If Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Were to Ever Return as Working Royals, They’d Have to Get Prince William’s Blessing First, Former Royal Butler Says

The working core of royals was already slimmed-down, per King Charles’ request, before health scares plagued the family, from the King’s cancer diagnosis to the Princess of Wales’ abdominal surgery, and the Prince of Wales’ decision to temporarily step back to take care of his wife and their three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. With Queen Camilla on holiday this week—a much deserved one, at that—the slimmed-down monarchy that we already knew was razor thin seems even more perilously so.

After Prince Harry’s short but apparently meaningful visit to the U.K. to visit his father last month after his cancer diagnosis was made public, buzz began circulating that Harry could return in a temporary, part-time capacity as a working royal, four years after stepping back from that role in January 2020 alongside wife Meghan Markle. Since those initial reports came out Harry’s return has been branded impossible, and, according to The Mirror, there’s only one person that could make it happen (outside of the King himself): Harry’s older brother Prince William, from whom Harry has been estranged for years.

Former royal butler Grant Harrold—who worked for King Charles, then the Prince of Wales, for seven years—said that both Harry and Meghan could be welcomed back into the royal fold, but that it would be dependent on mending fences with William. Harrold told The New York Post that a Sussex return “is possible,” and that William and Harry’s contentious relationship is not “too far gone” to be salvaged.

“He [Harry] could have a discussion with his brother about resuming royal duties, but obviously there is so much that has happened over the last couple of years and that needs to be sorted out before the Sussexes made a permanent return,” Harrold said.

William and Harry have been at odds for over five years now, with much of their fractured relationship playing out on the pages of Harry’s memoir, Spare, released in January 2023. In particular, Harry accused William of calling Meghan “difficult,” “rude,’ and “abrasive,” and alleged that William “grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor” during an explosive fight.

Harrold reminisced about how close the brothers were when he was under the royal family’s employ, and, though Meghan has rarely returned to the U.K. since the January 2020 step back, Harrold believes Meghan will want to “show her support” for Harry’s family in light of Charles’ cancer diagnosis. Harrold suggested that Harry, Meghan, and their two children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet might return to Harry’s native U.K. as early as 2024.