EXCLUSIVE: Prince William’s ‘clever move’ over Harry signals ‘no way back’ after bitter feud

Royal siblings Prince William and Prince Harry were once ‘absolutely great together’, a royal expert says, but haven’t been in the same room together since a family funeral in August 2024

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The brothers are no longer on speaking terms(Image: WPA Pool, Getty Images)

Prince William’s actions during his brother Harry’s trip to the UK spoke volumes about the state of their relationship, according to a former royal editor. During Harry’s recent days in court, his big brother William was hundreds of miles away on official royal business with Kate Middleton in Scotland, followed by Bristol, where he undertook engagements connected to sustainability projects and future technologies.

Now royal expert Duncan Larcombe has suggested the trips may have been carefully orchestrated to avoid the brothers being in the same city at the same time. “Court cases notoriously never start when they say they’re going to, so it wasn’t a set-in-stone date for this trial, ” he told the Mirror.

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“But it seems to be more than just a coincidence that William had taken himself out of the country, ensuring he was nowhere near Windsor, or where Harry might be. It wasn’t the first time he was out of town when Harry had a court hearing.”

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The foursome appeared less jovial towards the end of Harry and Meghan’s time as working royals(Image: Getty Images)

The Duke of Sussex was on his home soil to deliver his 23-page witness statement as part of his evidence against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) at London’s High Court. The prince is one of seven high-profile people accusing the company of “grave breaches of privacy” over a 20-year period. ANL denies any wrongdoing.

The brothers were last in the same room together in August 2024, at the funeral of their maternal uncle, Lord Robert Fellowes, who was married to Princess Diana’s older sister Jane. Prior to that, it is believed they hadn’t spoken to one another for several months.

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As a former royal editor who spent years reporting on the brothers, Duncan says it’s a grave shame they are no longer in contact, adding that – despite talk of childhood rivalries and fallouts – they were once extremely close.

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Duncan recalls the brothers ‘bouncing off each other’(Image: Getty Images)

“They used to bounce off each other – they were absolutely great together,” he says. “They didn’t come across as rivals, they came across as two brothers that enjoyed a lot of banter.”

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Sadly, Harry’s numerous public bashings and betrayals – notably his and Meghan’s bombshell Oprah interview and the release of his memoir, Spare, in 2023 – have “completely broken” William and Kate’s trust.

“William is still incredibly angry at his brother,” says Duncan. “Harry’s actions and words would have caused huge, almost irreparable damage to a normal family. The fact it is happening within the royal family adds to the magnitude of how badly Harry has behaved in William’s eyes.

“So at the moment there’s no way back and it looks as if William doesn’t have an ounce of sympathy for his brother, or an ounce of support for him. But you can never say never.”