Ex-butler reveals the real reason Prince Harry decided to stay at hotel while visiting King Charles in London
Prince Harry decided to spend his sole night in London at a swanky hotel to show the royal family that he is capable of “supporting himself” financially, according to King Charles’ former butler.
The Duke of Sussex, 39, is already en route back to Montecito, California, after just 24 hours on home soil, less than an hour of which he spent with his ailing father following Charles’ cancer diagnosis.
Grant Harrold, who worked for King Charles for seven years when he was the Prince of Wales, believes that Harry opted out of staying with family at any of their many royal residences in a desperate bid to show that he’s “grown up enough to fund himself.”
“It’s strange he’s not staying at any royal residences because obviously when they were growing up, they had rooms at Clarence House and at Highgrove,” Harrold exclusively told The Post.
“Maybe he felt that it was only fair to show that he, I’m guessing, is happy to support himself by staying in a hotel.”
Harrold noted that the decision to check into a hotel rather than stay with family “made no sense” security-wise.
“If he was staying in one of the royal residences, the security is already there,” Harrold shared. “If he’s staying at a hotel, then he’ll need his own security team.”
The father of two now travels with his own security team, after his father famously stripped the Sussexes of their right to tax-funded police protection after they quit royal life in 2020.
The duke has been trying to win back UK security protection for his family ever since.
“Obviously, it’s not the best sign if he’s staying at a hotel, because you’d have thought he’d possibly stay with his brother [Prince William] and sister-in-law [Kate Middleton] potentially, or at one of his father’s homes, because let’s face it, there are a few homes,” the former royal butler said to The Post.
King Charles' cancer diagnosis
- King Charles III has been diagnosed with cancer less than 15 months after ascending to the throne.
- The shocking development came just a week after the 75-year-old king was discharged from the hospital following treatment for an enlarged prostate.
- His estranged son Prince Harry traveled to the UK Tuesday to see his father, returning to California 24 hours later.
- Prince Harry has still not spoken to Prince William on the heels of their father King Charles’ cancer diagnosis — but the shocking news could force the estranged siblings into an uneasy truce, sources say.
- Kensington Palace did not specify when the king would be expected to return to his royal duties, as all of his public engagements have been put on pause.
Harry no longer has a royal residence in his name in the UK, after he and his wife, Meghan Markle, were forced to hand over the keys to Frogmore Cottage last year.
Harrold said Harry’s decision was fueled by “one of two reasons, either he’s wanting to show he can support himself and he’s grown up enough to fund himself,” he notes, which “is probably what he’s doing.”
The other reason could have a deeper meaning, Harrold notes.
“If there is an ongoing fallout between him and his brother, it’s possible that he may not have been given the offer to stay,” he added.
The royal expert adds that the duke’s “quick” 24-hour visit no doubt brings the brothers’ current relationship into the spotlight, and doesn’t help to squash any rumors of a feud.
The king “would have liked him to be over for longer,” Harrold adds, claiming it’s “possible” that Harry made his stint in London very brief on purpose to avoid any further meetups.
The duke has plans to jet off to Canada with Markle next week ahead of the Invictus Games training camp.
