Prince Harry Felt Like a "Gooseberry" Tagging Along With Prince William and Princess Kate, Sources Claim

In the early years of Prince William and Princess Kate's marriage, Prince Harry was often their "third wheel" on royal engagements.

While this arrangement worked for a while, and Harry was close with his brother and sister-in-law, he apparently said he felt like a "gooseberry" being made to trail behind them during events, according to sources who spoke to the Telegraph.

"They didn’t have proper disagreements [at the time]," a source explained.

"But there were philosophical differences in the way they went about things. 

"William was more reserved about what you should say to the media, and worried about oversharing in the way that would put pressure on other people to do the same."

Apparently, the plan was for Prince Harry to work with the then-Cambridges until the death of Queen Elizabeth, at which point they would separate into two households, but another source called this idea "misguided."

"It puts too much pressure on their relationship," they said. "It’s not healthy."

The Telegraph's sources explained that William felt like a bit of a father figure for Harry, and was often on hand to give him advice.

But, one said, by the time Meghan Markle came into his life, "Harry was tired of the dynamic that had become established between him and his older brother."

One source added, "A lot of this predates Meghan. But it’s fair to say her arrival changed things."

Although the hope was that Meghan Markle would make the royal trio a royal quartet, it was "immediately clear that their styles were too different," an aide said.

That was when the Cambridge and Sussex households were separated.

"There was a divorce going on but the terms hadn’t been worked through," a source said.

"A lot of the talk behind the scenes was, 'we need to bring these brothers back together, they’re always better together.'

"They were still talking, but it was tense."

And then, of course, came the royal exit. At this point, the relationship between Prince William and Prince Harry has appeared to deteriorate at rapid speed, despite occasional reports of an imminent reconciliation.

The rest is history... until Thursday's Netflix release adds pieces to the puzzle.