Prince Harry was photographed warmly embracing Colleen Harris, his father’s former press secretary and now a trustee of the King’s Charitable Fund, during his final UK engagement before leaving for Ukraine.
Images from the Diana Awards event showed the Duke of Sussex leaning in with a broad smile as Ms Harris beamed and wrapped her arms around him.
The two shared an extended hug while guests and photographers looked on. Ms Harris, who joined Charles’s office in 1998 as Deputy Press Secretary and was promoted to Press Secretary in 2000, resigned from the post in 2003.
She has since remained active in charitable work and continues to serve as a trustee of the King’s Charitable Fund.
King Charles's former press secretary pictured embracing Prince Harry
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Several photographs from the early 2000s showed a young Duke of Sussex with Ms Harris during her time as press secretary to then-Prince Charles.
Thursday's encounter came at an event highlighting The Diana Award, an organisation honouring the legacy of Princess Diana and supporting young people in social action and mental health projects.
Harry has long supported the charity and regularly joins its staff for meetings via video link. The Diana Award’s chief executive, Tessy Ojo, noted that while both Harry and the Prince of Wales are involved, they generally participate separately, explaining: “You know what, people are fascinated about seeing them together.
“I’ve had the pleasure of working alongside them for 25 years, and they’ve always done things separately. The one time we brought them together was the 20th anniversary of Princess Diana’s death.”
Harry’s meeting with Ms Harris was one of the final moments in a four-day visit to Britain
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Harry’s meeting with Ms Harris was one of the final moments in a four-day visit to Britain that was widely seen as a step towards reconciliation with his family.
On Wednesday, he met King Charles at Clarence House for the first time in 19 months. According to a royal source quoted by the Mail: “It’s become clear that Harry now regrets some of his actions.
“He wants to reset his relationship with his family and with the people of the UK. It’s hard to see him ever coming back to live in Britain, but this may be the start of something that at least allows them to be a functioning wider family again.”
The King is understood to be eager to rebuild ties and hopes to spend time with his grandchildren, Archie and Lilibet, whom he has not seen for three years.
Colleen Harris and Prince Harry pictured in Australia back in 2003
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The source added: “The King wants to be a grandfather to his grandchildren, so that’s an important pull.
“He was so pleased when they came over for Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee, and he was able to spend some time with them.”
Harry’s spokesman said the Duke “loved” being back in the UK and “catching up with old friends”, describing the trip as a success that allowed him to reconnect with key causes.
During the visit, he announced a £1.1million donation to Children in Need and attended the WellChild Awards.
Queen Camilla and Colleen Harris pictured together in 2001
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Soon after the Diana Award event, Harry flew to Poland and then travelled by train to Kyiv.
He told the Guardian he sought approval before making the journey, saying: “I had to check with my wife and the British Government to make sure it was OK.”
He added: “We cannot stop the war, but what we can do is do everything we can to help the recovery process. We can continue to humanise the people involved in this war and what they are going through.
“We have to keep it in the forefront of people’s minds. I hope this trip will help to bring it home to people because it’s easy to become desensitised to what has been going on.”