The rift between Prince William and Prince Harry is so deep that the brothers have not even been in touch to discuss the unveiling of their mother’s statue this summer.
The event is being organised by a steering committee, including Princess Diana‘s sister and one of her closest friends.
But the ‘sad truth’ is that the once inseparable brothers haven’t personally talked about it for months, despite the unveiling being scheduled for July, a source said.
The Daily Mail revealed in January that William and Harry both intended to be at the long-awaited event on July 1, which would have been Diana’s 60th birthday.
That is still the case despite the deep anguish and anger caused by Harry and Meghan’s explosive Oprah Winfrey interview earlier this week.
Prince William and Harry are both ‘still committed’ to coming together for the unveiling of a statue of their late mother Princess Diana in London this summer. Pictured, the brothers with Diana in 1987
The event is being organised by a steering committee, including Princess Diana’s sister and one of her closest friends (pictured, the brothers in London in 2018)
However, the California-based prince may be somewhat dependent on when his wife, who is pregnant with their second child, gives birth, as well as international travel restrictions due to Covid.
One source said: ‘It’s a very sad situation but the relationship is so strained that they haven’t even been able to pick up the phone to discuss matters.That’s the sad truth.’
The brothers announced in 2017, ahead of the 20th anniversary of their mother’s tragic death in a Paris car crash, that they planned to install a statue in her memory in the gardens of Kensington Palace, her London home.
They set up the Diana, Princess of Wales, statue committee to privately raise funds for the monument.
Its chairman is Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, a trusted friend and former private secretary to the princes.
Key members include Diana’s sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, as well as Julia Samuel, a close friend of Diana, and godmother to Prince George.
The brothers selected artist Ian Rank-Broadley, whose portrait of the Queen appears on all UK coins, to create the statue and hoped to unveil it before the end of 2017.
But their disintegrating relationship, following the formal dismantling of their joint household and charitable foundation, and Harry’s decision to move out of Kensington Palace to Windsor with Meghan, 39, delayed the plans.
Last August Kensington Palace said the statue would be unveiled in the Sunken Garden this year.
Sources insist that has never been in doubt despite the Sussexes’s acrimonious decision to quit as working royals and move to the US last year.
But there is immense sadness that the project in memory of their mother has not yet managed to bring the brothers closer.
In the interview with Miss Winfrey, Harry, 36, said: ‘The relationship is ‘space’ at the moment. Time heals all things, hopefully.’
On Thursday William, 38, said he still hadn’t spoken to Harry, four days after the interview – although it was claimed they have exchanged texts.
Sources wonder if the two men will get to see each other to resolve their differences before the unveiling.
One said: ‘Everyone knows this is really important to both of the dukes. It’s only hoped bridges can be built before the day.’
Now Meghan Markle complains to Ofcom about Piers Morgan
The media regulator Ofcom has received a complaint on behalf of Meghan Markle about controversial remarks by Piers Morgan on Good Morning Britain.
The broadcaster cast doubts on comments by the Duchess of Sussex in her interview with Oprah Winfrey in which she spoke of her suicidal thoughts.
Morgan insisted he did not believe a word of what Meghan had said. Earlier this week it emerged the duchess had made a formal complaint to ITV after his criticism of her on Monday’s programme.
It is claimed she focused on the way his remarks could have an impact on mental health generally. Morgan quit the programme on Tuesday, when Ofcom revealed it had at that point received more than 41,000 complaints.
The media regulator Ofcom has received a complaint on behalf of Meghan Markle about controversial remarks by Piers Morgan on Good Morning Britain
The mental health charity Mind has also criticised Morgan’s comments.
Now Ofcom has confirmed ‘receipt of a standards complaint made on behalf of the Duchess of Sussex’.
Yesterday Morgan, pictured, blamed his departure from Good Morning Britain on ‘cancel culture’.
He said he had ‘lost’ his job because he would not apologise for ‘disbelieving’ Meghan’s claims.
He wrote on Instagram: ‘I thus became the latest ‘victim’ of the cancel culture that is permeating our country… Though of course I consider myself to be neither a victim, nor actually cancelled.’
It comes as Associated Newspapers, owner of the Daily Mail, has written to Viacom CBS calling for a ‘seriously inaccurate and misleading’ montage of British newspapers to be removed from the Oprah interview programme.
The company has criticised the CBS show for ‘deliberate distortion and doctoring’ of newspaper headlines to support its claims about racist UK press coverage.
It was announced yesterday that Harry and Meghan have donated to PressPad, a new charity that aims to help young people of ‘diverse backgrounds’ become journalists.