King Charles and Prince Harry’s mooted meeting may now face a key issue when the Duke returns to the UK next month, a veteran royal commentator has suggested.
The feuding father and son have been tipped for a "face-to-face” meeting upon his visit to attend the 2025 WellChild Awards on September 8.
The date of the awards has special significance for the Royal Family and the nation as it will coincide with the third anniversary of Queen Elizabeth's death.
However, the meeting is expected to mark Harry's first time back since suffering a bruising legal defeat over his security arrangements.
Prince Harry and King Charles's mooted meeting next month faces a key obstacle
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“We have all become quite used to Harry coming and going without seeing his family. His visits are generally extremely brief,” royal commentator Jennie Bond said.
If this standard was to be followed, the father and son would naturally have a short time window to meet.
Further complicating matters would be the solemn marking of the late Queen’s death.
While Harry will be in London for the WellChild Awards, his father will most likely be north of the border.
King Charles is expected to be marking three years since the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, in Scotland while Harry is in London
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“The King is usually up in Scotland for the anniversary of his mother‘s death. So arranging a meeting may not be straightforward,” Ms Bond analysed while speaking with The Mirror.
Harry is expected to also mark the occasion to mark the occasion with a private tribute to his late grandmother.
GB News' Royal Correspondent Cameron Walker told the People's Channel: “I suspect he may make a trip to Windsor Castle to pay respects at the grave of his grandmother at St George's Chapel for a private visit.
“I'd be highly surprised if he didn't do that,” he added.
Harry is also predicted to privately commemorate his late grandmother while at the capital
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Regardless of the difficulties, Ms Bond felt that a potential meeting between the King and Prince Harry was “long overdue”.
“I have always thought that it is the parent’s role to be the bigger person in any family row: you just have to open your arms and say to your child – albeit a grown-up child - ‘Come here you silly so-and-so, and give me a hug,’” she opined.
This was especially so for Ms Bond as any legal impediments to a meeting, referring to the Duke’s security complaints, were now cleared.
She stated that a sit-down meeting “simply hadn’t been possible while Harry was suing his father‘s own government over his security demands".
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“Now that that court case is over, a major obstacle to a meeting has been cleared,” the former BBC royal correspondent said.
“So, particularly given that we know that the communications teams from each side have met fairly recently and that therefore an avenue of communication is open, a meeting when Harry is here for the Well Child Awards could hopefully happen,” she added.
Regarding the meeting, a source recently told The Mirror: “It’s clear there is now a determination on both sides to make this happen.”
"For the first time in a long time, there’s a genuine sense that reconciliation is within reach. After 20 months apart, and with the King continuing his treatment, the feeling is that the time is right to take that step,” the insider suggested.