Princes William and Harry stood shoulder-to-shoulder at the unveiling of Princess Diana’s statue earlier this month. While the two tried to put a united front to honour their mother’s 60th birthday, the brothers did not seem to engage too much with one another. The meeting came after Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, unleashed a string of explosive claims against the Royal Family in an interview with Oprah – including that the Duchess had faced racism and was not supported when she struggled with her mental health.

The Duke of Sussex also admitted during the interview that the relationship between him and his brother is now “space”.

He said: “As I said before, I love William to bits.

“We’ve been through hell together and we have a shared experience, but we are on different paths.”

While looking visibly shaken, the Duke added: “The relationship is ‘space’ at the moment

“And time heals all things, hopefully.”

Earlier in the conversation, Prince Harry expressed how he felt for not only his brother, but also his father Prince Charles, and how he views their roles as kings-in-waiting as a “trapped” role within the institution of the monarchy.

He said: “It’s a part of the role. That’s what’s expected, no matter who you are in the family, no matter what’s going on in your personal life, no matter what’s just happened.

“My father and my brother, they are trapped. They don’t get to leave [their roles].

“And I have huge compassion for that.”

Many royal fans were saddened by Harry’s comments as he used to be incredibly close to his brother.

In a 2010 interview, Harry even recognised his key role was to be by his brother’s side, suggesting he would have given him advice even after becoming king.

Opening about their relationship, he told ITV: “I will always give him as much support as I can.

“Sometimes it’s probably not valued, which is understandable as the older brother always thinks they know best.

“But I always give him my opinion where it’s needed.”

The Duke of Sussex added: “When I think he’s wrong, I’ll tell him he’s wrong.

“Nine times out of 10 he puts that in his back pocket and carries on anyway, but in later life, who knows?”

In the interview, William also revealed that he appreciated his younger brother.

He said: “We get on very well, we have a lot of banter.

“We both keep each other grounded.

“Both of us agree that you’ve got to be grounded and understand things from the bottom up.”

Prince Harry did not seem to react in the best of ways after reportedly receiving advice from his brother, though.

Since Buckingham Palace announced a split between the Cambridge and Sussex households in 2019, rumours started spreading that the royal in-laws were feuding.

Shortly after the announcement, reports emerged suggesting there was tension between Harry and William.

Royal author Katie Nicholl claimed the brothers’ issues stemmed from William, who “urged some caution in a well-meaning brotherly fashion” when Harry started getting serious with Meghan.

Harry was reportedly left angry and hurt by his brother’s comments.

The now Duke of Sussex met the former actress in July 2016 and by November of the following year, the two were already engaged.