Expert Says There’s Hope for a Prince William and Prince Harry Reconciliation

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published 26 February 2022

Since Prince Harry’s shocking decision to step back from life as a working royal in January 2020, he has only publicly seen his brother, Prince William, twice: The first at grandfather Prince Philip’s funeral in April 2021, and then over the summer, at the unveiling of a statue of their mother, Princess Diana. Amidst the past two years, tensions have continued to be rife between the brothers, allegedly stemming as far back as the early days of Harry’s relationship with wife Meghan Markle.

But, an expert says, even though the brothers are still said to have a long way to go before total reconciliation, there is hope found in a subtle sign that indicates William may be willing to bury the hatchet with Harry.

In December, William took part in the Apple Fitness Time to Walk podcast, where he shared a poignant memory of his late mother, Princess Diana. As he reminisced, he recalled how both he and Harry would belt out Tina Turner’s “Simply the Best” with their mom as they rode in the car together.

Choosing this specific memory could be William extending an olive branch to Harry, the Mirror reports.

“We have to hope that even the most subtle words from William here and there act as little signals to Harry,” royal expert Duncan Larcombe told OK!. “It’s as if he’s saying, ‘Look, come on. Let’s sort this out.’ As the older sibling, William is sensible enough to know that he has to fix things.”

However, hopes of reconciliation could be dampened depending on Harry’s forthcoming tell-all memoir, Larcome says–and its publication later this year could also be holding up any full resolution of the brothers’ disagreement.

“We don’t yet know if or how strongly he’ll slate his father and brother in the book,” he says. “It’s hard to imagine what might be coming, but until that book hits the shelves, the stalemate is highly likely to continue.”

Because of Harry’s ongoing attempts to restore his royal police protection while in the U.K., it’s not known when William and Harry will see one another face-to-face again. It was expected that Harry would cross the pond to attend Philip’s memorial service at Westminster Abbey on March 29, but, because Harry has said he “does not feel safe” when visiting the U.K. under current security arrangements, it remains to be seen whether Harry will attend.

Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.