07 February 2024 , 15:59
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Prince Harry and Prince William may be able to salvage their strained relationship with the help of one very important person, it has been reported.
It comes after the Duke of Sussex, 39, spent just 25 hours in the UK for a trip to see King Charles following the shock announcement that the 75-year-old has cancer. His wife Meghan Markle remained in the US.
Harry and his father met for about 30 minutes at Clarence House, after Charles held his helicopter to Sandringham back to personally welcome him - which has been largely seen as an "optimistic" signal for their relationship. However, the Mirror exclusively revealed there were no plans for the princes to have their own meeting, despite Harry being open to it.
Prince William And Prince Harry with Mark Dyer in 1999 (Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)Sources close to the Duke, who now lives in Montecito, California, have suggested he would have welcomed an opportunity to meet with William “if the opportunity were to arise”. A source said: “The Duke's primary reason to travel to the UK is to visit his father. If the opportunity were to arise to see the Prince of Wales then the Duke would have gladly accepted it.”
Yesterday, we reported William's priority is looking after his wife Kate, who is recovering from abdominal surgery and is taking extended leave from public duties until after Easter, sources have said. It is thought the brothers have not spoken to each other for over a year, but there is a mutual friend who may be able to help mend their fractured relationship.
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Mark Dyer, who is a former Welsh Guards Officer and former equerry to the King, helped support the princes in the wake of Princess Diana's death.
Prince Harry with Mark Dyer in 2016 (AFP via Getty Images)Furthermore, his son was a page boy at Harry and Meghan's wedding. And it is reported he has stayed in touch with the Sussexes since they moved to the US.
A source told The Times : "Mark can always be relied on to talk sense into Harry and will be stoic under-the-radar support for Harry in what has the propensity to be a stress-inducing time for him. He also has the benefit of knowing what it’s like to live through a cancer diagnosis.”
They added: "I’m not sure how many people Harry feels he can truly trust out of his old set in Britain but Dyer is certainly one of them.”
In Harry's controversial book Spare, Mark is known as "Marko". In it, Harry writes: "Of all Pa’s people there was consensus that Marko was the best. The roughest, the toughest, the most dashing.” The book also describes how he was sent to Eton to find out if Harry had been taking drugs. Mark also later joined the team leading the Sentebale charity.
Furthermore, Mark is listed in the acknowledgements section. Harry writes: "Love and thanks to friends and colleagues who helped jog my memory or else restored important details lost in the haze of youth.”