Harry BBC interview: What the Duke of Sussex said about King Charles, Meghan and reconciliation

The Duke of Sussex has revealed King Charles no longer talks to him, as he said in an emotional interview he “doesn’t know how much longer my father has”.

Harry made the admissions to the BBC in the wake of losing a legal challenge over his protection when in the UK.

Prince Harry has claimed his father ‘won’t speak to him’ as he reiterated his desire for “reconciliation” with the Royal Family following a legal defeat over his UK police protection. | AFP via Getty Images

The duke said he “can’t see a world in which I would be bringing my wife and children back to the UK” after losing the Court of Appeal challenge over his security arrangements. And he conceded of his relationship with his father: “He won’t speak to me because of this security stuff.”

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Harry, 40, lost his appeal against the dismissal of his High Court claim against the Home Office over the decision of the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) that he should receive a different degree of protection when in the UK.

The challenge came after Harry and Meghan left the UK and first moved to Canada, and then California, after announcing they wanted to step back as senior royals.

In a summary of the ruling on Friday, judge Sir Geoffrey Vos said Ravec’s decision was “understandable and perhaps predictable”.

A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said: “All of these issues have been examined repeatedly and meticulously by the courts, with the same conclusion reached on each occasion.”

Following the decision, Harry told BBC News he would “love reconciliation” with his family, adding that he “doesn’t know how much longer my father has”.

Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has opened up about his relationship with his father, King Charles | PA/NationalWorld

Charles, 76, is still undergoing cancer treatment more than a year after his diagnosis.

Harry said: “Of course, some members of my family will never forgive me for writing a book. Of course, they will never forgive me for lots of things. But you know, I would love reconciliation with my family. I’ve always, there’s no point in continuing to fight anymore.

“And I said, life is precious. I don’t know how much longer my father has he, he won’t speak to me because of this security stuff, but it would be nice to reconcile.”

Harry said it was “impossible” for him to take his family back to the UK safely. He told the broadcaster that he would “continue on with a life of public service”, adding: “So I will always support the charities and the people that mean so much to me.”

Harry continued: “I can’t see a world in which I would be bringing my wife and children back to the UK at this point, and the things that they’re going to miss is, well, everything you know. I love my country I always have done, despite what some people in that country have done.

The Duke of Sussex has lost his latest legal challenge at the Court of Appeal over his security arrangements while in the UK. | Getty Images

“So you know? I miss the UK, I miss parts of the UK. Of course I do. And I think that it’s really quite sad that I won’t be able to show my children my homeland.”

The duke also said in the interview that “everything” made him feel unsafe about his existing security arrangements.

He said: “I would not have taken this this far if I did not have compelling evidence of facts that reveal why the decision was made and I am sitting here today talking to you, where we have lost the appeal, but the other side have won in keeping me unsafe, so again there is a lot of question marks that a lot of people will have.”

Harry later said that he can “never leave the royal family”, and that he left the institution “because at the end of the day I had to”.

During a two-day hearing in April, his barristers said that he was “singled out” for “inferior treatment” and that Ravec did not follow its own “terms of reference” when deciding his security.

Harry attended both days of last month’s appeal in London, where his barrister, Shaheed Fatima KC, said his safety, security and life are “at stake”, and that the “human dimension” of the case should not be forgotten.

The Home Office, which is legally responsible for Ravec’s decisions, opposed the appeal, with its lawyers telling the court that a “bespoke” process was used for Harry and that the duke had “no proper basis” for challenging Ravec’s decision.

In the summary of the decision given on Friday, Sir Geoffrey, sitting with Lord Justice Bean and Lord Justice Edis said: “The duke was in effect stepping in and out of the cohort of protection provided by Ravec.

“Outside the UK, he was outside the cohort, but when in the UK, his security would be considered as appropriate.”

He continued: “It was impossible to say that this reasoning was illogical or inappropriate, indeed it seemed sensible.”

The judge added that arguments from Harry’s barrister were “powerful and moving”, and that it was “plain that the duke felt badly treated by the system”.

But he continued: “I concluded, having studied the detail of the extensive documentation, I could not say that the duke’s sense of grievance translated into a legal argument for the challenge to Ravec’s decision.”

A Home Office spokesperson said: “We are pleased that the court has found in favour of the Government’s position in this case.

“The UK Government’s protective security system is rigorous and proportionate.

“It is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information on those arrangements, as doing so could compromise their integrity and affect individuals’ security.”