Prince William's Coronation Prep 'Well Underway'; Reunion With Harry Will Only Happen At King Charles' Funeral: Source
Prince William has already begun to plan his coronation, and one name that will be left out of the guest list is Prince Harry's, royal insiders have claimed.
The Sunday Times reported over the weekend that the Prince of Wales -- who will take over as British monarch after their father King Charles III dies -- does not want his estranged brother to be part of his future crowning ceremony.
Royal and palace sources confirmed this news to the Daily Beast in a report published Wednesday.
"Planning for William's coronation is well underway, and as I understand it there are no plans to invite Harry," a former Buckingham Palace staffer, who was not named, told the outlet. "It's hardly surprising when you look at how poisoned the well has become."
An unnamed "friend" of Prince William's who spoke to the Daily Beast also said they "believe" the reports that the heir to the British throne won't invite Prince Harry to his coronation "100%."
The insider suggested that Prince William may not reunite with his younger brother until the death of King Charles, who is currently battling cancer.
"Why would William and Kate [Middleton] want all the distraction and circus that his presence would bring?" the alleged friend said. "I suspect that William will see Harry one more time in his life in the flesh -- at their father's funeral."
According to the source, Prince William and Prince Harry's relationship is now "totally frozen" four years after the latter quit royal duties and moved to California with his wife Meghan Markle.
Prince Harry's actions over the past years -- including releasing a bombshell memoir -- have left his older brother feeling "betrayed and hurt on a very personal level," the insider added.
Prince Harry's move to trash and air his family's private matters through a book, docuseries and multiple interviews reportedly shocked the royal brothers' inner circle due to how close he and Prince William were growing up.
"The two brothers were so close growing up that they would finish each other's sentences," the supposed friend explained. "Amid all the trauma of their mum dying and their dad being quite distant, it was an amazing thing to witness."
The insider added, "Reading Harry's book, I was really struck by how honest he was about the depth and the importance of his relationship with William when they were younger. It makes his decision to basically sell out his entire family, but particularly William, for a bumper payday even more inexplicable."
The Sunday Times also quoted an unnamed pal of William and Harry's as saying that the siblings remain "estranged" and have not spoken to each other in almost two years.
According to the British publication, Prince Harry has been unable to repair his relationship with his family because they lost trust in him following the release of "Spare."
Among Prince Harry's biggest claims in his book and his docuseries with Markle was that his own family allegedly leaked fake negative stories about him and his wife to the U.K. media.
The Duke of Sussex also alleged that his older brother did not keep his promise that they would never sell each other out to the press.
However, a Prince William insider, who was not identified, previously denied this claim to the Daily Mail, saying that the prince "has always been very tight-lipped when it comes to his family and made clear to anyone within his orbit that he would not do 'deals' with the media."
Hopes were previously raised that reconciliation was on the horizon when Prince Harry attended King Charles' coronation in May 2023, but the brothers did not interact with each other publicly during the event.
