Prince Harry made a light‑hearted remark about the difficulties of sibling relationships while meeting a teenage WellChild award winner on Monday, even as hopes for a reunion with his brother, Prince William, diminished when Kensington Palace said William will be occupied with official engagements during Harry’s stay in the U.K.
The exchange occurred at a reception ahead of the 2025 WellChild Awards, where 17‑year‑old winner Declan Bitmead told Harry he has a younger brother. According to Hello! magazine, Harry asked, “Does he drive you mad?” and later quipped, “You know what, siblings,” after Bitmead said they got on well. When Harry learned the brothers attend the same school, he added, “That sometimes makes it more challenging.”
Harry, 40, has been a patron of WellChild, England’s national charity supporting seriously ill children, since 2007 and travelled to the U.K. alone for the awards. He is scheduled to visit the Community Recording Studio in Nottingham on Tuesday to announce a donation to Children in Need aimed at tackling violence against young people, organizers said.
Kensington Palace released William’s schedule showing he will be booked with royal engagements on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday — the same days Harry is in town — a development outlets said reduced the likelihood of a face‑to‑face reconciliation during this visit. The brothers have been publicly estranged for several years.
Harry has written and spoken about tensions with his elder brother. In his 2023 memoir, Spare, he wrote that William asked him to act as though they did not know each other while the brothers attended Eton College. Harry later told Anderson Cooper on 60 Minutes that the moment was painful and confusing.
Photographs and video from the reception showed Harry speaking with award winners and guests, focusing on the charity’s work and the forthcoming awards ceremony.
Harry travelled without his wife, Meghan, and their two children, Archie and Lilibet. A friend quoted by the Sunday Times this month said Harry “has not given up hope on bringing his family back to the UK,” adding that he would like his children to see where he grew up and to know family members in Britain.
The brothers’ rift has been a recurring subject in public statements, interviews and the media since Harry and Meghan stepped back from senior royal duties and moved to the United States in 2020. Public schedules and separate appearances have repeatedly been read as indicators of the state of their relationship.
WellChild officials said the awards program remains focused on celebrating children and families supported by the charity. Organizers confirmed Harry’s patronage and participation in the awards and related events during his visit. There was no immediate comment from Kensington Palace or Harry’s representatives beyond the published schedules and event announcements.
The visit underscores Harry’s ongoing public role with charities he has supported for years, while the same‑day scheduling for William leaves in place the public separation between the brothers for this trip.