Prince Harry and Prince William Will Not See Each Other in Person Until Prince Philip's Funeral, Source Says

How Prince Harry and Prince William Bonded Over the Holidays
ET

The brothers are expected to reunite at Prince Philip's funeral ceremony on Saturday.

Prince Harry has been in contact with his older brother, Prince William, following his return to the U.K. for Prince Philip's funeral, but the two won't come face-to-face until Saturday's service. 

A source tells ET that Harry and William have been in touch by phone, after Prince Harry previously described a period of space between the brothers to Oprah Winfrey in his bombshell interview back in March.

A second source involved with Prince Philip's funeral preparations tells ET that Harry and William are not expected to see each other in person until the somber ceremony, where both brothers are expected to walk together in the procession behind the specially built Land Rover -- which Philip himself was involved in the design of -- which will be carrying his coffin.

The first source adds that both brothers "are united in their commitment to carry on their mother’s legacy despite the troubles that have existed over the past year."

The first source also notes that Harry will be back in the U.K. in July to be with William to honor their late mother, Princess Diana, at a statue unveiling in her honor, on what would have been her 60th birthday.

On Monday, royal expert Katie Nicholl spoke with ET, and shed some light on how Harry and the rest of the family are doing during this difficult time.

"Because of COVID, Prince Harry simply can't see the queen. For the next five days, he has to self-isolate, but of course given what has happened and what the queen is going through, I would imagine that she is probably the first person he will want to see as soon as he's been given the all clear," Nicholl said.

Harry was incredibly close to his grandfather, and while tensions have been high within the royal family as of late, Nicholl told ET that Harry is looking forward to being reunited with his family.

"Well, Prince Harry was incredibly close to his grandfather," Nicholl shared. "They, you know, they were soldiers, they shared a love of the military and I think you can tell from the tone of Harry’s statement in which he pays such a warm tribute to his grandfather just how much he loved him and just like all members of the royal family, will really be missing him."

Nicholl explained, "Right now, I’m told he is of course very upset, missing his grandfather, but also relieved to be here in the U.K. and happy to be here and looking forward to being reunited with his family. It's going to be an emotional reunion, he hasn't seen his family for over a year now, so I think a lot of people are thinking maybe there's a silver lining in all of this that finally there will be a family reunion."

"I think there is every hope that this will be the beginning of the thawing of the rift between William and Harry," she continued. "I think the feeling certainly amongst senior royals and those who know the royals well, is that this will be an opportunity for the brothers to be together, to spend some much-needed time together."

It's not clear how long Harry will stay in the U.K. The California transplant had to leave his pregnant wife behind after doctors advised her not to fly at this stage in her pregnancy.

For more on Harry's return to the U.K. to pay his respects to his late grandfather, see the video below.

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