Prince Harry spoke out about his father, King Charles, for the first time since Buckingham Palace revealed the monarch’s cancer diagnosis — and several royal watchers are left with more questions than answers.
The Duke of Sussex is in Canada for the Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler 2025’s One Year to Go celebration along with his wife, Meghan Markle. The father of two gave a televised interview on Friday to “Good Morning America” host Will Reeve, the son of the late “Superman” star Christopher Reeve.
“One of the most revealing things that came out of the ‘Good Morning America’ interview was the total reluctance to say anything about his father’s condition,” Christopher Andersen, author of “The King,” told Fox News Digital.
PRINCE HARRY SAYS KING CHARLES’ CANCER COULD REUNIFY ROYALS, ‘I LOVE MY FAMILY’
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attend a training session for competitors in the Invictus Games in Whistler, British Columbia, on Thursday. (James Whatling for Fox News Digital)
“The usual response, even if it isn’t true, is that the patient is doing great and the prognosis looks excellent,” Andersen shared. “Instead, Harry said that any information about his father’s medical condition is strictly between him and the king. These are private matters, of course. But even so, Harry’s prompt dismissal of the question, coupled with the palace’s refusal to offer any details, is concerning.”
Harry arrived from California less than 48 hours after Buckingham Palace announced on Feb. 5 that the king had cancer. The visit between the monarch and his younger son at Clarence House was brief, as Charles and his wife, Queen Camilla, were seen leaving about an hour later.
Harry wouldn’t reveal any details about his father’s prognosis.
King Charles and Queen Camilla attend church service on Sunday. Buckingham Palace announced earlier this month that the monarch had been diagnosed with cancer. (Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)
“That is between me and him,” he said.
Harry said that he immediately arranged to go to London after his father called to tell him he had cancer.
“I jumped on a plane and went to go see him as soon as I could,” he told the morning news program. “I love my family. The fact that I was able to get on a plane and go see and spend any time with him, I’m grateful for that.”
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Prince Harry told “Good Morning America” host Will Reeve that he jumped on a plane to see his father, King Charles, “as soon as I could.” (James Whatling for Fox News Digital)
British royals expert Hilary Fordwich told Fox News Digital she wondered if now was the right time for the 39-year-old to discuss his meeting with the king. The monarch has begun outpatient treatment for an unspecified type of cancer. It was discovered during a treatment for an enlarged prostate, but it isn’t prostate cancer.
“Despite professing to ‘GMA’ that he ‘loves his family,’ he manages to, sadly, do so much to cause them angst and anxiety,” Fordwich asserted. “Inadvertently or not, there is no doubt everything from using their Sussex name for their new website to giving them yet again another interview is stress provoking at a time when his father’s recuperation necessitates as little stress as possible.”
“The Invictus Games are a worthy and admirable cause, but it was a pity [it] didn’t focus more on the veterans,” she added.
Prince Harry relocated to Meghan Markle’s home state of California after they stepped back as working members of the royal family in 2020. (James Whatling for Fox News Digital)
Harry has had a troubled relationship with his family since he quit royal duties in 2020 and moved to California with his wife, citing what they said were the unbearable intrusions and racist attitudes of the British media. He showed up alone for his father’s coronation in May but left as soon as the ceremony ended to return to the U.S. for his son’s birthday.
Asked if the illness could help reunify his family, Harry said, “Yeah, I’m sure.” He said he has witnessed that type of galvanizing effect among the wounded service members who compete in the games the prince founded in 2014.
“Throughout all these families, I see it on a day-to-day basis,” he said. “You know, again, the strength of the family unit coming together.”
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Prince Harry tries out skeleton bobsledding as he and his wife Meghan Markle attend a training session for competitors in the Invictus Games in Whistler, British Columbia, on Thursday. (James Whatling for Fox News Digital)
British royals expert Shannon Felton Spence told Fox News Digital that it’s telling Harry didn’t speak out about his relationship with his older brother, Prince William, who is heir to the British throne. It is believed the brothers didn’t meet when Harry was in his home country and had no plans to do so.
“He was there for 45 minutes, and he didn’t see his brother,” she pointed out. “The king’s heart to his child is going to be much softer than the Prince of Wales to his brother.”
“What strikes me the most… is when he says he heard from his father and then jumped on a plane,” Felton Spence shared. “There are two ways to look at this: It would be really hard for Harry to book a transatlantic… flight without public speculation, so perhaps he was waiting until the announcement was out to do that. Or, the king didn’t even tell him until right before the announcement because the House of Sussex had been so leaky, proving the point when they issued a notification that Harry was going to visit.”
Modeled after the Warrior Games in the U.S., the Invictus Games were founded by Prince Harry in 2014 as a Paralympic-style event designed to inspire military veterans around the world as they work to overcome battlefield injuries. (James Whatling for Fox News Digital)
“The Invictus Games is something Harry should be very proud of — it does amazing work, and he built it,” Felton Spence continued. “It’s where a lot of the public’s affinity for him originated. I hope he continues to lean into it. He is better when he leads from openness and compassion, rather than rage and resentment.”
Following their departure as senior royals, Harry and his wife aired their complaints about life as royals. In 2021, they sat down with Oprah Winfrey for an interview that was viewed by 50 million people globally. After releasing a six-part docuseries on Netflix in 2022, Harry’s memoir, “Spare,” hit bookshelves in 2023, quickly becoming a bestseller.
In 2022, Harry sat down with “Today” host Hoda Kotb, where he discussed his meeting with Queen Elizabeth II. His grandmother, England’s longest-reigning monarch, died later that year at age 96.
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King Charles III took the throne after Queen Elizabeth II died in 2022. (Chris Jackson)
The relationship between William and Harry, which was strained by the time Harry made his exit, worsened when he publicly detailed his grievances. Harry also discussed his sibling rivalry in his bestselling book.
Andersen noted that Harry sounded “upbeat” when it came to discussing a possible reconciliation.
“I think it’s very telling that he readily concedes that illness has a way of bringing families together — and that he is convinced that is happening with the royal family,” said Andersen. “However, he was permitted only 45 minutes with the king and was given the cold shoulder… [by] his brother William.”
It is understood that Prince William (pictured) and Prince Harry didn’t meet recently and had no plans to do so. (AP Newsroom)
During the “GMA” interview, Harry admitted that the thought of becoming an American citizen crossed his mind, but it’s not a “high priority.”
“It’s amazing,” he gushed about life in California. “I love every single day.”
Andersen said that won’t happen anytime soon.
PRINCE HARRY, MEGHAN MARKLE LAUNCH AGGRESSIVE PR TOUR AFTER ‘CHILLY RECEPTION’ FROM PRINCE WILLIAM: EXPERT
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex reside in California with their two young children. (James Whatling for Fox News Digital)
“I doubt he’ll go that far… since it would almost certainly mean giving up the Sussexes’ place in the line of succession,” he said.
Modeled after the Warrior Games in the U.S., the Invictus Games were founded by Prince Harry in 2014 as a Paralympic-style event designed to inspire military veterans around the world as they work to overcome battlefield injuries. Harry was a former captain in the British Army.
Buckingham Palace didn’t immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment about Harry’s interview.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.