How Prince Harry and Charles’ unbreakable bond means the door is still open for a return to royal life
THEY have both been plunged into the darkest tragedy – and forced to pit their devotion to the women they loved against their duty to the Crown.
This has created a very special father-son bond between Prince Charles and Harry.
But while the Prince of Wales was forced by tradition to marry Diana in 1981 instead of his true love Camilla, causing him two decades of pain and anguish, Harry was able to seize on changing times to break free and run off to America with Meghan.
It is that brutal shared experience — and the death of the Princess of Wales — which perhaps means Charles has more understanding than any member of the Royal Family of Harry’s decision to walk away from Queen and country.
And it is that bond which has led to the Prince keeping in regular contact with Harry and Meghan throughout the devastating fallout from their biography Finding Freedom.
Packed with hurtful personal blows against his brother and sister-in-law, his father and the institution of the Royal Family itself, the book could have led to Harry and Meghan being cast out for ever.
Many royal watchers and members of the British public would say that would be no more than they deserved.
But Charles, the future King, while deeply hurt at some of the book’s revelations, is nevertheless still keeping the door open for a dramatic return for the Sussexes.
VOICE OF REASSURANCE
And while headstrong and petulant Harry — and proud and ambitious Meghan — are unlikely to return to Windsor any time soon, it is also the case that they are in danger of watching their American dream turn into something closer to a nightmare.
Since the moment Megxit was announced, the couple have lurched from one crisis to the next — many of them self-inflicted.
From rows over the cost of their security, criticism of their antics during the global Covid-19 pandemic to investigations into their charitable activities, the pair cannot claim to have made a success of the split.
Yet through it all, Charles has been a calm voice of reassurance to his son and daughter-in-law, despite royal sources saying Charles has been “disappointed and crushed” by Finding Freedom.
The Sun can reveal he has been in regular contact, providing emotional and financial support, with phone and video calls from Castle of Mey in Scotland — the Queen Mother’s former holiday home — to Harry in California.
A royal insider said: “They have a very strong and close father-and-son relationship. Many people have speculated that the book was the end for Harry and Meghan in Britain.
“Too many people were criticised and too many people attacked, including William and Kate.
“But the Prince of Wales has made it clear the door is always open.
“Since his move to Los Angeles they have been in regular contact. Charles is not an avid user of texts but there are video and phone calls.
“The book has never been a massive talking point between them and Charles is determined that it is not an obstacle.
“He has provided financial support, as any father would do when their son moves with a young family to the other side of the world.
“Their relationship is rock-solid and they remain close. They speak at least once a week and Charles is still a massive driving force in Harry’s life.”
The Prince of Wales is a great sounding board for Harry
Royal Source
Charles’s bond with the couple was sealed at their wedding in May 2018, when he stepped in to walk Meghan down the aisle after her estranged father, Thomas, pulled out.
He is even part-funding their new LA lifestyle from his Duchy of Cornwall income — much of which goes on Harry and Meghan’s private security.
Another royal source said: “When Harry was making the decision to step away from royal duties it was something he confided in his father about because he respects his opinion more than anyone else.
“Charles knows what it is like to be conflicted within the royal household. Harry has always been his own man and will do what he thinks is right.
“Since moving to LA, Charles has been there for Harry. They regularly discuss how he is doing and the work he is looking to embark on.
“The Prince of Wales is a great sounding board for Harry.”
STRING OF SETBACKS
Charles’s crucial support comes as Harry and Meghan have suffered a string of setbacks in their pursuit of financial independence after their Megxit split.
They are mired in legal disputes, have had a faltering start to launching their new charity, are estranged from friends and family and are stuck indoors under Los Angeles lockdown.
But the arrangements are set to be reviewed by the Royal Family in five months’ time.
This week, in an increasingly bitter privacy battle with Meghan’s father Thomas, a judge said she had made “hyperbolic” claims about the media.
Mr Justice Warby said in the High Court that Meghan had shown “an eagerness to play out the merits of their dispute in public, outside the courtroom, and primarily in media reports.”
Without a home of their own in which to bring up 15-month-old Archie, they are staying in Hollywood producer pal Tyler Perry’s mansion.
Meghan has been restricted to doing one voiceover job, for a Disney documentary recorded months earlier in London.
The launch of their Archewell foundation has been delayed until next year due to the pandemic.
Harry’s eco-friendly initiative Travalyst is grounded due to Covid-19 travel bans. Last month Harry was reported to the Charity Commission for allegedly misusing charity funds.
In response, the couple fired back through lawyers against “false claims” which they say are “deeply offensive”.
Meanwhile, the couple’s dreams of splitting from the Royal Family to hang out with celebrity pals, megastar agents and the money men of Tinseltown have been ruined by lockdown and social distancing.
