Prince Harry to Meet With King Charles in May — and, Yes, It’ll Be ‘Short and Formal’ Like Last Time
Prince Harry has more face time with his father, King Charles III, coming up. The Duke of Sussex has reportedly scheduled a May 2024 visit to see his dad when he’s back in England to mark the 10-year anniversary of the Invictus Games. However, it’s not anticipated to take much time. Harry’s expected to have a “short and formal” meeting with King Charles after a similar one in February 2024.
Harry and King Charles have a ‘short and formal’ meeting scheduled to avoid ‘difficult conversations’
When Harry heads to London, England, in May 2024, the service commemorating the adaptive sports competition he founded isn’t the only thing on his itinerary. According to royal author Tom Quinn, a Harry and King Charles meeting is expected.
“It won’t be quite so difficult for Harry to see his father,” he told Mirror. “Although that relationship is also fraught with pain and a sense of grievance. But Charles knows Harry had a difficult childhood for which he, Charles, was partly responsible. So he is more forgiving than William.”
“That said, the meeting between Harry and his father, King Charles, will be short and formal,” he continued. The reason, Quinn said, is “simply because any difficult conversations could lead to complaints being widely broadcast when Harry gets back to the States.”
The Gilded Youth author went on to call it a sticking point in Harry’s relationship with his brother, Prince William, too.
“Just as with the relationship with William, Harry‘s relationship with his father has been badly damaged by the publication of Spare and Harry and Meghan’s various interviews.”
Not being able to trust Harry for fear of information leaking only contributes to spending a short amount of time together.
“Both William and Charles are always going to worry that they can’t say anything privately and off the record to Harry without the real risk that he will go public on anything and everything,” Quinn concluded.
When Harry flew to London to see King Charles following his cancer diagnosis announcement in February 2024, he was in and out of Clarence House in less than an hour. Some reports cited the king’s desire to keep to a schedule, and others cited their strained relationship and/or Camilla’s presence.
Harry’s expected to attempt a short visit with Prince William and Kate Middleton
The visits don’t stop with King Charles. Harry’s expected to spend some time with his brother and sister-in-law. Although it’s not going to take up a lot of time, according to Quinn.
“Given Kate’s cancer diagnosis, Harry will certainly make efforts to see his brother and Kate when he returns to the U.K. in May.”
The Princess of Wales revealed her cancer diagnosis in a rare video statement on March 22, 2024. In it, the 42-year-old shared she’s undergoing preventative chemotherapy and that she’s “getting stronger.”
“If it happens at all,” Quinn said of the visit, “it’s to be a very brief, carefully choreographed meeting.” Furthermore, it’ll be “organized to last a short time so that the brothers can avoid any difficult conversations.”
Harry previously said he wants to see his family ‘as much’ as he ‘can’ during visits abroad
Seeing family is something Harry wants to do. He revealed as much in a February 2024 interview at the Invictus Games One Year to Go event. Asked when he planned to return to England to see his family, Harry told Good Morning America: “I have my own family, as we all do, right? My family and my life in California is as it is.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex live in Montecito, California, with Prince Archie, 4, and Princess Lilibet, 2.
Harry went on to say he has “other trips planned” that will bring him back home. “I have got other trips planned that would take me through the U.K. or back to the U.K.,” he said. “I will stop in and see my family as much as I can.”
At the time of writing, King Charles is the only close relative Harry’s seen so far in 2024.
