Prince William and Prince Harry's Relationship Future Will Be Clear After Two Pivotal Events in 2021

Insiders say how Prince William and Prince Harry get along at the unveiling of Princess Diana's memorial statue will be telling of their future relationship.

  • Although their relationship has reportedly been strained for a while, Prince Harry and Prince William haven't seen each other face-to-face in almost a year and are expected to reunite again later this year.
  • According to royal correspondent Rebecca English, Harry is expected to return to the UK this summer for Prince Philip's 100th birthday and the unveiling of a statue in honor of his and William's late mother, Princess Diana.
  • Royal insiders say how the brothers interact at these events will be very telling of the future of their relationship.

Prince William and Prince Harry's relationship has been strained for a while now. Usually, this kind of royal tea is totally unconfirmed and comes via anonymous reports, but Harry and William have addressed their issues as head-on as royals ever address these kinds of things.

In October 2019, in an interview for the ITV documentary Harry & Meghan: An African JourneyHarry confirmed that he and Will were "on different paths."

"Part of this role and part of this job and this family being under the pressure that it’s under … stuff happens," he told ITV News at Ten anchor Tom Bradby at the time. "But look we’re brothers. We’ll always be brothers."

Still, Harry was hopeful about the future of his and Will's relationship, elaborating:

"We’re certainly on different paths at the moment but I will always be there for him and as I know he’ll always be there for me. We don’t see each other as much as we used to because we’re so busy but I love him dearly. The majority of the stuff is created out of nothing but as brothers it’s just as I said, you have good days, you have bad days."

After spending most of 2020 on different continents thanks to travel restrictions put in place because of the coronavirus pandemic shortly after Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, relocated to CaliforniaHarry and Will are expected to reunite face-to-face later this year. Royal sources say the brothers will almost certainly reunite in person this summer and that how they interact then will be very telling of the future of their relationship.

"Will the family be reconciled?" royal correspondent Rebecca English wrote in a recent column for the Daily Mail. "The litmus test will be the Duke of Edinburgh's 100th birthday in June, which is followed by the planned unveiling at Kensington Palace of the long-awaited memorial statue to William and Harry's late mother, Princess Diana, Covid permitting."

Harry is expected to attend both events, if at all possible, and royal insiders will be paying close attention to how he and William are together.

"If the two brothers can make that work, then we have hope," a royal source explained.

Fingers crossed that Will and Harry do more than just "make that work." We're firmly on Team All Royal Feuds Are Over for 2021 (and beyond).

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Weekend Editor at Cosmopolitan

Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with over 10 years of professional experience covering entertainment of all genres, from new movie and TV releases to nostalgia, and celebrity news. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.