Radar Reveals the One Thing That Could 'Force' King Charles to Meet Harry AND Meghan On Their 'Dreaded' U.K. Visit
The single factor that could force King Charles to meet Harry and Meghan has been revealed.
Jan. 23 2026, Published 3:02 p.m. ET
King Charles faced a deeply personal dilemma this summer, with aides telling RadarOnline.com the one thing that could force him to meet Prince Harry and Meghan Markle during their "dreaded" U.K. visit is the chance to see his grandchildren.
The cancer-battling monarch, 77, has not spent meaningful time with Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, 6, or Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor, 4, since June 2022, when the Sussex family travelled to Britain for Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee.
The Sussexes Potential UK Return
Prince Harry & Meghan prepare to return to Britain for Invictus events.
Prince Harry, 41, and Meghan Markle, 44, are now rumored to return to the U.K. in July to begin the countdown to the 2027 Invictus Games in Birmingham, raising the prospect of a reunion palace insiders say centers almost entirely on Charles meeting his youngest grandchildren.
One royal source told us the visit presents a calculated opportunity.
"There is a great deal of hostility here, and if Harry and Meghan are looking for a way to ease tensions with Charles, bringing the children into the picture would be the most natural and effective approach," the insider added.
"It is unlikely the King will take on any formal role connected to the Games this summer, but there is a genuine possibility that he would agree to see Harry and his grandchildren, and that scenario would almost certainly involve a meeting with Meghan as well."
The Emotional Pull of His Grandchildren
King Charles weighed meeting Harry and Meghan for his grandchildren.
Sources close to the palace say the prospect of seeing Archie and Lilibet carries unique emotional weight for the King.
One said: "Seeing his grandchildren is the single factor that could compel Charles to act in a way he otherwise would not. No matter how complicated or awkward it might be from a royal or public standpoint, that personal bond exerts a powerful pull on him."
Another insider added aides are aware the moment could "soften" years of tension between the monarch and the Sussexes – even if only briefly.
Harry founded the Invictus Games in 2014 to honor wounded service members and veterans, and the event has become central to his public life since stepping back from royal duties in 2020.
One source said Meghan's presence at the upcoming games would be unavoidable.
"If Meghan were absent from Invictus, it would immediately raise questions and give the impression she was deliberately keeping out of sight," they added.
"She is committed to supporting Harry, and regardless of the surrounding tensions, she will be there alongside him."
Royal Family Reunion and Archie and Lilibet's Absence
Prince Harry and Prince William remained deeply estranged.
Charles last met Harry briefly at Clarence House in September, but the King has not been photographed with Archie and Lilibet since they were toddlers.
Meghan has not returned to the UK since Queen Elizabeth's funeral in September 2022.
Her and Harry's children's absence from Britain, sources said, has become the emotional fault line in discussions about any reunion between the couple and the royal family.
Relations with Prince William, 43, also remain strained.
One royal expert has recalled the brothers "looking daggers" at each other during the 2020 Commonwealth Day Service, shortly before Harry and Meghan formally stepped down as working royals.
The frostiness continued during Queen Elizabeth's funeral events, where observers noted minimal interaction between the couples.
Tensions Remain for Prince William and King Charles
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The royal rift stayed unresolved behind palace doors.
"There have been countless fractures caused by the Sussexes' actions, yet there is a firm determination that none of this will ever play out in public again," one royal aide told us.
The source added any private meeting between the Sussexes and Charles – with or without their kids – would still be "very tense."
Another insider said Charles and William may diverge privately in their views on meeting Harry and Meghan.
"Charles seeing his grandchildren should not be read as an act of forgiveness or a resolution of past grievances," the source said.
"What it would do, however, is compel a brief point of contact that simply would not occur under any other circumstances."
