Prince Harry scoffed that William, King Charles were ‘trapped’ in the monarchy before fleeing UK

Prince Harry once insisted that his brother and father were both “trapped” in the “toxic” life of the royal family, but he was happy that he got to leave.

Of course, Harry has since changed his tune, as Page Six confirmed Wednesday that he’s moving back to the UK with his wife, Meghan Markle, and their two kids, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.

During Harry’s famous interview with Oprah Winfrey alongside Markle back in 2021, he said he initially “didn’t see a way out” of royal life before fleeing his home country in 2020.

Prince Harry once claimed his brother, Prince William, and their father, King Charles III, were “trapped” in the “toxic” life of the royal family. (The trio are pictured above in April 2019.) WireImage
Harry (seen here in April 2026) made the shocking claim in a tell-all interview with wife Meghan Markle and Oprah Winfrey in 2021. Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images

“I was trapped but I didn’t know I was trapped,” he said. “Trapped within the system like the rest of the family. My father [King Charles III] and my brother [Prince William] are trapped. They don’t get to leave and I have huge compassion for that.”

Asked bluntly by Winfrey if he was suggesting William also wanted “to leave the system,” Harry replied, “I don’t know — I can’t speak for him.”

Winfrey later asked why his father put up with such a “toxic environment,” to which Harry responded, “He’s had to make peace with it.”

Harry shared that watching his wife struggle with royal life made him rethink the way his family deals with things.

During the interview, Harry (pictured above with Charles and William in July 2014) said he initially “didn’t see a way out” of royal life before he and Markle stepped away in January 2020 and moved to the United States. WireImage
Harry claimed William and Charles (seen here in September 2025) were trapped in the “system,” adding, “They don’t get to leave and I have huge compassion for that.” Getty Images

Here’s the latest on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s shocking move back to the U.K. after 6 years in the U.S.


“I went to a very dark place as well,” he recalled. “I wanted to be there for her. That’s just not a conversation that would be had. I guess I was ashamed of admitting it to them.”

He continued, “I don’t know whether they’ve had the same feelings or thoughts. I had no idea. It’s a very trapping environment that a lot of them have been stuck in. I didn’t have anyone to turn to.”

“You know we’ve got some very close friends that have been with us through this process, but for the family, they all had this mentality of ‘this is just how it is. You can’t change it. We’ve all been through it.’”

Harry, 41, and William, 44, have been experiencing tension since 2018, and their feud intensified after Harry’s multiple tell-all interviews and his 2022 Netflix doc “Harry & Meghan,” as well as his 2023 memoir, “Spare.”

Harry has had a strained relationship with his brother and their father (seen together above in April 2019) in recent years, but has seemingly made inroads with Charles recently. The brothers’ bond, however, remains “so broken,” a source told People last month. WireImage
Harry also once said it was his late mother Princess Diana’s dream for him to raise his family in the United States. (Harry is pictured above with William, Diana and Charles in July 1986.) Getty Images

The brothers’ current relationship remains “so broken,” an insider told People last month.

A second source said “there has been no movement, especially on William’s side. There is no contact.”

The Duke of Sussex, meanwhile, once said raising his children in the United States was a dream his late mother, Princess Diana, had for him. 

“I feel as though it’s the life that my mom wanted for me,” he said at the 2024 New York Times DealBook Summit, of his 2020 move to Montecito, California, where he’s been raising his son and daughter with Markle. 

“To be able to do the things I’m able to do with my kids that I undoubtedly wouldn’t be able to do in the UK, it’s huge,” he continued. “I’m hugely grateful for that.”

He said at the time that he planned to stay in the US indefinitely, adding, “I very much enjoy living here and bringing up my kids here.” 

He also revealed earlier that year that he’d considered obtaining his US citizenship. 

“The American citizenship is a thought that has crossed my mind but is certainly not something that is a high priority for me right now,” he said during an appearance on “Good Morning America.”

“I feel as though it’s the life that my mom wanted for me,” he said at the 2024 New York Times DealBook Summit. (He’s pictured above with son Archie and daughter Lilibet in June 2026.) Instagram/@meghan
Harry and Markle (pictured here in August 2026) have been raising their family in Montecito, California, since leaving the UK and will enroll the children in school in the UK upon their return. meghan/Instagram

The family visited Princess Diana’s childhood home, Althorp, during their recent European getaway with their children last month. 

Markle shared family photos of their visit to Diana’s ancestral estate via Instagram at the time, including pics of Archie, 7, and Lilibet, 5, wandering the fields of the property. 

Harry’s mother is buried at Althorp on Oval Lake, a secluded island on the 15,0000-acre estate now owned by her brother, Charles Spencer. 

Diana died in a horrific car accident in Paris in 1997. 

The visit to Althorp came after Charles and Queen Camilla welcomed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their two children at Highgrove House, with the monarch seeing his grandchildren for the first time in four years.

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