A royal commentator cautions that Prince Harry and Meghan's window to rejoin the royals as working members is rapidly closing.
According to one royal family watcher, Harry and Meghan's prospects of resuming official duties are dwindling by the day. Richard Eden, speaking on the Daily Mail's "Palace Confidential" show, warned that the couple needs to act soon if they want to be welcomed back while Charles is still King.
"Their time is running short to come back while Harry's father is still on the throne," Eden cautioned, referring to the 75-year-old King who took over after Queen Elizabeth's passing in 2022.
A couple of years ago, back in 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, ages 39 and 42, said farewell to royal responsibilities and made a beeline for California.
Eden suggested Harry and Meghan face an uphill battle for a royal return after Charles. "I really think that when Prince William is King, I can't see him letting Harry come back and have a role again," he said of the 40-year-old Prince of Wales.
Despite the strained relationships, reports earlier this year indicated Harry and Meghan were open to assisting the slimmed-down monarchy while Charles and Prince William's wife Kate battled cancer diagnoses. Royal author Tom Quinn claimed the Sussexes "talked about this at length" as "senior royal numbers are seriously down."
However, Quinn added, "They are kidding themselves if they think they will be invited back in any way" based on his palace contacts. The Sun previously reported Prince William was "blocking" his brother's temporary return to protect Kate.
After her diagnosis in March, the Princess of Wales received well-wishes from Harry and Meghan, who said they hoped for privacy during her treatment.
As the controversies linger, Eden maintained time is of the essence for Harry and Meghan: "They are irrelevant now, they are just not wanted as part of the monarchy, maybe there could be some radical change but it's hard to see."