Prince William’s Former Aide Discusses ‘Sad’ Rift With Prince Harry

A former royal aide for Prince Harry and Prince William is getting candid about the brothers’ fractured relationship.

“It’s very difficult to have this stuff play out in the public eye, but [William]’s chosen to keep his thoughts on it private, and I think all of us who know him really have to respect that we should do the same,” Jason Knauf said in a Sunday, February 23, interview with 60 Minutes Australia. “But I will say, of course, it’s been hard and sad, especially for all of us who know both of them.”

Knauf worked as a communications secretary to William, 42, and his wife, Kate Middleton, and Harry, 40, and his wife, Meghan Markle, before becoming the chief executive of William and Kate’s Royal Foundation. In 2021, Knauf stepped down but is currently on the board of trustees for William’s Earthshot Prize.

Knauf explained that he worked “really closely” with Harry and Meghan, 43, noting that the group had “lots of great times.” Knauf called working with the couple on their 2018 wedding an “amazing, magical experience.”

“I wish them absolutely all the best with their lovely family,” he added. (Harry and Meghan share son Archie, 5, and daughter Lilibet, 3. William and Kate, for their part, are parents to sons Prince George, 11, and Prince Louis, 6, and daughter Princess Charlotte, 9.)

While discussing William’s succession to becoming King, Knauf was asked whether Harry’s role within the family could change when that occurs. “I can’t speculate about the future,” Knauf replied. “They achieved a lot together, and none of that can ever be taken away.”

As reports of a rift between the brothers began circulating, Harry confirmed that he and William had a falling out during the 2019 ITV documentary Harry & Meghan: An African Journey. Harry revealed that the siblings had “good days” and “bad days.”

“Part of this role and part of this job, this family, being under the pressure that it’s under, inevitably stuff happens,” he said. “But look, we’re brothers, we’ll always be brothers. We’re certainly on different paths at the moment but I’ll always be there for him and as I know he’ll always be there for me. We don’t see each other as much as we used to because we’re so busy, but I love him dearly.”

The next year, an insider told Us Weekly that Harry and Meghan “blindsided” William and Kate, 43, with their decision to step back from their position as senior royals in 2020. “It’s sad because when they were younger, William would be the first person Harry would go to with big news like this,” the insider shared. “William is incredibly hurt, but at the same time he has his own family to focus on and is trying to move forward with his life.”

Following years of tension, William made a rare comment about Harry in an October 2024 promo clip for the documentary, Prince William: We Can End Homelessness. In the video, William recalled the brothers’ late mom, Princess Diana, taking them to a UK charity supporting those who are homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless.

“My mother took me to The Passage; she took Harry and I both there. I must have been 11 at the time, maybe 10,” William said. “I had never been to anything like that before, and I was a bit anxious about what to expect.”