It has been claimed that Prince Harry “desperately wants” his father King Charles to join him at the Invictus Games next year – but one royal expert predicts it could pose a huge problem
Prince Harry with his dad the King and brother Prince William (Image: Getty Images)
When Prince Harry made a brief-but-welcome return to the UK last September, few could have predicted the significance that visit might come to hold. But it now seems his private meeting with King Charles at Clarence House reopened a door many feared had closed for good, raising hopes that father and son could be heading for a reconciliation.
Following reports that will bring joy to millions of royal watchers, it is believed Harry is now set to ask the King to play a key role at next year’s Invictus Games, which will take place in the UK for the first time since 2014. Last week royal sources claimed Harry “desperately wants Charles at Invictus”, ideally opening the event on stage alongside him.
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Harry’s Invictus Games is being staged in Birmingham next year (Image: PA Wire/PA Images)
There is no doubt an appearance by Charles – alongside his son – would delight royal fans and shine an even brighter light on the heartfelt occasion, which honours wounded military personnel and veterans.
And while the focus might be firmly on Harry and his relationship with his father, the prospect of the Invictus Games returning to the UK also raises the question of whether his wife, Meghan, might be at his side. The duchess has previously supported Harry at Invictus events and, BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond told the Mirror, she would not want to be seen to snub a cause so close to her husband’s heart.
“Meghan is a savvy woman,” said Jennie. “She must know that she’s likely to encounter a degree of hostility in the UK, but in the bubble of the Invictus Games she is safe.
“They love her, so perhaps that’s a reason she would come – to support Harry as she always has at Invictus. To stay away would inevitably become as newsworthy as her presence. The headlines would scream: “Proof, if it were needed – Meghan can’t stand the UK!”
Harry with wife Meghan (Image: Getty Images for the Invictus Games Foundation)
Meghan and Harry sensationally quit royal life six years ago and are now based in Montecito, California, along with their two children, Archie, six, and Lilibet, four. But following his September summit at Clarence House, the prince left the UK with a palpable spring in his step, with a spokesman later saying he had “loved” being back in his birth country.
His chat with Charles was certainly a more positive experience than the previous time the pair met, which came after Harry flew to London in February 2024 following the King’s cancer diagnosis.
It also gave hope that Harry is now considering further visits – a prospect which, less than 12 months ago, seemed increasingly less likely after he lost his High Court battle to have his taxpayer-funded police protection reinstated.
The Duke of Sussex had been hoping to overturn a decision to downgrade his security while in the UK, which came into play after he stepped down as a working royal. Following the decision, Harry publicly blamed his father for “this security stuff” and said he “can’t see a world in which I would bring my wife and children back to the UK”.
The King and Prince Harry in 2018 (Image: PA)
But he is currently waiting for a Home Office review of the ruling and Jennie believes this could be key in helping determine whether or not future trips to the UK are deemed worthwhile for the Sussexes. It could also spark a long-overdue reunion for the King and his grandchildren, Archie and Lilibet, who he hasn’t seen since they attended the late Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee in June 2022.
“If the security review results in the protection level Harry is demanding, there will be no obvious reason to prevent them coming over as a family,” said Jennie. “And I’m sure King Charles would relish the chance to get to know his grandchildren.”
What is far less clear is whether Prince William – whose relationship with Harry has previously been described as beyond repair – would be on board with any Invictus-based reunions.
The Prince of Wales attended the inaugural games alongside his wife, Princess Catherine, in 2014, but is not believed to have spoken with his younger brother since their grandmother’s funeral in September 2022. The pair fell out spectacularly after Harry released his memoir, Spare, three years ago, in which he criticised Kate and detailed bitter rows with his brother in lurid detail.
Jennie said that supporting Harry therefore presents Charles with a dilemma, as he will be reluctant to be seen to be siding with one son over the other.
Harry is locked in a bitter feud with brother William (Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
She explained: “Invictus has become pivotal. It is Harry’s great cause and his greatest achievement and any father would want to support his son as the games come to the UK. But it’s not straightforward for the King – sadly for him, his family matters never are.
“It could become a classic case of a father having to choose between his warring sons. We can only imagine how William might feel if Charles publicly threw his support behind the games and Harry.
“William has bitten his lip, risen above the accusations and knuckled down to the job, in spite of the brutal cancer diagnoses for both Catherine and Charles. To see his father stand on a very public platform and salute Harry’s achievement would be tough. But that’s the dilemma the King might face.”
Nonetheless, organisers of the Games, which have since taken place in the US, Canada, Australia, Netherlands and Germany, have hinted they expect a healthy turnout of senior royals. Last week a spokesman said: “The royal family have been longstanding supporters of the Invictus Games since its inception in 2014.
“While it is too early to confirm who will attend in 2027 as invitations have not yet been sent out, organisers of the Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 will issue invitations to members of the Royal Family in due course, and we would very much welcome their presence.”
The week-long event will kick off at the city’s NEC on 10 July, ending on Queen Camilla ’s 80th birthday on the 17th. While this presents the King with an awkward scheduling clash, a source said last week that the games’ planning committees are well aware of Camilla’s birthday, but hope Charles would still be able to attend the opening ceremony and various events “while still honouring commitments” to his wife.
The insider added, “Harry is across every detail of what is going on with Invictus. He is buoyed with the thought of opening the games with his father, and there are hopes that other royals will attend.”
Harry has previously spoken of how he sees the games as a celebration of the “spirit of unity”, but even if they do manage to help repair the rift between him and his family, Jennie believes far more significant conversations will have to take place away from the public gaze.
“I think these issues are best worked out in private, so any reunion between the King and Harry and his family should take place quietly and behind closed doors,” she said. “It remains the most sensitive of situations and the King will have to take everyone’s feelings into account.”
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