Meghan Markle has broken her silence after Prince Harry landed in the UK for his four-day pseudo-royal tour on Monday.
In a post shared to Instagram on Tuesday, the Duchess of Sussex, 44, reposted a clip of Harry, 40, sword fighting at the WellChild Awards on Monday night, just hours after a solemn solo visit to his late grandmother’s final resting place at Windsor.
In a moment shared on WellChild’s Instagram stories, the Duke was captured playfully swordfighting with balloons against nine-year-old Gwen, who proudly showed off her sparkling trainers to the royal.
The clip has since been shared by Meghan, who re-posted Hello! Magazine’s TikTok on Tuesday, her first acknowledgment of Harry’s absence from the couple’s family home in Montecito.
Sharing the clip to her Instagram story, she left no caption but added two pink love hearts. It’s the first time that Meghan has posted since her husband’s departure.
cWhile on a tour some have called a ‘charm offensive’, Harry has been seen attending a handful of events in the UK, but has left fans guessing as to whether he will reunite with his father, King Charles, whom he has not seen since last February.
On Monday, he made a poignant stop at St George’s Chapel, where he laid flowers and paid his respects privately to Queen Elizabeth II on the third anniversary of her death.
He later arrived at the Royal Lancaster hotel in London to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the WellChild Awards – an event he has long supported.
In a post shared to Instagram on Tuesday, the Duchess of Sussex, (left) 44, reposted a clip of Harry, 40, (right) sword fighting at the WellChild Awards on Monday night. Pictured in 2022
There, he was seen warmly interacting with the inspirational children – including his sword fighting opponent Gwen – and families being honoured, giving each young guest his full attention.
Gwen had also brought along special gifts for Harry’s children, Archie, four, and Lilibet, two – personalised Brighton & Hove Albion football shirts in purple with their names and ages on the back.
Clearly touched, Harry told Gwen the gifts were ‘so good’ and that he ‘loves them’, adding that he couldn’t wait to take them back to California for his children, who remained in the US with their mother.
It is not known whether Harry will meet King Charles III, who is currently at Balmoral and along with Queen Camilla has no public engagements planned for this week.
The fact the brothers were so close but did not meet suggests that while they were united in grief, they are still worlds apart. There are, however, hopes of a royal reunion between Harry and his father, King Charles, who have not met in 19 months.
As Harry solemnly paid a private tribute to the late Queen, the Waleses were entertained at the local branch of the Women’s Institute (WI), where William said he ‘can’t quite believe it has been three years already’ since his grandmother’s death.
During their visit, William was also asked if Prince Louis, seven, is ‘a handful’. Smiling and suppressing his laughter, William replied: ‘To be honest, he’s a character, but he’s a very good boy.’
He added that his youngest son, who is known for his cheeky displays at public events, likes to ‘wind his brother and sister up’.
The clip has since been shared by Meghan, who re-posted Hello! Magazine’s TikTok on Tuesday, her first acknowledgment of Harry’s absence from the couple’s family home in Montecito (pictured)
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, play-fights using swords made from modelling balloons with nine-year-old Gwen Foster, recipient of the Inspirational Child 7-11 award
Meanwhile, Prince Harry was delighting youngsters with a cheeky balloon sword fight at the WellChild Awards.
There, he was seen warmly interacting with the inspirational children and families being honoured, giving each young guest his full attention.
During their visit, William was also asked if Prince Louis, seven, is ‘a handful’. Smiling and suppressing his laughter, William replied: ‘To be honest, he’s a character, but he’s a very good boy.’
He added that his youngest son, who is known for his cheeky displays at public events, likes to ‘wind his brother and sister up’.
Yesterday, Harry announced he is making a £1.1million donation to BBC Children in Need in his latest charm offensive, as Prince William announces funding for a homeless charity.
He was greeted by a modest crowd at the Community Recording Studio (CRS) Nottingham as he announced the donation amid speculation over whether he will meet his estranged father and brother.
The sum of money will help support work tackling violence affecting young people.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex laughs with 13-year-old Grace Tutt (centre), recipient of the Special Recognitions award
The Netflix show (pictured) was filmed last year in a rented home in Montecito, close to the Sussexes’ own mansion
Meanwhile, Prince William’s Homewards initiative confirmed funding for the charity Spiral Skills to move into a new hub for young people at The Oasis Village in Tulse Hill.
The Prince of Wales was visiting a youth organisation in Lambeth, South London, while his brother was in Nottingham.
About 100 locals, including a group of young children, gathered by a garage on the other side of the road in Nottingham to clap and cheer for Harry – who arrived 45 minutes late after getting stuck in traffic as a result of London’s ongoing Tube strike.
But the crowd was a big contrast to when Harry and Meghan Markle carried out their first official engagement together in Nottingham in December 2017, where hundreds of excited well-wishers chanted their names or stretched out hands to greet them.
The visit to Nottingham to the project he has supported for a number of years was announced on Sunday, two days before Harry’s trip – but royal fans who arrived for a glimpse of the Duke noted that they were surprised how few people had turned up.
Harry and Charles last met face-to-face in February 2024 when the Duke made a transatlantic dash to see the monarch after hearing of his cancer diagnosis, but they spent just over 30 minutes together before the King left for Sandringham.
Both Harry and William attended the funeral of their uncle Lord Fellowes in Norfolk a year ago in August 2024, but there was reportedly no interaction between them.
Senior aides to the King and Harry were pictured together in London this July in what was reported to be an initial step towards opening channels of communication between the two sides.
Prince Harry arrives for a visit to the Community Recording Studio (CRS) in Nottingham yesterday
Prince William and Kate during a visit to the National Federation of Women’s Institutes in Sunningdale, Berkshire, on Monday to mark the third anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s death
Harry, who levelled accusations at the King, Queen, William and Kate in his Oprah interview, Netflix documentary and memoir Spare, told the BBC in May that Charles will not speak to him because of his court battle over his security, and he does not know ‘how much longer my father has’.
But he also outlined his hopes for a ‘reconciliation’ with his family, saying: ‘Of course, some members of my family will never forgive me for writing a book. Of course, they will never forgive me for lots of things.’
He added: ‘But you know, I would love reconciliation with my family’ and said there was ‘no point in continuing to fight any more’.
Harry’s level of security changed in 2020 after Megxit.
He was last in the UK in April for a court hearing about his security arrangements, but lost his Court of Appeal challenge in May and said in the TV interview he ‘can’t see a world in which I would be bringing my wife and children back’.
He failed in his appeal against the dismissal of his High Court claim against the Home Office, over the decision of the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) that he should receive a different degree of protection when in the UK.
