Princes William and Harry came together last summer and put on a united front for a poignant ceremony to unveil a beautiful statue of their late mother Princess Diana.

The event came amid reports of a widening rift between the two brothers and just months after Harry and wife Meghan Markle gave a bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.

In the interview, they made a series of shocking and controversial claims about their time as senior royals.

Among them was that questions had been asked about what colour their son Archie's skin would be once he was born.

And while speaking of his brother William and father Prince Charles, Harry said: "I am part of the system with them, I always have been, but I guess—and I'm very aware of this—my brother can't leave that system, but I have. My father and my brother are trapped."

According to friends, after the Oprah interview William was left feeling "very upset" and "reeling" over the claims, with his head "all over the place".

And a source has now told the Sunday Times that he was still "furious" several months later and didn't want to attend the Diana statue unveiling with his brother, who jetted in from California for the event.

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The close friend said: "William was still furious. He had taken the view that he’d only give so much. He just didn’t want to go there [with Harry].”

The newspaper also said that although William's wife the Duchess of Cambridge did not appear at the event, she "worked her magic out of sight" as a peacekeeper to ensure the unveiling did go ahead smoothly and without a hitch with both brothers present.

An aide said: "[Catherine] was amazing behind the scenes when Harry came.”

The Diana statue was unveiled in Kensington Palace's Sunken Garden on what would have been the late princess's 60th birthday.

As well as William and Harry, those at the unveiling included Diana's sisters Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Lady Jane Fellowes as well as her brother Earl Spencer.

In an emotional joint statement released on the day, William and Harry said: "Today, on what would have been our Mother’s 60th birthday, we remember her love, strength and character – qualities that made her a force for good around the world, changing countless lives for the better.

"Every day, we wish she were still with us, and our hope is that this statue will be seen forever as a symbol of her life and her legacy."