BREAKING NEWS: King Charles drops bombshell announcement on Prince Harry’s future in Britain – fans are left stunned
King Charles pictured with his younger son, Prince Harry
The King remains “adamant” that Prince Harry cannot return to royal duties, and he will stand firm in preventing his youngest son from rejoining the royal family, according to a former Palace press secretary.
As the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their two young children, Archie and Lilibet, settle into their new residence in the Cotswolds (the exact location remains closely guarded), uncertainty persists regarding what the former working royals will pursue now that they’re back in Britain.
With Meghan anticipated to explore acting roles while dividing her time between the UK and the US as she expands her lifestyle brand, Harry is expected to balance stay-at-home parenting duties with his charitable endeavors.
The move has sparked concerns that, by returning to the UK and actively supporting the limited number of British charities he retained, the Duke may pursue a more formal, public position in direct violation of the 2020 Megxit agreement, which forbids a hybrid arrangement.
However, Dickie Arbiter, former press secretary to the royal family from 1988 to 2000, maintains this is completely off the table. “You can’t just waltz back into a country and expect everything, everybody to roll over,” he says.
It has been claimed that Harry is unlikely to become a working royal again
“It’s never going to be the same as it was; there is always going to be that element of mistrust.”
In his latest book, On Duty With the Royals, Dickie examines Megxit and the devastating consequences of the couple’s subsequent tell-all TV interviews, Netflix documentary and the Duke’s memoir on the broader royal family.
He contends the harm done to William and his family is probably beyond repair, stating, “In trying to settle old scores, he has inflicted new wounds that may never heal.”
And when discussing the most recent chapter in the Sussex saga, he explains that there “is no possibility” of Harry assuming an official position. “Harry burnt his bridges,” he says.
“Not so much when he left the royal family, but what he did in the intervening time, talking to Oprah, rubbishing the royal family, rubbishing the British people, rubbishing the country.”
Harry and Meghan recently returned to Britain (Image: Getty)
Dickie continued, “That’s [returning as a working royal] not an option. And the King is adamant he’s got to stick to what his mother said. There’s no half in, it’s in or out. You’ve chosen out, out it is going to remain.”
Palace sources echo this sentiment and insist Harry and Meghan will remain private individuals regardless of their residence.
And while Harry may wish to participate alongside the thousands of veterans on Remembrance Sunday, the former Palace source has categorically dismissed his attendance at the Cenotaph Service.
The source, “That is a national event. It is for working royals to lead the country. He is not a working royal. And therefore, that is not an option, and he can forget about that.”
As the Sussexes map out their near-term strategy, the royal family will continue its standard operations, concentrating on a packed calendar of both incoming and outgoing state visits alongside its routine schedule of engagements across the UK.
The Sussexes relocated to the Cotswolds (Image: Getty)
Harry will probably dedicate himself to organizing the 2027 Birmingham Invictus Games, while gradually mending his relationship with his father, hoping that by July, the King, in his capacity as head of the Armed Forces, will formally inaugurate the event.
However, such a public encounter between father and son carries inherent challenges, with Dickie proposing that a video message from the King might be more suitable. “It’s a very difficult one that the King is going to have to confront,” he says.
“I would imagine that the Palace are thinking about it very seriously – how they can manage this without giving in to Harry.”
While Charles clearly desires some type of private connection with his youngest son and his family, reconciliation remains distant. “The key to reconciliation is an acknowledgement that he’s not the victim,” Dickie clarifies, having noted in the book that Harry has attributed fault to everyone except himself.
“He is the one who has victimized the royal family, victimized the British people. And until such time, he acknowledges that. And until such time, he apologises, apologises and means it. It’s going to be very difficult for the great British public to accept him back.”
However, regarding reconciliation with his older brother, the author remains skeptical that it will ever occur. With the 30th anniversary of their mother’s death approaching next August, there’s growing pressure for William and Harry to commemorate the solemn day together, as they did in 2022.
