Prince Harry’s refusal to confirm plans for his UK trip is an ‘orchestrated’ tactic to ‘villainise’ King Charles, according to a royal expert.
The uncertainty surrounding Harry’s return to Britain could be intentional, a royal expert says (Image: Getty)
The chaos surrounding Prince Harry’s upcoming trip to the UK is a “painfully orchestrated PR stunt” designed to “villainise” his father, according to a royal expert. The Duke of Sussex will travel from the US to mark the one-year countdown to the 2027 Invictus Games this week, following contradictory briefings on whether Meghan Markle and their children would accompany him.
A spokesperson for Harry said he would make the journey alone after failing to secure taxpayer-funded security for his family this week. The revelation sparked another row over where Harry would stay during the trip, however, with Buckingham Palace withdrawn as an accommodation option at the eleventh hour amid exasperation over the uncertainty.
Kinsey Schofield, commentator and host of the Kinsey Schofield podcast, suggested Harry’s refusal to confirm whether his family would be travelling with him was a deliberate ploy to paint King Charles in a bad light.
Harry and Meghan have become estranged from their UK-based relatives (Image: Getty)
She told TalkTV: “This all felt like a painfully orchestrated PR stunt. From the beginning, my prediction was that Meghan and the kids would not come [and] Harry would say it’s because of security, all to yet again villainise his father and say, ‘look at my dad not taking care of us and not making my family feel safe in the UK’.”
It is understood that Harry initially turned down the offer of staying at Buckingham Palace for himself and his family, before making a U-turn and asking to stay by himself.
The appropriate hospitality and staffing provision was said to be no longer available; however, with the Palace also reportedly concerned that Harry’s longstanding legal case against Associated Newspapers could complicate matters and compromise the King’s constitutional position.
The duke and a group of other household names will find out on Tuesday whether they have won their High Court case against the Daily Mail’s publisher.
A spokesperson for Harry said: “I am aware of multiple briefings from Buckingham Palace last week suggesting that the Duke had not accepted the offer of accommodation at a Royal Residence.
“Following RAVEC’s decision not to provide security for his family, the duke spent last week making alternative security arrangements.
“Once those arrangements were in place, he was able to formally accept the offer for accommodation for himself over the weekend.
“It is therefore disappointing that the offer has now been withdrawn, with Tuesday’s judgement in the Associated Newspapers Limited case cited as the reason.
“Buckingham Palace has, however, been aware of that judgment since last Thursday. It is therefore unclear why, having formally accepted the accommodation offer, it has now been withdrawn at the last moment.”
The Express has contacted the Duke of Sussex for comment.
