Panorama: 'Shame' BBC 'caved' on Diana interview says expert

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Prince William and his wife Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, have seemingly extended an olive branch to their brother and sister-in-law across the pond. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge shared their well-wishes for Meghan Markle on Thursday, as she marked her 41st birthday. Amid reports of tensions between the two couples, Kate and William used Twitter to wish the Duchess of Sussex a happy birthday. 

Prince Harry and his family returned to the UK for the first time in over two years in June to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee. 

Relations appeared to still be strained, particularly between the Cambridges and Sussexes, during a National Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral. 

The couples were not seen interacting at all and reportedly did not even make eye contact. 

Harry and William once shared a close brotherly bond but have become increasingly distant in recent years. 

For Andrew Morton, an old friend of Diana, Princess of Wales and the author of her 1992 biography ‘Diana: Her True Story’, the rift between the two princes raises the question – what would Diana think? 

Speaking to the Daily Beast this week, Mr Morton recalled how close Harry and William used to be, describing them as “inseparable”, adding that Diana saw her younger son as a “wingman” for his brother. 

The author said: “Like any mother, Diana would have been concerned about the breakdown in the relationship between her children. 

“She said on Panorama, and she said to me, on numerous occasions, that she saw Harry as a wingman for William, because his job is a lonely job, and you cannot trust many people around you. 

“She saw Harry as being there to back up his brother, but that’s not how things turned out.”

Reports of a rift between the brothers first surfaced back in 2018 when rumours of drama between Kate and Harry’s new wife Meghan had already been circulating for a while. 

Katie Nicholl, the author of ‘William and Harry: Behind the Palace Walls’, dropped the bombshell claim that it was actually the princes who weren’t seeing eye-to-eye. 

According to Ms Nicholl’s sources, the brothers had a falling-out around Christmas 2018, when Harry told Will he wasn’t doing enough to include Meghan in the Royal Family.

Her source said: “Harry felt William wasn’t rolling out the red carpet for Meghan and told him so. 

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“They had a bit of a fallout, which was only resolved when Charles stepped in and asked William to make an effort. 

“That’s when the Cambridges invited the Sussexes to spend Christmas with them.”

In a documentary a few months later, Ms Nicholl claimed that the ‘royal feud’ had actually begun much earlier when Harry and Meghan first started dating. 

She told the TLC’s ‘Kate v. Meghan: Princesses at War?’ that William was “quite concerned that the relationship had moved so quickly.”

She continued: “And being close to Harry, probably the only person close enough to say to Harry: ‘This seems to be moving quickly, are you sure?’”

“I think what was meant as well-intended brotherly advice just riled Harry. Harry is hugely protective of Meghan. He saw that as criticism. 

“He interpreted that as his brother not really being behind this marriage, this union, and I don’t think things have been quite right ever since.”

That same year, it was announced that the Cambridges and Sussexes would be splitting their households, with Meghan and Harry moving out of Kensington Palace to Frogmore Cottage in Windsor and their staff relocating to Buckingham Palace. 

In October 2019, Harry and Meghan took part in an ITV documentary which saw the couple take a trip to Africa to oversee the charity the Duke started 15 years ago. 

During ‘Harry & Meghan: An African Journey’, the Sussexes also discussed the pressures and challenges they face as a young family living in the glare of the world’s media. 

And the prince unexpectedly admitted there was, in fact, a royal rift, telling journalist Tom Bradby: “Part of this role and part of this job, and this family, being under the pressure that it’s under, inevitably, you know, stuff happens.

“But look, we’re brothers, we’ll always be brothers. And we’re certainly on different paths at the moment, but I’ll always be there for him, as I know he’ll always be there for me.”

A couple of months later, it was revealed that Harry and Meghan would be skipping the traditional royal Christmas at Sandringham, instead spending the festive season in Canada with the Duchess’ mother Doria Ragland.

Upon their return to the UK in January 2020, it was announced that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would be stepping back from their senior duties. 

Their final official engagement was the Commonwealth Day Service at Westminster Abbey in March 2020, which saw the tension between the Cambridges and Sussexes on full display. 

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex then left the UK and said farewell to life in the Firm in favour of a fresh start in the US. 

A year later, Meghan and Harry sat down for their now-infamous interview with Oprah Winfrey, which saw the Sussexes speak candidly about what happened during their time as working royals. 

While Harry did not give much away, he did talk about the tension between himself and his older brother, saying: “As I’ve said before, I love William to bits. He’s my brother. We’ve been to hell together. But we’re on different paths.”

“The relationship is ‘space’ at the moment. And time heals all things, hopefully.”

Since then, Harry has returned to the UK three times: first for the funeral of his grandfather Prince Philip in April 2021; second for the unveiling of a statue in tribute to Diana a few months later and third to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June this year. 

All three royal reunions confirmed that tension still remained between the brothers. 

Mr Morton believes that there is a slim chance of reconciliation between William and Harry. 

He told the Daily Beast: “I very much doubt they will be reconciled. There is a lot of wishful thinking about this.

“The closest parallel is George VI and Edward VIII. George VI adored his brother, like Harry adored William, they were inseparable, but then he abdicated, moved abroad and the relationship was never the same again. William and Harry are in a similar situation.

“As we saw at the Jubilee, when the time they spent in London was brief to say the least, there was no suggestion of having dinner or lunch or getting the children together. 

“They will go their separate ways, and the longer Harry and Meghan stay in America, the more comfortable they will be there.”

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