For years now, there's been a clear rift between Prince Harry and other members of the royal family and, sadly, the estranged relatives haven't been able to find a way to work through the issues that have put such a strain on their relationships.
Earlier this summer, royal fans got a glimmer of hope about the future of Harry's relationship with his father, King Charles, at least, when Harry's press team and the King's director of communications were spotted meeting at the Royal Over-Seas League, a private members' club in London that's close to Clarence House, the King's official London residence.
The pictures, which were taken by a photographer from the Mail on Sunday, showed the King’s head of communications, Tobyn Andreae, meeting with met with Harry’s US-based head of communications, Meredith Maines, and Harry’s UK-based spokesman, Liam Maguire and royal sources told multiple outlets that the meeting was held in the hopes of moving toward a reconciliation between the estranged father and son.
"There's a long road ahead, but a channel of communication is now open for the first time in years," a source told the Mail on Sunday. "There was no formal agenda, just casual drinks. There were things both sides wanted to talk about."
Speaking to Vanity Fair, sources close to Prince Harry said that he had asked for the meeting while Maines was in London to meet his UK based staff and that the Duke of Sussex was hopeful that it would lead to progress toward a reconciliation of some kind.
“Harry’s hoping that things can be rectified, He really wants a relationship with his father. He wants to change the narrative and not have the family feud be the focus of most stories that are written about him,” a source told Vanity Fair. “There’s also hope that this might be the slow burner leading up to the Invictus Games. It’s two years away, but it’s going to take some time to change the narrative. Harry’s hope is that there will be another meeting, although it depends on how things play out.”
As for what it will take to make Harry's hopes for a reconciliation with his father a reality, a PR expert has weighed in with some advice.
Speaking to Newsweek, Eric Schiffer, chairman of Reputation Management Consultants, said Harry will need "consistent discipline" if he wants to fix the relationship and rebuild trust with King Charles.
While Schiffer didn't claim mending the relationship will be an easy endeavor, he was optimistic that it's doable—if Harry, in particular, is prepared to put in the work.
"I do think there is a path because I think Harry does want it," he explained. "I think the king would rather have smoother relations in a way that assists the monarchy, so I do see reconciliation happening but its going to take time and more patience and consistent discipline by Harry."
To Schiffer, that "discipline" would mean, first and foremost, that Harry would need to avoid any situations "where he's going to spew some more ugliness," seemingly referring to moments when Harry has been candidly critical of the royal family, as he has been in some high-profile interviews and in his memoir, Spare.
"That's what we're going to have to find out, but I don't think it's as long of a shot as people say and I think it would be good for both of them," Schiffer added.
