Prince Harry to return to UK on eve of Queen’s death anniversary for charity event

The Duke of Sussex is set to fly to Dusseldorf for his Invictus Games shortly after

The Duke of Sussex is expected to travel to the UK in September on the eve of the first anniversary of his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II’s death.

Prince Harry will attend an award ceremony for WellChild on 7 September, where he will deliver a speech. He has been a patron of the charity for seriously ill children for 15 years. It is one of the few patronages he has kept after he and the Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020.

It has been said that the duke may be in the UK on 8 September, the anniversary of the late monarch’s death. He is expected to be in Dusseldorf on 9 September to kick off his Invictus Games, where he will meet Meghan Markle, who is expected to fly straight from California to Germany.

During Harry’s brief time in his home country, however, he is not expected to see any members of his family, including his father King Charles III or brother, the Prince of Wales.

The King will be in Balmoral to mark the first death anniversary of his mother, while the rift between Harry and Prince William has seen contact between the siblings cease for many months now.

The news follows after royal sources claimed that “peace talks” between the King and his youngest son would not go ahead as hoped. It was previously reported that Charles and Harry would meet on 17 September, which would coincide with the end of Harry’s Dusseldorf trip and the King’s return to London from his summer break in Balmoral.

Earlier this week, The Daily Beast quoted sources as saying that there will be no summit between Harry and any senior member of the royal family. It comes after the King appointed Sir Edward Young as one of his Permanent Lords in Waiting – a likely blow to Harry, as he previously expressed his disdain for three senior courtiers, one of whom is believed to be Young.

In his bestselling memoir Spare, the duke is believed to have nicknamed Young, who was a trusted private secretary to the late Queen, as “the Bee” and accused him of “fixing” the terms of his and Meghan’s departure from the royal family.

The last time Harry was seen among the rest of his family was in May, when he attended his father’s coronation at Westminster Abbey. He was seated in the third row, two rows behind William and Kate Middleton, and left the ceremony promptly after it ended. He did not speak to the King, Queen Camilla, William or Kate at the event.

Harry in the third row (Getty Images)

He was last in the UK in June, when he appeared at the High Court for his case against Mirror Group Newspapers. He entered the witness box to give evidence in an attempt to prove the newspaper group published stories about him using illegally obtained information.

According to The Telegraph, Harry’s return to the UK might mean he will have to ask Buckingham Palace for permission to stay in an apartment on one of the royal estates for the first time. The Sussexes were evicted from their UK residence, Frogmore Cottage, earlier this year.

Harry also has the option of staying with friends or in a hotel. He could also stay with his cousin Princess Eugenie at her and husband Jack Brooksbank’s residence, Ivy Cottage. The duke remains close with Eugenie and she has visited him and his family in the US several times.