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Prince Harry is losing touch with his longtime friends, according to King Charles’ former butler, and experts are weighing in on why the reported rift is occurring.
Grant Harrold, who worked for the monarch for seven years when he was the Prince of Wales, claims Harry has cut ties with the friends he and Prince William once shared.
“I know quite a few of Harry’s friends who don’t hear from him at all now,” Harrold said on behalf of Spin Genie, according to the New York Post.
Per the outlet, the Duke of Sussex missed longtime friend Jack Mann’s wedding in July, though Mann attended Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding in 2018.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were married in 2018 and share two children together: Archie and Lilibet. (Ben Stansall/AFP/Getty Images)
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Harrold also said the same distance in Prince Harry’s friendships exists in his relationship with his brother, Prince William.
“They were both very sociable boys,” Harrold said. “And that’s what’s so sad about it now, how they’ve gone from best of friends to non-existent really. They have become so distant.
“I mainly worked with them when they were approaching their late teenage years and twenties. I liked the way they got on with each other. They were always having fun together and having banter. They played practical jokes and wound each other up, but it was harmless.
“They were best friends, and they had the same friends, too. You’d see them in the pubs together,” Harrold added. “It was a great time for them.”
Prince Harry, left, and Jack Mann play during the Audi Polo Challenge in 2015. (David M. Benett/Getty Images for Audi)
Harry and Markle moved to the U.S. in 2020 after stepping back from their royal duties, but according to British royals expert Hilary Fordwich, the distance was already growing between Harry and his friends.
“Harry’s friends are mostly from the prestigious Eton College, where the sons of elites are groomed for former national leadership. Indeed, 20 British prime ministers attended Eton,” Fordwich explained to Fox News Digital.
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“One of the very first falling outs was when he introduced Meghan to his Eton friends back in 2016 during a Sandringham country estate shooting party,” according to Fordwich. “Ever since then, the friends have kept their distance as has Harry.”
Christopher Andersen, author of “The King,” said the physical distance contributed as well.
“When ‘Megxit’ first occurred, William and Harry’s friends were forced to choose sides,” Andersen said. “Even brothers like Henry and Thomas Van Straubenzee, the princes’ pals since childhood, were forced to choose one over the other, causing friction in their own families.
Prince William and Prince Harry talk with Thomas van Straubenzee after playing in the Audi Polo Challenge in 2014. (Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)
“But time and distance have taken their toll. Harry’s life is centered not in London but in California. So, logically, he has grown closer to Meghan’s crowd. He can’t just drive a few miles to attend a friend’s wedding in the English countryside as he did so many times in the past.”
Andersen notes continued scrutiny over Harry’s relationship with the royal family makes maintaining his old friendships difficult as well.
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“It’s not just because thousands of miles separate Harry from his friends. Every time he boards a plane and flies back home to England, speculation about a meeting with the king and his brother runs wild,” Andersen said. “There just aren’t that many opportunities to interact with his old friends back in England.”
Prince William and Prince Harry’s relationship has suffered since Harry stepped back from his duties as a senior royal. (Toby Melville/WPA Pool/Getty Images)
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Prince Harry is expected to return to the U.K., reportedly without Markle, next month.
The 38-year-old will attend a charity awards ceremony the day before the first anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s death, the charity WellChild said this week. Harry, a longtime patron of the U.K. charity, will attend its annual awards ceremony in London Sept. 7 to mark the achievements of seriously ill young people.
Prince Harry will attend a charity event in the U.K. next month — reportedly without Meghan Markle — a day before the first anniversary of his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II’s death. (Chris Jackson)
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He is also reportedly attending the Invictus Games, the international sporting competition he founded for wounded military personnel and veterans. The games open in Düsseldorf, Germany, Sept. 9.
Markle is reportedly expected to join her husband for the event.
Fox News Digital has contacted representatives for Harry and Markle.
Fox News Digital’s Cassie Maynard contributed to this report.
