EXCLUSIVE: 'No One Was There For Him' — Lonely Reality Revealed of Royal Exile Prince Harry's Sad Pilgrimage to U.K. to Mourn Queen Elizabeth
Sources revealed that Prince Harry felt lonely during his UK pilgrimage to mourn Queen Elizabeth.
Sept. 16 2025, Published 1:44 p.m. ET
Prince Harry's return to Britain to mark the anniversary of Queen Elizabeth's death three years ago has laid bare the isolation of a man once at the heart of the monarchy.
RadarOnline.com can reveal that, according to former royal butler Paul Burrell, the Duke of Sussex was met with a wall of silence from his family at Balmoral in September 2022 when the monarch passed away, leaving him "sadly disappointed" and utterly alone.
Ex-Prince No Longer Trusted After Stepping Down
Prince Harry stepped back from royal duties with his wife in 2020.
Harry, now 40, has lived in California since stepping down as a working royal in 2020 alongside his wife, Meghan Markle, 44.
His attempts to reconnect with the family – through charity visits and carefully choreographed UK appearances – have been described by royal commentators as a "pseudo-royal tour" and an effort to reinsert himself into the institution.
But insiders say the gulf with his brother, Prince William, 43, and his father, King Charles, 76, is as wide as ever.
Burrell, who served the Queen as a footman and later became butler to Princess Diana, writes in his new memoir The Royal Insider that Harry arrived at Balmoral expecting to be welcomed back into the fold after the monarch passed away.
Instead, he encountered what he calls "a total glacial front."
Burrell said: "He came through the doors as though he was expecting to be embraced. And he was sadly disappointed.
"Balmoral was an iceberg. He was no longer a working royal and he was not trusted by the family."
Windsors Shut Out Family To Protect Monarchy
Harry tried to focus on his charity work, including the Invictus Games.
Harry's estrangement from The Firm has been years in the making.
His decision to step back from royal duties with his wife – dubbed 'Megxit' – was followed by a string of public interviews and his bestselling memoir Spare, in which he accused the royal family of cruelty, neglect and even racism.
A royal commentator said: "William has drawn a line. He believes Harry chose money and celebrity over duty, and that is unforgivable in his eyes. For William, the monarchy must survive – Harry made himself the enemy of that cause."
Burrell describes how even on the night of the Queen's death, Harry was excluded from travel plans.
William, Prince Edward and Prince Andrew flew together to Scotland, while Harry was left to make his own way north.
A royal source said: "It may seem cold and calculating, but this is how the Windsors operate.
"They shut people out – even family members – in order to protect the monarchy's continuity."
Queen's Passing Severed Harry’s Final Royal Connection
The Queen had always protected Harry before her death.
At Balmoral, Harry ate dinner with some relatives but, according to Burrell, the atmosphere was icy.
He said: "They were all too busy to think about Harry's pain.
"There was no one there for him. No one to embrace him or understand how he was feeling."
For Harry, the Queen had always been a protector. Her death, Burrell suggests, cut the final thread linking him to the royal fold.
"His grandmother desperately wanted him to be happy and to stay within the Royal Family, but now she was no longer there to guide him," he said.
Royal Visits Seen More as 'Performance' Than Peace Effort
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Harry made several UK appearances to reconnect with the family.
Harry has since tried to focus on his charity work, including the Invictus Games, and has spoken of wanting his children Archie, 6, and Lilibet, 4, to know their grandfather.
But palace sources remain sceptical about Harry's chances of getting back into the royal fold.
One insider said: "These visits look less like reconciliation and more like a performance. William and the King see no reason to play along."
Burrell is blunt about the lonely reality facing the Duke. "Despite everything, I still wish Harry and Meghan happiness always," he writes.
"But if his marriage were to falter, I believe he will return to England to seek refuge. Everything he knows is here – yet he may find there is no welcome waiting."
