In public they put up a united front.
But I’m told King Charles was “deeply upset” by some of Prince William’s remarks in his recent interview with Canadian Hollywood star Eugene Levy for The Reluctant Traveller show.
The Prince of Wales told the actor he wanted to make changes to the monarchy and also said he didn’t want to make the same mistakes as his parents.
William arrived at Windsor Castle on an electric scooter, introduced Eugene to his dog Orla and enjoyed a pint in a pub as he gave his thoughts on the future direction of the royal family.
He questioned if some royal traditions “are fit for purpose today” and added : “I think it’s safe to say that change is on my agenda.”
All very modern and appealing to a wide audience.
But it was William’s comments on how he is bringing up his family that shook Charles to the core.
“I want to create a world in which my son is proud of what we do and I hope we don’t go back to some of the practices in the past that Harry and I had to grow up with” said William.
One senior courtier told me : “That hurt and although the King won’t say anything in return, he was deeply upset by some of what William said.
“Sometimes he feels he is being undermined on all sides.
“Harry is sniping from the sidelines in California, making comments on how long his father has to live, and now William is setting out his plans for the future.
“All the time the King is battling his cancer and doing his best to be a unifying influence in an increasingly divisive and difficult time for society.
“It’s true that the King spoke out about issues when he was Prince of Wales like the environment and architecture, but he always understood that the role of the monarch is to be head of state in a constitutional monarchy and that is the job.
“Anything that questions him or how he is doing the job is not very helpful.
“It’s all about tradition and continuity and William, who took an oath of allegiance at the Coronation, needs to remember that.”
My own view is that William is right to make changes, but he will have plenty of time to do that when he becomes King.
Right now he should support his father in every way, especially as they are both estranged from Harry.
Bringing up the failure of Charles and Diana’s marriage doesn’t achieve much and smacks of Harry’s whinges.
The King and the Prince need to be singing from the same song sheet as far as Harry and Prince Andrew are concerned, and they have their hands full without William rocking the boat.
