Prince William has rejected offers to participate in films marking the 30th anniversary of his mother’s death next year in a bid to avoid being “pitted against” his brother.

According to The Times, the Prince of Wales has declined several offers to “make or appear” in documentaries about the late Princess of Wales, who died in a car accident in 1997.

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The report comes just days after it was revealed that Prince Harry is planning to produce his own film tribute to their mother.

Harry is understood to be keen to mark the anniversary by honouring her legacy “in the most meaningful way”, as sources told The Telegraph last week.

It’s understood he approached a number of friends and relatives, including his uncle Charles Spencer, to appear in his documentary.

It was referenced by Earl Spencer in his controversial new memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, in which he wrote that he had declined a series of offers for projects related to his sibling, including from his nephew.

As has now been reported, William is staying well away from any similar tributes so as to avoid any potential further conflict with Harry, with whom he has been estranged for years.

The brothers joined forces back in 2017 for a documentary in honour of the 20th anniversary of their mother’s death, and is understood to view that as his public “catharsis”, as The Times reports.

Furthermore, sources close to William told the publication that he found his uncle’s new memoir “difficult” to process, as it contains a series of explosive allegations about his father and the rest of his family.

Insiders also told The Times that next year’s anniversary will be “a difficult situation” for the prince, who is still “really emotional” about losing his mother.

The insight into William’s mindset follows a dramatic month for the royal family, which has seen the unexpected return to the UK by Harry and Meghan, as well as the publication of Swan Song.

Among the most shocking allegations in the memoir was what Spencer described as “monstrous” behaviour from the King, who was then Prince Charles, following Diana’s death.

Spencer wrote that his former royal brother-in-law had told him “rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough” during a heated phone conversation after Diana was killed in a car accident in 1997.

He also alleged that his former brother-in-law had sounded “giddily elated” by the event of her passing, and speculated that he had felt there was now an easier pathway to him being with Camilla Parker-Bowles.

Read related topics:Prince HarryQueen Elizabeth II