When they have stepped out to visit the dentist or deliver food to the needy, they are spotted by LA’s notorious paparazzi.
'WRONGS OF THE PAST'
And they are suing a German magazine for publishing drone photos of Archie with Meghan’s mum Doria in the mansion’s grounds.
They were even forced to put up screens at the mansion to stop prying walkers and have been inundated by drones.
Last month, Harry prompted outrage by saying the Commonwealth must acknowledge the “wrongs of the past” about racism during a video conference.
Despite her father living in Mexico, just across the border from California, Meghan has not spoken to him since before the wedding more than two years ago.
Facing them both is a High Court privacy case dubbed “Markle vs Markle” which could see Meghan give evidence against her own father.
Meanwhile, the Duke’s pals say he “misses the camaraderie” of life in the Armed Forces and has been isolated during lockdown.
'RACIAL OVERTONES'
As for Meghan, she has dumped her closest friend and confidante Jessica Mulroney over a race storm.
With no regular income, the couple continue to be bankrolled by savings and cash from Charles.
But funds may be in shorter supply as Charles’s Duchy of Cornwall has predicted that its income will fall “by a significant amount” next year due to Covid-19.
Yet pals say Harry has been buoyed in recent days by the announcement that his beloved Invictus Games for service veterans will be able to go ahead next year.
Before the pandemic struck, he had “fully focused” on making a success of the event.
An insider said: “Invictus is such a massive part of Harry’s life and this year was massive because it was the first time he was organising the event, having stepped back from royal duties.
“He knew the spotlight would be on him and was looking forward to rising to that challenge. He was fully focused on it.
"While in lockdown Meghan and Harry have spent many weeks involved in a series of meetings with those running their new charity foundation, Archewell.
“They are busy plotting their vision for the organisation and finalising the key partners they want to work with.”
The authors of Finding Freedom — Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand — claim Harry’s patched-up relationship with his father has come despite Charles feeling “crushed” in 2016 when his son, in a breach of protocol, overshadowed his visit to the Middle East by launching an attack on the media.
The bombshell book — which the authors say Harry and Meghan have not contributed to — describes how news of Charles’s trip was sidelined when Harry lashed out at the media for “racial overtones” in its reporting on Meghan.
Charles had had just 20 minutes’ notice of Harry’s plans to break protocol and issue his statement.
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The extraordinary press release, partly written by Harry, made headlines around the world as it criticised “abuse and harassment” of Meghan.
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But although it reportedly angered Charles for derailing his diplomatic tour of the Gulf, he has clearly long since forgiven his son.
And now it appears that the devoted dad is always available on the other end of the line or video call to provide Harry with a friendly face back home — and the possibility of a return to royal life.
Attack on 'crisis of hate'
By James Beal, US Editor
WOKE Prince Harry has accused social media of stoking a “crisis of hate” and said it was “unwell”.
Writing in US business magazine Fast Company, he said he and Meghan had spent the past few weeks working with business leaders and marketing executives on the issue to try to bring about change.
Harry said firms had a chance to reconsider funding online platforms that have “contributed to, stoked, and created the conditions for a crisis of hate, a crisis of health, and a crisis of truth”.
He called for the end of “weaponised speech” online and said it should be “defined more by compassion than hate . . . and inclusiveness instead of injustice and fearmongering”.
Harry, 35, revealed that he and Meghan, 39, started their social media reform campaign at the same time as the launch of pressure group Stop Hate For Profit movement in June.
It was launched by a coalition of non-profit organisations who urged firms to stop advertising on Facebook until founder Mark Zuckerberg tackled hate speech.
The Stop Hate For Profit campaign “sent a $7billion message through withheld ad dollars”, Harry claimed.
He said that while most people enjoy Facebook, Twitter and Instagram – considered a free way to access information – “the cost is high”.
And he warned: “Every time you click, they learn more about you. Our information, private data and unknown habits are traded on for advertising space and dollars.
“The price we’re all paying is much higher than it appears. Whereas normally we’re the consumer buying a product, in this ever-changing digital world, we are the product.”
He added: “If we are susceptible to the coercive forces in digital spaces, then we have to ask ourselves, what does this mean for our children? As a father, this is especially concerning to me.
“Social media’s own algorithms and recommendation tools can drive people down paths towards radicalism and extremism that they might not have taken otherwise.”
Harry said: “We do not have the luxury of time,” and he declared the change needs to start now, especially considering how “spending on digital advertising is set to eclipse ad spending in traditional media”.
In a speech last month, Meghan urged teenage girls and young women to drown out sometimes “painfully loud” negative online chatter with positivity.
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