It looks that King Charles does not wish to visit Prince Harry at this time. There are numerous reasons why this could be the case: Harry authored a tell-all memoir, relocated to America, and is still giving interviews about how “no one” in his family offered him “support” when he was a traumatized adolescent. Rather than admitting that things are tense among Britain’s royals right now, the king’s public-relations team has resorted to leak lame reasons whenever Harry returns to the country.
When Prince Harry unexpectedly appeared in London in March for a hearing in one of his several lawsuits against the press, palace sources claimed King Charles was too “busy” for a visit, despite the fact that his schedule was obviously free when he canceled a foreign trip at the last minute.
Now, Harry will return to the United Kingdom on Thursday for the WellChild Awards, a charity he has supported for the past 15 years. It may appear that now is an ideal time for a royal reconciliation, given Friday is the anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s death.
But, after spending weeks on vacation in Scotland, King Charles is suddenly fully booked. According to a royal insider, the monarch simply has “no time in the diary” to meet his son.
The notion that the monarch lacks the authority to clear some time in his calendar is absurd. But perhaps King Charles is currently overburdened. According to the Times of London, Charles has been “surprised” by how much effort his new job entails:
A “complete workaholic”, according to his wife, Charles often returns to his desk after dinner — yet even he has been surprised by the increased workload of a sovereign. A source close to him said: “I think the red boxes and [extra] duties have come as an unexpected burden on his time. The Queen is absolutely integral. Without her you’d be looking at a very different person, in terms of his happiness, which is vital to the success of the whole mission.”
“He’s got the Queen by his side who can make him laugh like nobody else, who can reassure him things are going well, who can humanise him, particularly at a time of immense stress and strain when he lost his mother and was suddenly sovereign, red boxes overflowing. To have the companion in whom you have complete faith and trust makes that burden a bit lighter.”
So there are two options here.
Option 1: Charles is enraged with his younger son and cannot be bothered to come up with a credible reason to avoid him.
Option 2: Charles is actually very busy figuring out how to execute a job that he has been working on for a year after a lifetime of preparation.
Neither answer is particularly complimentary to the king. However, the fact that he has recently made time to reconcile with his disgraced brother, Prince Andrew, indicates which one it is.