Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Reach Out to King Charles and Princess Kate In an “Olive Branch” Gesture After Recent Health Scares

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the 2023 Invictus Games

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 20 January 2024

Well, how’s this for good news on a Saturday? The Mirror reports that, following news of health scares for both King Charles and the Princess of Wales, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have reached out to send well-wishes. Charles will be hospitalized for a corrective procedure for a benign enlarged prostate this week; Kate had abdominal surgery this past Tuesday and is expected to be hospitalized for up to two weeks.

The Mirror reports that this gesture “will be considered an olive branch,” citing a source as saying “The King and the Princess of Wales have received support from Prince Harry and Meghan regarding their health. The Duke and Duchess contacted both parties in different ways to pass on their concern and best wishes.”

Prince Charles Prince Harry Meghan Markle

This so-called olive branch is the right move, said Dickie Arbiter, a former press secretary to Queen Elizabeth. “It’s good they’ve recognized his sister-in-law has gone in for what is obviously serious surgery, and his father is going in to have surgery at 75,” he said. “It’s the right thing to do to acknowledge it. I’m pleased for Catherine and the King. It’s unusual and unprecedented to have two senior royals in hospital at the same time. January is usually quiet on the royal front, and it makes sense that both operations are done now, sooner rather than later.”

What would Her late Majesty think of the reconciliation in progress? “The Queen would always have wanted the relationship rebuilt but she wasn’t going to see it in her lifetime,” Arbiter said. “There were too many other things going on.”

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Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.

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