Prince William and King Charles have apparently formed a closer bond since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle departed from their roles as senior working royals, according to a royal commentator. Expert Jennie Bond shared this belief during a recently televised interview on TalkTV.
When asked about the 2023 documentary Charles III: The Coronation Year that showed “behind the scenes” moments before and after Charles’ May 2023 coronation, Bond said: “During the rehearsals, we saw William looking at his father. What I think [was also] probably going through William’s head was ‘My goodness me, this is my destiny too.'”
Bond added, regarding the Prince of Wales, 41, and his father Charles, 75: “He has this caring side, you can see that he cares about his father a great deal.” She went on: “They’ve become a lot closer since Harry and Meghan left [their working positions in the royal family].”
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Royal Commentator Says William & Charles' Relationship Has Improved Since Harry & Meghan Left Their Royal Roles
Bond also noted that she watched and rewinded many recent clips of William and Charles to analyze their mannerisms and body language when together.
"The body language between William and Charles was very telling, and similarly between [Princess Anne] and her brother Charles." As many will recall, the relinquishing of Markle, 42, and Harry's duties as active members of the royal family did not occur in a singular instance.
In October 2019, Harry, 39, and Markle hinted at their departure from their working royal tasks by announcing their plan to take a six-week break.
This was intended to provide them with some "family time," which they wanted to spend with their son, Archie Harrison, who was born in May of the same year.
In January 2020, the couple made an announcement of their intention to "step back" and withdraw as senior members of the Royal Family, opting instead to divide their time between the United Kingdom and North America.
In March of that year, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex completed their final batch of engagements and relocated to California that same month.
Buckingham Palace wrote in a statement in February 2021: "The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have confirmed to Her Majesty The Queen that they will not be returning as working members of The Royal Family."
This came just over a year following the duo's own statement that noted they wanted to "carve out a progressive new role within this institution."
After that, the Sussexes gained widespread attention following their interview with Oprah Winfrey and the release of their Netflix docuseries, Harry and Meghan, where they candidly discussed their time as working royals. In his 2023 memoir Spare, Harry also made shocking allegations against his brother William and father Charles.
Despite this, just one month before Charles' coronation in May of last year, Buckingham Palace confirmed that the Duke of Sussex would attend his father's big day, while his wife would stay home in California with Archie and their daughter Lilibet Diana (whom they welcomed in 2021).
Just before the ceremony, People Magazine reported that one source told the outlet that Harry and Charles were having "positive conversations," and that the King was "pleased" that his younger son planned to attend the event.
While it may be unclear just how tense things currently are between the working members of the royal family and the Sussexes, it seems that many users on X (formerly Twitter) agree with Bond in that William and Charles appear more affectionate than ever lately.
"It’s obvious the King and Prince William have a good rapport," one tweeted along with a recent video of the two laughing as another added that the aforementioned documentary shared many "lovely moments" between them.
