Prince Harry and William should end their ‘stupid’ feud right now, Sun Royal photographer Arthur Edwards demands
PRINCE Harry and William should end their “stupid” feud immediately, Arthur Edwards has demanded.
The Sun Royal photographer said the fallout had gone on “too long” and it was about time they patched things up after their grandfather’s funeral.
Read our Meghan and Harry live blog for the latest updates
Edwards, who saw the Royal Family’s “raw emotion” as they bid farewell to the Duke of Edinburgh on Saturday from just yards away, said the best thing to come from it was the brothers “talking again”.
He told Lorraine this morning: “The best out of it is William and Harry talking again.
“That feud has got to stop, it’s stupid it’s carrying on, too long now.”
The presenter responded: “You need to bash their heads together.”
Tensions are thought to be high between the brothers after Harry and Meghan’s tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey.
In it, the couple accused senior royals of making racist comments and ignoring Meghan’s cries for help when she was struggling.
Harry also claimed William was “trapped” in the royal family – before his brother hit back when questioned by reporters.
In the days after the chat aired in the UK, William was forced into the unprecedented position of saying the royals “are very much not a racist family”.
Philip’s funeral is thought to be the first time they have come face-to-face for more than a year.
The pair were kept 12ft apart as they walked behind Philip’s coffin.
They were separated by Princess Anne’s son Peter Phillips, 43, during the procession as the Queen said a final goodbye to her husband of 73 years at Windsor Castle.
On Saturday millions watching on TV saw William and Harry speaking to each other as they walked side by side away from St George’s Chapel.
Body language expert Judi James said they looked “relaxed” in a “natural moment of unity” as they chatted outside.
And the pair are said to have reunited for two hours afterwards – sparking hopes of peace between them.
They joined dad Charles for private talks away from the cameras – and insiders say it is just what Philip would have wanted.
‘Peacemaker’ Kate Middleton is said the be the Royals’ new rock after getting the clashing brothers speaking once more.
William’s biographer Brian Hoey said: “Thank God for Kate — she is the rock the monarchy will depend on. On Saturday, she behaved absolutely impeccably.”
Harry may now stay on for the Queen’s 95th birthday on Wednesday, and he has also said he will join his older brother for the unveiling of Princess Diana’s memorial statue at Kensington Palace.
Royal insiders hope the ceremony on July 1 could also help ease the rift as they stand together on what would have been their mother’s 60th birthday.
A source said: “It’s early days but you’d hope this is exactly the first step Philip would have wished for.”
Edwards said this week: “I was just two yards away from the raw emotion of the Royal Family as they said farewell to the Duke of Edinburgh.
“For a man who famously wanted “no fuss” and told his offspring to “just get on with it” the Duke of Edinburgh’s final journey was filled with sorrow. And I could see the family’s pain up close.
“The Duke, who planned every moment of yesterday’s moving funeral service, had arranged for me as a photographer to hide inside a fake pillar at the top of the stairs leading to St George’s Chapel.
“With a letter box-shaped slit, it was just like the bird-watching hides where Prince Philip spent hours during his retirement at Sandringham, his Norfolk estate.
“From the most unusual vantage point of my 44 years of photographing the royals, I was close enough to see Prince Charles — the man I have known for more than half his life — look broken.
“Close to tears, I could see he realised the weight of the task ahead to look after his mother and the monarchy.
“As they passed me on their way into the nave of St George’s Chapel, Windsor, William and Harry never glanced at each other.”
He continued: “Watching Princess Anne, her husband Tim Laurence, Prince Edward and Peter Phillips, I realised that every single one of them will have to accompany the Queen for the rest of her life.
‘A LIFE WITHOUT DUTY’
“Prince Harry has chosen a life without duty to the Queen on the other side of the world.
“I was so glad to discover that he had walked out of the chapel afterwards chatting to William and Catherine.
“It was a sign I had been praying for that this unique royal would show there is hope of a reconciliation in the House of Windsor.”
Edwards told Lorraine of the Queen: “She’s lost all close family members, the Queen Mother, her sister, now her lovely husband.
“She is reflecting on all that, of course, and what to do in the future.
“People saying ‘will she quit’ but I don’t think she will, she’ll need help now, very frail, 95 is fine age to still be fit but she’s got to take a bit easier, and the Prince of Wales will take a heavy load now.”
Most read in News
The photographer and friend of the royals said when Charles went to visit Philip in hospital before his death, the Duke of Edinburgh was “briefing his son”.
He said: “Can you imagine that conversation at the hospital three weeks before? It must have been a lot of plain speaking there.
“He was briefing his son, saying ‘this is what you’ve got to do now son’.
“Of course all going through his head, it must have been really bad for him. He was an amazing father.
“The Queen is head of state but Philip was always head of that household and made all big decisions.”