Prince William and Kate Middleton Welcomed Prince Harry Back Into Their Group, Body Language Expert Says

Prince William and Kate Middleton welcomed Prince Harry back into their group after Prince Philip's funeral, according to two body language experts.

  • Throughout the service at Prince Philip's funeral in Windsor, many eyes were on Prince William and Prince Harry, who have been at odds for some time now.
  • The funeral marked the first public reunion between the brothers in more than a year, since Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle's, royal exit, as well as the first time the brothers have seen each other face-to-face since Harry and Meghan's sit-down interview with Oprah Winfrey.
  • Body language experts Believing Bruce and Judi James analyzed Harry and William's body language, as well as that of Kate Middleton, during and after the service.

Prince William and Kate Middleton have welcomed Prince Harry back into their inner circle—at least, that's the message their body language gave off at Prince Philip's funeral earlier today.

Speaking to The Mirror, body language experts Believing Bruce and Judi James analyzed the trio's body language throughout the service, including during their public reunion outside St. George's Chapel afterwards.

Here are some highlights from Bruce and James' insights.

"What is really interesting, is as the religious stories are read out, Prince William is more comfortable looking towards the Dean of Windsor but Kate has an almost ‘fight like’ stare – directed at straight at Prince Harry. This is very unusual behavior from Kate. Again, we don’t know why she is staring straight at him, all we know is that she is," Bruce said, explaining that "Kate must be experiencing a certain type of powerful emotion, maybe some inner voice that she wants to express but can only come out via a stare due to the situation."

"We cannot know what she is thinking but we do know that as an average base line behavior that this is indeed not common," he continued. "Remember from a body language perspective, people don’t always tell you how they feel (verbally) but they will always show you, and that is done via body language. Kate's body language speaks volumes here—it maybe that she is concerned for Prince Harry, she wants to keep an eye on him, with him being over there she maybe feeling a mother’s need to care for him."

"On the way out after the service Harry walked last in the line from his side of the pews and appeared to avoid all eye contact with the other royals, even Sophie and her daughter, who appeared to be waiting to eye-greet him as he walked past," James said. "He was carrying his service program nervously and even tapped it on the side of his leg as he waited in what could have been seen as a gesture of silent impatience, hinting that he was finding the moments with the royal group difficult."

"Here [we] see Harry joining up with William and Kate," Bruce said. "Being welcomed into the group with open arm gestures and opening up their thoracic areas to each other. William and Kate taking a step back so that Harry can join in. And as they walk up the hill, it’s Kate who steps away to allow Harry and William to walk together, as they have done so often in the past. With the formal structuring and placements at an end, two brothers doing what comes natural to them, walking and chatting like they have done all their lives."

"It was only when the service was over and the royal left that we finally saw Harry eye-check William and then walk up between William and Kate to chat," James explained. "Kate fell back to talk to another party, leaving the two brothers walking alone talking in the moment of possible reconciliation that we had all be hoping for."

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Weekend Editor at Cosmopolitan

Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with over 10 years of professional experience covering entertainment of all genres, from new movie and TV releases to nostalgia, and celebrity news. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.