PRINCE Harry’s return to the UK for his mother’s statue unveiling is in doubt as his wife Meghan Markle is due to give birth in the next couple of weeks, a royal expert said today.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are said to “really want to be” at the event to honour Princess Diana on July 1 – on what would have been her 60th birthday.
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But Harry, 36, and Meghan, 39, may not be able to travel due to the birth of their daughter.
The couple are expected to welcome their second child this summer, with their newborn girl’s arrival expected to be as early as the “next couple of weeks”.
Appearing on ITV’s Lorraine this morning, the Mirror’s royal editor Russell Myers told stand-in host Cat Deeley that Harry may miss the event.
He said: “The things I’m being told is they still really want to be there, both of them. Certainly, William and Kate will be there.
“But whether Harry can fly over there because the baby is imminently due this summer… it will certainly be in the next couple of weeks.”
It comes amid hopes Prince Harry’s return to Britain could help repair the “deteriorating” relationship with his brother Prince William.
Mr Myers added: “It’s been talked about for so many months now, this deteriorating relationship.
“And the issue is that Harry is expecting a second child – a baby girl on the way – and whether they will attend together or whether they will make separate speeches.”
The Kensington Palace ceremony is a long-term project between the brothers, who fell out over Harry’s decision to quit as a working royal.
Discussing the unveiling, he added: “This will be July 1st. Now, it’s been long in the making, this – she would have been 60.
“This is a big deal because the boys – William and Harry – have been working on this statue for quite a long time.
“I think 2017, they started putting the initial plans together. And will they, won’t they be seen together?”
Harry’s return has been in “serious doubt” for weeks after the royal rift intensified, royal experts have claimed.
It was previously thought that William and Harry would unite at the exhibition of their mum’s statue next month – after months of tension between the pair.
Others said the pair would give separate speeches when their mum’s statue is unveiled – highlighting their ongoing rift.
Phil Dampier, author of Royally Suited: Harry and Meghan In Their Own Words, told the Sun Online: “I personally don’t think Meghan will return to the UK.
“And there must now be a serious doubt as to whether Harry will come over for the unveiling of a statue for Princess Diana on what would have been her 60th birthday in July.”
It was previously claimed that Harry would return to the UK to unveil the Princess Diana statue after chats with his brother at Prince Philip’s funeral “broke the ice.”
The brothers have had frosty relations since Harry sensationally moved to the US and stepped back from royal life in 2020.
And their relationship was strained further after Harry and Meghan’s bombshell interview with Oprah earlier this year.
But after a solemn reunion at Prince Philip’s funeral, the door was opened for further reconciliation, it was said.
