King Charles wonโt heal the rift with Harry and Meghan โanytime soonโ, says a royal insider โ but there is a way forward for the father and son.
Robert Hardman is the author of Charles III: New King, New Court, The Inside Story, which was published in January this year and gave an insight into the first year of the Kingโs reign.
Speaking at Hay Festival, Hardman suggested that Harryโs explosive memoir Spare is still casting a long shadow over family relations. โThe problem that exists is, at the moment, there is still a trust issue. People are still very wounded, particularly Prince William, that these intimate private childhood family moments all spilled out in Harryโs book,โ Hardman said.
โItโs not what Harry said, itโs the fact that he said it, and he gave away so many secrets. And he was, effectively, at the time of the Queenโs death, you know, he was taking notes.โ
Hardman also suggested that Harry hadnโt told the full story โ but there might be a cynical reason for that. โIf you do read that book, and as I said itโs amazing, but if you get to the bit about his wedding to Meghan, it boils down really to about four or five pages. Now, as an author, that says to me one thing and one thing only: part two might be on its way.โ
Asked how the row was affecting King Charles as a parent, Hardman said that โhe definitely finds it unsettling, it makes him unhappyโ.
โThere he is, heโs got two sons, one he hardly sees, and two grandchildren heโs barely ever seen, and yes, I think he would like some sort of modus vivendi. Clearly they canโt come back to royal life, I donโt think they want to. And, after all thatโs happened, it wouldnโt work,โ the biographer said.
Hardman, who has authored numerous royal books, including 2022โs bestselling Queen of Our Times, said the first step to repairing the relationship would be โnormalisingโ it.
โI thought it was telling that when the cancer diagnosis came through back in February, Prince Harry came straight over. People said why didnโt he stay longer, why didnโt he talk to his father? I mean, there is so much to be worked through, but this was absolutely not the moment to have some sort of summit with Harry about all of Harryโs grievances.
โBut I think the fact he came was important, the fact he was received was important, I think what encouraged people at the palace and encouraged the king was the fact that afterwards, we didnโt then read about it or hear about it. It remained private.
Prince Harry (EPA)
The author suggested a first step to โnormalisingโ things would be if Harry could โcome over with Meghan, with the children, privately, for a few days maybe in the summerโ.
โOnce that happens itโs not such big news when it happens again. Then you start to get somewhere.โ
Speaking about recent developments regarding the Kingโs health, after his cancer diagnosis was announced earlier this year, Hardman said the monarchโs routine had gone mostly back to normal โ โalbeit with a few caveats from doctorsโ.
The King will attend an event to mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings next month, something he โwouldnโt miss for anythingโ, and is looking forward to the Trooping the Colour parade for his birthday.
โI understand the palace at the moment is persuading him not to ride a horse,โ Hardman quipped.
King Charles (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
King Charlesโs reign has been marked by a โtonal shiftโ, he said, citing a โgreater degree of transparency, instead of rubbing up against the government, thereโs actually more interconnectivity with the governmentโ. This month, Buckingham Palace conducted its first garden party in conjunction with a government department, in celebration of the creative industries. Tracey Emin, Louis Theroux, Kate Moss and Love Island presenter Maya Jama were among the guests.
Hay Festival continues until 2 June; hayfestival.com
ย ย Read More