First reference to estranged brother in six years

Is this frosty relationship finally thawing?

Prince William has referenced his estranged brother, Prince Harry, by name for the first time in six years — and insiders believe the “calculated” move could be the first step on the royals’ road to reconciliation.

Princess Diana, Richard Kay, shared that the Prince of Wales’ recent mention of his younger brother could mean that the royal family is starting to listen to the Duke of Sussex. 

In the new documentary “Prince William: We Can End Homelessness”, which aired in the UK this week referenced Harry, 40, while recalling how Princess Diana took them to a homeless shelter.

Princess Diana’s friend, writer Richard Kay, told Daily Mail’s Palace Confidential that William’s naming of Harry was cause for hope.

“Well, you could easily take that latter view that he can’t not mention [Harry’s name]. How could he separate Harry and him from something which his mother took them both to,” the editor, who also co-wrote Princess Diana’s biography, explained.

“But I think there is something calculated and I think it is an olive branch,” Kay continued. “A few months ago, we had a story – sadly didn’t turn out to be quite right that William had made another gesture towards Harry. And they pushed back very firmly on this and they didn’t want the newspaper to run the story, which we didn’t. But this time, I think there is something in the wind here.”

But while the writer can’t say for sure what the future will hold for the estranged royals, he does sense Harry wants a reconciliation.

“Now, whether we can divine too much about what this means for the future, but we know from all the mood music from California that Harry is desperate to try and build some bridges with his family here again and maybe this is a sign that the family are listening.”

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

A photo also showed the two boys dressed casually at the homeless charity, smiling for the camera as Harry sits on his mother’s lap. 

William said Princess Diana made everyone there “feel relaxed and having a laugh and joking with everyone” in her usual way when they arrived at the center.

“I remember at the time kind of thinking, ‘Well, whoever’s not got a home, they’re all going to be really sad,’ but it was incredible how happy an environment it was,” he added in the clip. 

William and Harry have had a strained relationship since the Duke of Sussex’s marriage to Meghan Markle, and William’s remarks in the documentary are believed to be his first public mention of his brother in years. 

The two drifted farther apart after th Sussex’s left England in 2020 for Montecito, California. 

Harry and the “Suits” actress, 43, did a tell-all sit down with Oprah Winfrey in 2021 in which they leveled racism allegations at an unnamed member of the royal family and hit out at the institution in the Netflix docuseries “Harry & Meghan” in 2022. 

Last year, Harry published the memoir “Spare,” in which, among other allegations, he accused William of physically attacking him in an argument over Meghan at his London home in 2019, after he and Meghan were married. 

Most recently, William and Harry also appeared to avoid each other at the memorial service for their mother’s brother-in-law, Lord Robert Fellowes, in August.