Senior aides to the King and Duke of Sussex have met in London, marking a step towards reconciliation between the households.
Meredith Maines, Prince Harry’s new chief communications officer, was joined at the meeting last week by Liam Maguire, who runs the Sussexes’ British PR operation, and Tobyn Andreae, the King’s communications secretary. Maines is based in California.
A source told The Mail on Sunday: “There’s a long road ahead, but a channel of communication is now open for the first time in years. There was no formal agenda, just casual drinks. There were things both sides wanted to talk about.”
Tobyn Andreae and Meredith Maines, below, were among the senior aides at the meeting
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The meeting took place at Royal Over-Seas League, a private members’ club in Green Park that advertises a commitment to “fostering international friendship and understanding”.
Overseas House, the private members’ club site since 1922
ALAMY
Two months ago Harry told the BBC his father would not speak to him because of his court battle over the levels of security he and his family are entitled to in Britain.
After stepping back from royal duties in 2020 and moving to Montecito, California, Harry lost his automatic taxpayer-funded police protection. He has fiercely contested the decision, insisting that he and his family are at risk whenever they visit.
In May this year, the duke lost an appeal seeking to overturn the decision to downgrade his security. He characterised the ruling as “a good old-fashioned establishment stitch-up” and accused the royal household of influencing the decision.
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Buckingham Palace, which is understood to have been blindsided by the interview, said at the time: “All of these issues have been examined repeatedly and meticulously by the courts, with the same conclusion reached on each occasion.”
Asked by the BBC whether he had asked the King to intervene in the dispute over security, Harry said: “I never asked him to intervene — I asked him to step out of the way and let the experts do their jobs.”
He added: “I can’t see a world in which I would bring my wife and children back to the UK at this point. There have been so many disagreements between myself and some of my family.”
Harry said he had “forgiven” them and would “love” to reconcile but that “there’s no point continuing to fight any more, life is precious’. He said security had “always been the sticking point”.
Harry says Meghan and their children are unsafe in Britain
KEVIN MAZUR/GETTY IMAGES
Speaking of the meeting at the members’ club in London, The Mail on Sunday quoted a source as saying: “[It is only the] first step towards reconciliation between Harry and his father, but at least it is a step in the right direction.
“Everyone just wants to move on and move forward now. It was finally the right time for the two sides to talk.”