Prince William never bought the idea that his brother’s return to Britain would be a quiet one, and after the week Prince Harry and Meghan Markle just had, a palace insider says the heir is feeling vindicated. Two weeks after the Sussexes left Montecito, California, for the UK, a source told Page Six on Saturday that William “was much less optimistic than the king and was proven right because right now he’s having an ‘I told you so’ moment.”
The vindication follows a bruising stretch for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. King Charles authorized a formal letter on Monday declaring the couple non-working royals “akin to private citizens,” the Sussexes publicly pushed back through a spokesperson and friendly sources, and by Thursday Harry’s camp was blaming the letter for Uganda’s withdrawal from the 2027 Invictus Games.
According to the insider, William sees no reason to engage. “William and Kate don’t have to do anything and say anything,” the source said. “History has proven time and again Meghan and Harry will dig their own grave. And this takes them further away from reconciliation.”
The brothers’ estrangement remains total. “William has not spoken to Harry,” the source said, adding that the Prince of Wales has not moved past the strain he associates with the period surrounding Kate Middleton’s cancer diagnosis in 2024. “William also hasn’t gotten over all the stress that Harry and Meghan caused leading up to Kate’s cancer diagnosis,” the insider claimed. “She finally reached remission, only for them to come back to the U.K. and create more stress for everyone.” Kate announced in January 2025 that she was in remission.
Sussexes Insist They Are ‘Public Figures’ as the Palace Holds Its Line
Harry and Meghan’s side has spent the week arguing the opposite case. A source close to the couple told People that the palace’s “private citizens” language was unrealistic. “They are public figures,” the source said. “Members of the public know who they are. The idea that they can live a normal, ‘private’ life is sadly not realistic.” The couple’s spokesperson had earlier told the BBC they were “a little surprised not to have been told about this in advance.”
The palace, for its part, has not budged. Officials have maintained the letter reflects the couple’s own stated wishes from 2020, and on the Invictus fallout, People reported that the King encourages all organizations that support wounded service personnel. Royal commentator Kinsey Schofield summed up the mood among critics last weekend, telling Fox News Digital the Sussexes appeared to want “the best of both worlds.”
On X, the report drew a mix of gloating, jokes, and open skepticism. “It only took a week! That’s what’s truly shocking,” one user wrote, while another posted a GIF captioned “So go on, git.” A third simply observed, “The royal family group chat must be on fire today.” Others doubted the story entirely. “Prince William is a vault and says nothing,” one commenter insisted, and a self-described fan account dismissed it as “another made-up story,” adding, “PW hasn’t said a word about these two private citizens.” One reply needled the sourcing with a wink: “I truly wonder whom your source was because everyone knows that Prince William nor Kensington Palace don’t leak stories to the press!”
Harry and Meghan moved back to Britain on August 26 with their children, Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, citing a desire to be closer to the King during his ongoing cancer treatment. Kensington Palace has not commented on the report, and Harry has yet to respond publicly to any claim about his brother. If the insider is right, he should not expect William to break the silence first.
