The Duke of Sussex is in a tricky position – and an insider has warned that is he succumbs to ‘huge pressure’ he will destroy any hope of reconciling with his family
Prince Harry has a difficult decision to make – and it could destroy any chance he has of reconciling with his estranged family, including King Charles and the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Relations between Harry and the royals have been left in tatters since he and wife Meghan announced they were stepping down as senior working royals back in early 2020. They went on to give a brutal tell-all interview to Oprah Winfrey , in which they alleged racism within the royal family, which Harry has later dialled back on, and have gone on to make multiple criticisms of the monarchy – be it in their Netflix series or Harry’s book Spare .
Spare proved to be the final straw for the family – and now Harry’s publisher is reportedly “putting a ton of pressure on him” to write a follow-up to his controversial 2023 memoir. It’s a dilemma for the Prince. Spare is said to have netted profits of £16million – but a source has warned that revealing “more salacious details on the royals” for a new book would leave him with no chance of reconciliation with his family.
The insider told Heat Magazine: “It’s got to be a tough spot for Harry to be in, because the publisher is putting a ton of pressure on him to deliver some more salacious details on the royals. It’s not exactly like his family have been very forgiving, so no doubt there’s some feeling on Harry’s part that he’s got nothing left to lose.
“But if he wants any chance of a relationship, he’d be a fool to cave. The royals still can’t believe some of the things Harry said in his book, and it will go down in history as one of the biggest betrayals of the monarchy in modern memory. For him to rub salt in the wounds again for his own personal gain would send him so far into the doghouse that there’d be no way back – it would ruin any chance of reconciliation.”
The source also said that Harry is struggling to come up with fresh content for his next book, despite starting a new life with Meghan in the US, adding: “The harsh reality is that there’s very little to include at this point besides his experience of being ostracised by the royals.” Regardless of whether Harry writes the sequel or not, his relationship with Prince William might already be beyond repair. The future King is said to have decided to ‘cut ties’ completely with his younger sibling.
The BBC ‘s former royal correspondent Jennie Bond told Times Radio : “I think as far as William is concerned, Harry really doesn’t exist. William has enough pressure on his heart and his head, with his wife [ Princess of Wales ] and her ongoing cancer treatment, and his father [King Charles], his job and his kids that I don’t think he’s got any room in his soul to worry about his estranged brother… I think William has disowned Harry.”
Royal author Tom Quinn also believes that Harry and William’s relationship could be beyond repair. Speaking exclusively to The Mirror US, he said: “Having their own families means the brothers no longer need each other as they did after the death of their mother. Emotional support comes now from their partners, partners untainted by dysfunctional royal childhoods.”
“Yet even while complaining about his position as the spare, Harry won’t take the lead in trying to reconcile with his brother. He still expects William to make the first move in any attempt to reconcile. William is so annoyed with Harry’s complaints and attacks on the royals that he has completely shut down and has no intention of extending the hand of friendship – in case it gets bitten off.”