Dickie believes a genuine reunion is improbable; however, any commemoration would likely feature “very clear separation” to prevent family tensions from eclipsing such a somber occasion.
The former press secretary collaborated closely with the late princess for five years and found her enjoyable, compassionate and captivating – though he took issue with her tendency to give people the silent treatment when things didn’t go her way.
He characterizes her sons as her legacy, continuing her vital work on causes such as homelessness and landmines. But Dickie contends that Harry “is weaponising his mother” and, three decades later, believes he needs to “stop hanging onto her coattails and get on with your life”.
Unlike William, who grieves his mother privately while concentrating on his family and public duties, the author regrets that Harry continues to use her as “a crutch.”
“Harry has got to stop hanging onto his mother’s memory. Remember her for life, but don’t remember her in public and don’t use her as a crutch,” he said.
While much of the Express’ hour-long video conversation from his vacation in Greece centered on the renewed challenges posed by the Sussexes’ return to England, only one of the 16 chapters in the book focuses on them. One examines the other family member causing turmoil within the Firm, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
Characterizing the King’s brother as arrogant, entitled and driven by financial interests, Dickie chronicles his downfall and assesses how both monarchs handled the unfolding crisis.
Speaking with the Express, he dismissed the persistent suggestion that Andrew was the late Queen’s “favourite son,” believing instead she held greater affection for her youngest, Edward – it was merely that Andrew consistently positioned himself at the forefront.
Charles with his former spokesman Dickie Arbiter (right) during his tour of Poland (Image: Unknown)
Nevertheless, Dickie suggested that Elizabeth would have found it extraordinarily challenging to remove Andrew’s titles and exile him to Sandringham, as Charles did last October.
He addressed the backlash that the King acted too slowly regarding the accusations against his brother, explaining simply that “he doesn’t knee-jerk” and required consideration of legal counsel, particularly since the Palace sought to prevent Parliamentary involvement in stripping his titles.
“The king took the decision. He took the right decision. Stripped him of everything, got him booted out of Royal Lodge, Windsor, and housed him on the Sandringham Estate, where he belongs.”
The matter now rests with law enforcement, Dickie noted, confident in his assessment that the King has exhausted his available options.
The remainder of the book leverages Dickie’s distinctive background of authentic firsthand involvement working closely with the immediate royal family to examine the Carolean period, the growing appeal of the Prince and Princess of Wales, and illuminates some of his difficult experiences within the Palace (the competing pressures of a couple nearing divorce is a recurring subject).
Dickie also offers readers a new perspective into what the late Queen, Prince Philip, the King and other senior royals were truly like behind closed doors. How they handled moments of disagreement and emergency situations, occasions of joy and their professional responsibilities.
He discusses the former monarch’s wartime practices of thriftiness, making her insistent about switching off unnecessary lights or mending worn garments, her authentic compassion and generosity, and her meticulous focus on precision in every matter.
Shifting his focus to the current monarch, Dickie reveals that following their initial encounter over 45 years ago, he recognized Charles was “one of the most intellectually engaged royals of the modern era”.
Dickie next to Princess Diana in 1993 (Image: Mirrorpix)
He portrayed a man committed to creating impact, who “felt criticism personally because he cared so deeply about the outcomes of his work” and his dedication, insight and expertise were ultimately acknowledged by individuals worldwide following his triumphant US state visit earlier this year.
Regarding William, Dickie portrays a figure who embodies openness, authenticity and steadfast devotion to the Crown and his family.
He’s successfully balanced royal obligations with his commitment to prioritizing his family, with each choice focused on guaranteeing their three children enjoy a private, tranquil upbringing.
“Straddling the divide between being a future king and someone Britons would want to grab a pint with, he has built a barrier of mystique yet maintained an air of accessibility,” he writes.
In Catherine, he has found his anchor, and when the time comes, they will face the future together as an equal unit.
On Duty With The Royals by Dickie Arbiter is on sale on Thursday, September 10. You can pre-order it on Amazon now.
