The gap between Prince William and his younger brother has grown wider since the Sussexes moved their family back to Britain, and the future king is said to be waiting for them to go again. In an account published Oct. 4, 2026, a source claimed that William sees no long-term future for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in the United Kingdom and expects them to return to California.
For William, the couple “can’t leave soon enough,” the source said, adding that the prince does not regard his brother’s relocation as sustainable. The claims appeared in Closer, a U.K. celebrity weekly published by H Bauer Publishing Limited.
According to the same source, William doubts the arrangement will survive another six months, and believes the couple will give up once they accept they cannot force the outcome they want. Harry, the source said, would rather stay in Britain for good after six years of homesickness, but Meghan is expected to make the final call — and William does not see her lasting more than a few months. A move back to their home in Montecito, Calif., the source added, strikes the prince as inevitable.
A Security Review With High Stakes
Harry and Meghan returned to Britain with their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, for what was expected to be an extended stay. Their arrival in August triggered a fresh review of their security arrangements, and sources say that if the decision does not go their way, the family could cut the stay short and leave the country.
The dispute dates to 2020, when Harry lost his armed, state-funded police protection after he and Meghan stepped back from their roles as working royals and moved to California. His repeated attempts to overturn that decision in the U.K. courts have failed. Closer has returned to the subject before, including an earlier cover built around a rumored setback in his security fight.
William, for his part, is reportedly staying out of it. An insider said the prince believes any intervention would hand Harry ammunition to use against him, and that he is leaving the matter to the authorities to resolve.
Richard Eden Questions the Protection Demand
Royal expert Richard Eden described the couple’s reported ultimatum as “akin to blackmail,” arguing that it amounts to an attempt to force a favorable ruling. Eden said the consequences would be far-reaching: if the Sussexes secure protection, he argued, they could come and go while retaining police cover, and could then ask for that protection in America, with taxpayers left to carry the cost.
Earl Spencer Points to Diana’s Death
Not everyone in the family has taken that view. Earl Spencer, Harry’s maternal uncle and the brother of the late Princess Diana, has argued that the Sussexes should receive official protection, citing his nephew’s position as fifth in line to the throne and his military service. The 62-year-old drew on his own loss in the 1997 Paris car crash that killed his sister, comparing the tabloid treatment of Harry and Meghan to what Diana endured. He said he would come down on the side of granting protection rather than risk a death he believes could have been avoided.
Mark Dolan, an editor who has cited unnamed insiders, has offered a blunter reading of the brothers’ relationship, saying William hates Harry and that the estrangement is at its worst. Dolan framed the split as existential for the family, and credited William with a strong sense of public duty and loyalty to the crown.
The Sussexes’ own position looks less settled than it did at the start of their return. Reports have suggested the couple fear the relocation may have been a mistake, and that they are bracing for an unfavorable ruling. As of the Oct. 4 account, they were still waiting on the outcome of the review — and William, the source said, was waiting for news of a flight back to America.