Prince Harry says he and Prince William "get closer every year" in resurfaced video

Watching this today is heartbreaking

Princes Harry (left) and William after the wedding of their father, Prince Charles, to his second wife, Camilla Parker Bowles, at Windsor Guildhall, Berkshire, 9th April 2005.
(Image credit: Photo by Graham Wiltshire / Getty)

Prince Harry and Prince William are not friends these days, following the Duke of Sussex' royal exit and move to Southern California.

If you believe Harry writing in his memoir Spare, the two royal brothers were actually never that close — rather they were in competition while growing up, with Harry even going as far as to call William his "archnemesis."

"Recollections may vary," however, as the late Queen once said, because in one recently resurfaced video from an interview Harry gave in 2005 (shared by Hello!), he told the reporter that he and William's bond was growing year on year in ways that surprised them both.

Harry said some lovely things in the video, but it feels rather heartbreaking to watch it today knowing what we do about the brothers' relationship.

Asked whether he and William had got closer over the years, a then 21-year-old Harry said: "Oh completely. Every year we get closer. And we've even resorted to hugging each other now, after not seeing each other for long periods of time. And yes, he does ring me when I'm away and vice versa."

The young Prince was then asked whether he got big brotherly advice from Will, but corrected the interviewer: "I think as the years go on, worryingly it's changed. It's me giving him advice."

Though William has never publicly addressed the breakdown of his and Harry's relationship since drama began to unfold in 2020, it's widely believed that the two haven't spoken in months — potentially even since the Queen's funeral in September.

In April, Harry implicated William in his court case against the publishers of The Sun, presumably without forewarning.

A friend of William's said at the time: "Just when you think it can’t get any worse, it does.

"This is scorched earth stuff from Harry. By revealing these secrets, he is burning everything to the ground. He is making it very clear that he considers his relationship with William is over."

Oof.

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.