Prince Harry's calls to the King reportedly 'go unanswered' every time

Their relationship is in a bad place

 Britain's King Charles III and Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex walk behind the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, adorned with a Royal Standard and the Imperial State Crown and pulled by a Gun Carriage of The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery, during a procession from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster, in London on September 14, 2022.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

It seems Prince Harry's relationship with royal dad King Charles is at an all-time low.

We knew it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows when the King didn't make time to see his youngest, expatriated son when he was in the UK in May, but according to some new sources, things between the two men may be even worse than we thought.

Apparently, these days, Charles won't even pick up the phone when the Duke of Sussex calls.

"He gets 'unavailable right now,'" a friend of Harry’s told People in a new cover story. "His calls go unanswered. He has tried to reach out about the King's health, but those calls go unanswered too."

According to sources who spoke to People, one of the main things Harry wants to discuss with Charles is the issue of appropriate security for him, Meghan Markle, and their children when they visit the UK — something that they haven't been entitled to since stepping down as senior royals.

"Harry is frightened and feels the only person who can do anything about it is his father," an insider told the publication. "Harry is determined to protect his own family at all costs."

The Duke has previously offered to privately pay for police protection while he's in the UK, but that request was denied.

As for Harry and Charles' relationship, there seemed to be hope for them when they had a "positive" meeting in February following the King's announcement that he had been diagnosed with cancer.

This followed an apparently successful call between the two men on the King's birthday back in November.

But it seems these hopeful events weren't indicative of an impending reconciliation. Meanwhile, Harry and his older brother Prince William reportedly haven't spoken properly in months — and their relationship shows no sign of improving.

Iris Goldsztajn
Iris Goldsztajn is a celebrity and royal news writer for Marie Claire. As a London-based freelance journalist, she writes about wellness, relationships, pop culture, beauty and more for the likes of InStyle, Women's Health, Bustle, Stylist and Red. Aside from her quasi-personal investment in celebs' comings and goings, Iris is especially interested in debunking diet culture and destigmatising mental health struggles. Previously, she was the associate editor for Her Campus, where she oversaw the style and beauty news sections, as well as producing gift guides, personal essays and celebrity interviews. There, she worked remotely from Los Angeles, after returning from a three-month stint as an editorial intern for Cosmopolitan.com in New York. As an undergraduate at the University of California, Los Angeles, she interned at goop and C California Style and served as Her Campus' national style and LGBTQ+ editor. Iris was born and raised in France by a French father and an English mother. Her Spotify Wrapped is riddled with country music and One Direction, and she can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.