’t help himself.’
After stepping down as working royals and leaving the UK in 2020, Harry and Meghan, who are parents to Archie, five, and Lilibet, three, now live in their sprawling $14.5 million mansion in Montecito, with A-listers including Oprah Winfrey and Gwyneth Paltrow as their neighbours.
But with his family across the pond, Paul believes Harry will be feeling lonely as he enters a new decade. ‘Harry will be in exile for his 40th birthday. It’ll probably be a low-key celebration inside the gates of their home with celebrity friends. I don’t think he’s happy,’ he says.
‘The saddest thing is that he could have had it all. But while the children are small, there’s no way things will change for Harry because he adores his wife, his family and that is the path he’s on. I am sure he’s homesick, and I’m sure his upcoming 40th birthday is making him reflect on the past and his previous life. If Harry doesn’t have regrets, he doesn’t have a soul.’
Paul, who was butler to Diana from 1987 until her death in 1997, reveals that she loved going all-out for the boys on their birthdays, but she wasn’t a fan of her own.
‘She absolutely hated her birthday,’ he explains. ‘When her birthday would come around, she’d say, “I’m staying in, I’m not going out”. She’d sit at her desk, writing thank you letters for all the presents that constantly came through the door. She felt her birthday was too much attention on her. She knew everybody wanted a picture, so she played the game and stayed in.’
He adds, ‘But on William and Harry’s birthdays, those boys were spoilt rotten. Whatever they wanted, they had. Diana would have loved celebrating Harry’s 40th and she would want nothing more than for the boys to make amends.’
