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Prince Harry made the "first steps" to reach out to King Charles III after the publication of his bombshell memoir but was met with a "cold" and "awkward" reception, according to a new book by the prince's biographer, Omid Scobie.
In his new book, Endgame, which charts the monarchy's "fight for survival" in the 21st century, Scobie has written extensively about the issues faced and exposed by Harry and Meghan Markle in relation to other senior members of the royal family.
Following the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's split from the monarchy in 2020, they have since spoken publicly about the motivation for doing so, citing issues including the hostile tabloid press, palace aides and royal family members.
In January 2023, Harry published the most revealing account of behind palace walls life since his mother, Princess Diana, covertly cooperated on a 1992 biography exposing the breakdown of her marriage and infidelity of her husband, Charles.
Harry's Spare memoir made a number of allegations and claims against senior royals, most explicitly his brother, Prince William, and stepmother, Queen Camilla.
No members of the family addressed the book in public, in line with a blanket "no comment" position taken by Buckingham Palace. The book saw the popularity of the monarchy and its individual members drop, most significantly affecting Harry and Meghan themselves.
In Endgame, Scobie writes that in the fallout of the book's publication, it was Harry who made the first move to establish contact with his father.
"Encouraged by a close friend, the Duke of Sussex reached out to Charles by phone to try to discuss some of the unresolved issues between them," he said, before citing a "friend of the prince," who told him: "It was an awkward conversation, but he knew if he didn't make those first steps, there would never be any progress. There were no raised voices, no arguments...but the King was cold and brief rather than open to any proper dialogue."
Scobie told readers that with "no significant resolution or outcome" from the conversation between father and son, Charles had "once again wasted an opportunity to take the upper hand and let bygones be bygones for the sake of family harmony."
The continued strain in the relationships between Harry and royal family members was highlighted on the world stage in May 2023, when the prince traveled to London to attend his father's coronation.
No longer a working member of the family, Harry (who attended without Meghan) was seated not with his brother and sister-in-law, William and Kate, but two rows behind in Westminster Abbey, between an elderly royal relative and the husband of his cousin, Princess Eugenie.
The continuation of the royal rift, has, Scobie suggests, been met with frustration by those in connection with the monarchy.
"It's complex, but there's increasing frustration from some of the wider circle of family members that Charles won't just fix things for the sake of everyone," Scobie quoted a "royal source" as saying in his book, before telling readers: "The institution needs it. Just three months after the publication of Spare, the royal family's approval rating fell to its-lowest level in years."
Endgame was published by Dey Street, an imprint of HarperCollins.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more