Prince Harry “seeks royal return to heal rift with King Charles”

The Duke of Sussex is willing to return to a temporary royal role in support of his father during his illness, sources have revealed. In an attempt to help heal the rift in the family, the King and Prince Harry are said to have had several “warm ­exchanges” since Charles ­received his cancer diagnosis.

The duke is now understood to have told friends that he would step into a royal role while his father is unwell, The Times reports.

Harry, who is the fifth in line to the throne, remains a counsellor of state, although as a non-working royal he is not expected to be called upon to stand in for the King. Yet to heal the rift, Harry is now said to be focused on reconciling himself with his family.

He had a 30-minute meeting with the King at Clarence House last week, having flown in from California after his father’s diagnosis.

In an interview to mark the countdown to the Invictus Games, Harry said: “I love my family. The fact that I was able to get on a plane and go and see him and spend any time with him — I’m grateful for that.”

Similarly, Charles, 75, is believed to want to see more of his son and a source said there was a growing sense that a rapprochement would “benefit the ­institution”. A royal insider said: “On all practical levels it makes perfect sense for the family to come together to support the King while he’s sick. Much has been said on both sides in recent years, but that has never diminished the fundamental bond of blood, and there are now pragmatic aspects to consider, with the King and Kate’s wellbeing ­paramount in this.

“The details of the Clarence House meeting and subsequent conversations are private, but the feeling is that this arrangement could work.”

Harry, visiting a training camp in Whistler, Canada, for his ­Invictus Games competition for wounded, injured and sick servicemen and women, was asked whether illness could have a reunifying effect on a family. He replied: “Yeah, I’m sure. Through all these families [at the Games] I see it on a day-to-day basis, the strength of the family unit coming together.”

He said that he had considered seeking American citizenship but added that it was not a high priority.

The King has postponed his public-facing work as he undergoes his cancer treatment. He will, however, continue his constitutional duties by attending to his daily red boxes and aims to maintain his weekly audiences with the prime minister.

The Princess of Wales is away from work until Easter as she recovers from abdominal surgery. The Prince of Wales, after a period at home to oversee her care, has returned to duties and will attend the Bafta film awards ­on Sunday.

Harry is now keen to be reconciled with his father despite giving a series of damaging interviews and detailing an excoriating view of his family in his autobiography, Spare.

The meeting last week with his father at Clarence House, at which the Queen was also present, did not provide time for a detailed discussion but it is understood that Harry wants to make an offer to make a limited return to royal duties.

A written plan would have to be drawn up and ­actioned by the King and his closest aides before Harry, 39, and Meghan, 42, could embark on any official duties on behalf of the monarch. Harry would not receive public funds.

The Sussexes stepped down from their official royal roles four years ago. At the time they were told that the model they had proposed, in which they would support the monarch in a limited capacity without drawing on the ­sovereign grant, had been rejected. In what became known as the Sandringham agreement, the late Queen allowed them to keep their titles but they relinquished their official roles. They officially retained their HRH ­status but agreed not to actively use the titles.

Some within Buckingham Palace are not quite so amenable to the idea of a return, ­saying it would be “unlikely” and the late Queen had made clear that the Sussexes could not be “half in, half out”.

Regardless of whether any official role is granted, there appears to be hope in both the Palace and Montecito, the Sussexes’ Californian home, that a peacemaking operation could be successful in the coming months and years.