Prince Harry and Kate Middleton were once exceptionally close and would often hang out together, with the Princess of Wales seen as a ‘bridge’ between the brothers
Kate Middleton with her husband Prince William and brother-in-law Prince Harry(Image: Getty Images)
While Prince William and Prince Harry have been feuding for several years now, the siblings didn’t always share such a fractured relationship.
In fact, before their falling out, it wasn’t just William and Harry who were remarkably close; Harry and his sister-in-law Kate Middleton also shared an extraordinary connection. Now, former royal butler Grant Harrold has revealed his own first-hand account of just how tight-knit the pair were before Harry became estranged from his family following his marriage to Meghan Markle.
In his book, The Royal Butler: My Remarkable Life of Royal Service, Grant offered his behind-the-scenes perspective of what Harry and Kate’s relationship was like before his bond with brother William deteriorated. He revealed, “They involved him. He used to go out with Kate. William would be away, and Kate and Harry would be off doing stuff together.”
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The trio were frequently spotted relishing each other’s company and appearing as a threesome, but Grant says even when William wasn’t present, Harry and Kate would sometimes “go shopping” and “go to pubs” together. The connection even stretched back to when Harry was dating ex-girlfriend Chelsy Davy between 2004 and 2011. Grant disclosed, “I think when people say, ‘Oh he was left out,’ he really wasn’t. But also, he was with Chelsy. Chelsy was always around. And Chelsy and Kate got on really well.”
Kate and William with Harry and Meghan after Queen Elizabeth II’s death
The bond between William and Harry was clearly visible when William married Kate in 2011, reports the Mirror US. Harry played the crucial role of best man and delivered a speech that reportedly brought tears to his sister-in-law’s eyes. Royal expert and biographer Katie Nicholl revealed in her 2017 book, Harry: Life, Loss, and Love, how the speech stirred strong emotions.
She penned, “It was affectionate, warm and funny and touched William deeply. When he said the couple’s decade-long romance was his inspiration, there was a shy smile from Chelsy, while Kate shed a tear.”
Kate was close to Harry(Image: PA)
Despite the ongoing issues between Harry and William and the rest of the royal family, reports suggest that Harry has managed to maintain a connection with Kate due to their past close relationship. In 2021, a palace insider claimed that Harry had texted Kate to inform her and the rest of the family about the birth of his and Meghan’s baby daughter, Lilibet.
The Mail on Sunday reported at the time that a palace source disclosed that Harry had sent the text. They suggested that including Kate in the announcement was Harry’s way of “cementing her role as a bridge between him and his brother.”
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