Was the much-hyped, "letdown" of a second "non-meeting" between Prince Harry and King Charles III all a Sussex PR gimmick?
"The King and his advisors have seen this for what it really is," royal author Tom Bower told an outlet. "It's all about boosting the brand which is suffering terribly."
"The key is, Harry was desperate for a photo opportunity for the King so he could get to Nigeria and say 'I come here as a member of the royal family,’” he added.
The scribe then further explained how His Majesty "realizes he is on a losing card" with the Duke of Sussex and Meghan Markle. Bower claimed: "He is finally seeing they are exploiting the misery in London. They are putting William and Kate in a terrible light. The Sussexes have stepped in to embarrass the King. Rightly Buckingham Palace decided 'we’re not going to play their game' on this occasion."
The California Duke cut a lonely figure in London on Wednesday, May 8, as he attended the Invictus Games anniversary celebration all alone. His Duchess decided to once again stay home in Montecito and has not shown her face "in the land that gave her royal titles and worldwide fame" since September 2022. Not a single member of the royal family came to the event, despite reports claiming invitations were sent to many of them.
The late Diana, Princess of Wales' siblings Earl Spencer and Lady Jane Fellowes — Harry's uncle and aunt respectively — made appearances in support of the Duke.
There were reportedly rounds of "difficult negotiations" held before King Charles III's courtiers let it be known he wouldn't be meeting once again with his son Prince Harry.
"There is some talk that behind the scenes, a lot of negotiating went on," royal expert Charlotte Griffiths shared. "I think the reason was because Harry made certain demands about who could be in the room and who couldn’t."
"Although on the surface it looks like a snub, Harry made it very difficult for his father," she added. The commentator was then asked to clarify "certain demands," and replied that "other forces" had a part in shaping the California Duke's answer, which has apparently been in limbo all this time.
"Maybe other forces were driving Charles’s position on this," she stated. "William may have had a thought about how this meeting should be conducted, or whether it should be conducted at all."
Princes William and Harry will unfortunately not be meeting now that the rebel Duke has arrived in Britain. The estranged brothers were not predicted to have a reunion, which means their "bitter feud" will rage on as William is "doing the utmost" to avoid Harry.
Daily Express reported on Bower's comments.