Prince William is not ready to welcome back Prince Harry despite his plea for reconciliation, according to a royal expert.
On Friday, royal expert Hilary Fordwich told Fox News Digital “the gulf has widened” between Harry and William over the years, and his recent BBC interview is not helping the rift.
“Over the years, the gulf has widened between Prince William all Harry, all due to Harry’s ever public denigration of the royal family, not the least of which has been this most recent BBC interview. Prince William is more resolved than ever to take action once he becomes king. His overriding concern is protecting the monarchy, which he sees as denigrated by commercial endeavors,” she said.
Royal expert Ian Pelham Turner shared similar sentiments
“The short answer (is) will William forgive Harry and Meghan and welcome them back? A big fat royal no,” Turner told Fox News Digital. “King Charles will have to overrule his petulant son once again if the Sussexes wish to make up and return.
KING CHARLES SHUNS ‘PARANOID’ PRINCE HARRY, LEAVING HIM IN THE DARK: EXPERTS
“It is not what Harry can do. It is what will make a seismic shift in William’s determination to not allow his brother and family back is the real question. Partly because of the ‘Spare’ book and allegedly also allowing his very popular brother and sister-in-law back into the royal household.”
Fordwich pointed out that “hypocritical Harry” has not done anything on his end to reconcile with his family.
“After all, hypocritical Harry has publicly stated he has regrets regarding estrangement, yet he’s neither said nor done anything to express regrets regarding his own behavior.
“Yes, life is preciousness, but he might have thought of that prior to publicly lambasting his father and his own family whilst airing his long-held personal grievances,” Fordwich said, referring to Harry’s recent comments.
After Harry lost his appeal to reinstate his security in the U.K. Friday, he sat down for an emotional interview with the BBC.
PRINCE HARRY DEALT MAJOR BLOW AS UK COURT DENIES SECURITY APPEAL
“I would love a reconciliation with my family. There’s no point in continuing to fight anymore. Life is precious. I don’t know how much longer my father has,” he said.
The Duke of Sussex’s father, King Charles III, was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer in February 2024.
Harry spoke to the BBC in California, where he lives with wife Meghan Markle and their two young children. The sit-down took place after the 40-year-old lost an appeal to reinstate security that he believes he and his family are entitled to whenever they are in his home country.
Harry admitted the king, 76, “won’t speak to me because of this security stuff.”
“I never asked him to intervene. I asked him to step out of the way and let the experts do their jobs,” Harry explained. “There is a lot of ability and control in my father’s hands. Ultimately, this whole thing could be resolved through him. Not necessarily by intervening, but by stepping aside and allowing the experts to do their job.”
WATCH: KING CHARLES CAN’T GET INVOLVED IN PRINCE HARRY’S SECURITY WOES: AUTHOR
Harry noted that he felt let down, describing his court defeat as a “good old-fashioned establishment stitch up.” He blamed the royal household for influencing the decision to reduce his security.
“I can’t see a world in which I would bring my wife and children back to the U.K at this point. The things they’re going to miss is, well, everything. I love my country. I’ve always had, despite what some people in that country have done. I miss the U.K. I miss parts of the U.K. Of course, I do. And I think it’s really quite sad that I won’t be able to show my children my homeland.”
LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
Kinsey Schofield, host of the “To Di For Daily” podcast, pointed out that Markle and Harry’s recent interview appearances seem to be contradicting one another.
“From a PR perspective, this is a Sussex brand nightmare because Harry and Meghan’s recent interviews completely cancel each other out. Harry says he’s living this life of fear and misses his family, while Meghan Markle tells the Time100 Summit that she’s never been happier. Whiplash,” she told Fox News Digital.
“I also think it’s important to acknowledge that he told the courts that he and Meghan chose to step down as working members of the British royal family because he didn’t feel like they were properly protected. And now he’s fighting for that same ‘ineffective’ security. Then, he changed his story during the BBC interview to say that they were rejected by the royal family. They can’t keep their stories straight.”
Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams also weighed in on Harry’s “extraordinary interview,” noting the rift between Harry and his family is “unbridgeable.”
“He accuses the palace of being prepared to sacrifice him and his family and actually wants the government to intervene. The rift between him and the royal household is obviously unbridgeable,” Fitzwilliams told Fox News Digital.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020, citing the unbearable intrusions of the British media and lack of support from the palace. They have since aired their grievances in interviews, documentaries and Harry’s 2023 memoir, “Spare.” The couple lost their government-funded security when they made their royal exit.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER
“There have been so many disagreements,” Harry said in his BBC interview. “Differences between me and some of my family. … Of course, some members of my family will never forgive me for writing a book. Of course, they will never forgive me for lots of things. But … I would love a reconciliation with my family. … It would be nice to reconcile.
“The goal in life is always truth and reconciliation. … It would be nice to have that reconciliation part now.”
Harry said it is “entirely up to them,” referring to his family.
