With Prince Harry due in the UK in the coming days, attentions have turned to whether he will meet up with King Charles on his visit – and one expert believes there has been a huge sign that the Duke of Sussex is keen for this to happen

All eyes will be on Prince Harry and whether he sees his father King Charles on his next trip to the UK.

In his role as patron of the WellChild charity, Harry will be attending its annual awards ceremony in London later this month on September 30. His trip will come just weeks after the royals made the surprise move of sending public birthday wishes to Harry when he turned 40 last week. Much has been made of the relationship between father and son, especially in the aftermath of the release of Harry’s controversial memoir Spare, where he railed against his family and revealed things about them in some of their most private moments.

Harry was last in the UK several weeks ago to attend the funeral of his late uncle Lord Robert Fellowes, the husband of Princess Diana’s sister Lady Jane Fellowes. On that occasion, he did not meet up with his dad.

Before that, Harry was in the UK in May for a 10th-anniversary service for the Invictus Games at St Paul’s Cathedral in London, with the King also in the capital on the same day. It had been hoped that father and son were on the road to begin repairing their rift, especially after they met when Harry dashed to the UK after it was announced that Charles had been diagnosed with cancer in February.

Harry with his father King Charles ( 
Image:
Getty Images)

However, eyebrows were raised at the time, with a statement from Harry suggesting his father was too busy to see him and reports later claiming the King had offered his son a place to stay in a royal residence.

But despite them being unable to meet on past visits, royal historian Hugo Vickers notes that Harry has made many trips to the UK this year – maximising his chances of a meeting with his dad.

He told The Sun: “Well, he does seem to be coming quite often, doesn’t he? Which in some ways is a good sign, I think. If he keeps coming at least there is a chance at some stage he’ll meet up with his father, and you know, maybe this can be a step towards some sort of reconciliation. I think there’s quite a long way to go but it’s nice that he feels he can come here anyway.”

However, there is currently one sign that shows that father and son are unlikely to meet despite both being in the UK during Harry’s return – and it is down to the King’s schedule. Just days before the WellChild Awards on September 28, Charles and Queen Camilla will attend the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh to mark its 25th anniversary.

According to The Telegraph, the King is likely to spend the days after the engagement north of the border in Scotland. Harry’s event is in London, meaning they will be hundreds of miles apart – although there is still time for plans to be made to faciliate a meeting between the pair.