Royal sources confirmed that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have not been invited to spend the summer holidays with the monarch, a tradition that has been in place since they stepped down as senior members of the royal family in 2020.
Balmoral holds special significance for the royals, with family members often visiting the Aberdeenshire-based castle during the summer.
Harry himself visited the area frequently during his childhood and before moving to the United States. Balmoral was also a favorite of the late Queen, who passed away there on 8 September 2022.
Currently, the King is staying at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, where the royal family typically spends Christmas. It is expected that when the monarch moves to Balmoral, he will extend an invitation to the new Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, and his wife, Victoria.
This apparent snub further highlights the strained relationship between Harry and his father. Despite an attempt to mend their rift earlier this year when Harry visited Charles after the monarch’s cancer diagnosis, communication between them has reportedly ceased.
According to People, Harry’s calls to his father go unanswered, and a friend of Harry’s mentioned, “He gets ‘unavailable right now.'” Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the matter.
Last week, Harry expressed concerns about bringing his wife back to the United Kingdom due to safety issues.
In an ITV documentary on tabloid newspapers, the Duke explained, “All it takes is one lone actor, one person who read this stuff, to act on what they have read, and whether that is a knife or acid… they are genuine concerns for me, they are one of the reasons I won’t bring my wife back to this country.”