Prince William 'wary' Harry reconciliation could lead to 'further revelations'

Hannah Furnell Fri, October 23, 2026 at 1:27 PM UTC

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Prince William is reportedly "wary" that reconciling with Prince Harry could lead to "further revelations."

In late August, the Duke, 42, and Duchess of Sussex, 45, relocated back to the U.K. with their two children, Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five. On September 7, as they settled in the Cotswolds, King Charles issued a letter confirming that the couple would remain non-working royals. Since then, the Prince of Wales, 44, has kept silent.

While some sources have claimed that William and Kate Middleton no longer care what Harry and Meghan Markle do, others have alleged that the brothers could be closer to repairing their relationship than ever before, with private talks in the works. Now, Meghan's former friend and brand expert Nick Ede has weighed in on the drama.

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Ede believes William may be concerned that repairing his relationship with his younger brother could expose further private family matters. He further speculates whether William's protective instincts towards Kate and their family could make him particularly cautious with Harry.

He agrees with many other royal experts that while the brothers will always have a bond, the fallout from Harry and Meghan's Netflix documentary and Harry's memoir Spare has seriously damaged the trust between them, creating a chasm that will never fully close.

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Meghan Markle's former friend thinks Prince William is 'wary' about reconciling with Prince Harry (Image: In Pictures via Getty Images)

Speaking to Cafe Casino, Ede said, "I imagine William will have mixed emotions about Harry's public plea. There will always be a bond between the brothers, but the trust has been seriously damaged.

"William is fiercely protective of Catherine and his family, and I think he will be wary of another public reconciliation that could end in further revelations. Harry may be extending an olive branch, but William needs to know it's genuine and, most importantly, private."

Ede further noted that Harry and Meghan can be forgiven for their Netflix documentary and Spare, but rebuilding trust could be the difficult part of reconciliation.

He said, "Of course they can be forgiven, but forgiveness and trust are two very different things. The Netflix documentary and Spare exposed deeply personal family matters to millions of people, and that isn't something you simply forget.

"Harry and Meghan have every right to tell their story, but there are consequences when you make private family disputes public. If they genuinely want reconciliation, actions will speak far louder than another interview or public statement."

Ede also cautioned that reconciliation must not become "another carefully choreographed PR exercise." He explained, "I think the British public would love to see this family finally put their differences aside.

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"The Royal Family has faced enough challenges, and a reconciliation would send a powerful message about forgiveness and unity. But this cannot become another carefully choreographed PR exercise.

Prince William and Prince Harry have been estranged since around 2020 (Image: Getty Images)

"It needs to happen behind closed doors, away from cameras and headlines. Ultimately, Harry and William are brothers, and it would be incredibly sad if their children grew up as strangers because of a family feud."

Royal expert Laura Windsor, Queen of Etiquette, and Netflix's Bridgerton on-set Etiquette expert at Laura Windsor Etiquette Academy, told The Express US that Harry has a "significant" step to take, one he has so far avoided: to "acknowledge the hurt caused and to apologize to his brother."

Windsor continued, "The decision to make private family matters public is perhaps the most damaging and hurtful thing a family member can do, let alone a member of the Royal family, which has traditionally upheld the philosophy of 'never complain, never explain.' There has always been a strong expectation that private matters should remain private.

"By speaking publicly about such matters, Harry inevitably has damaged the trust between himself and his brother, the King and the public. Whether every detail that has been reported is accurate is a conversation for another day, but the very act of disclosing deeply personal family grievances inevitably has consequences.

"The damage cannot be repaired overnight, and so far there has been no sign on Harry's part to rebuild that trust. His recent interview with GQ comes across as self-serving - whinging and grieving over the loss of the very people he has alienated."

Ultimately, Windsor said trust can't be easily rebuilt between the brothers. She added, "It requires accountability, discretion (i.e. the opposite of going to the press and airing your frustration as though you are suddenly the victim), consistency, sincerity and, above all, a willingness to put the relationship before personal interests....It cannot happen simply because it makes a good story for the press or allows you to portray yourself as the wronged party."

Prince William and Kate Middleton don't care what Prince Harry and Meghan Markle do anymore (Image: Getty Images)

Windsor finds it difficult to see a "genuine reconciliation," emphasizing the word genuine. She concluded, "William will ask for nothing less than sincerity... If any reconciliation were to be made, I suspect it would be very polite, very formal and very distant, at least in the beginning...when Harry has apologized."

The brothers' relationship began to deteriorate around 2017, when William allegedly expressed doubts and advised Harry not to rush into marriage with Meghan, which Harry viewed as unsupportive.

Their estrangement officially kicked off when Harry and Meghan stepped back as senior working royals and left the U.K. in 2020. Things haven't gotten better as Harry and Meghan have continued to voice their grievances about the Royal Family in several interviews and documentaries. In Spare, Harry detailed a 2019 physical altercation at Nottingham Cottage where William allegedly pushed him to the floor during a heated argument.

Last month, sources told Rob Shuter's Naughty But Nice that William and Kate have "stopped caring" about the drama surrounding Harry and Meghan. "The anger has gone," one source said. "William spent years being furious. Catherine was deeply hurt. But you cannot stay angry forever. Eventually, you stop fighting and simply stop caring."

Sources now suggest William and Harry are preparing to hold private talks. However, William reportedly has one non-negotiable condition: Meghan has to stop talking about his wife and their children. Sources told Naughty But Nice that the brothers have realized that their continued estrangement has now become embarrassing.

In his new appearance on One More Question and GQ, Harry reaffirmed his hopes of reconciling with William and the larger Royal Family. "I want it to work out. Of course I do," Harry said. "With everything else that's going on in the world, the most important thing is to reconcile. That's the key point." He added that he "of course" grieves his estrangement from William.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”