King Charles is wrestling with 'full of regret' feelings over his fractured relationship with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and the distance from grandchildren Archie and Lilibet, according to royal commentator Duncan Larcombe.
The royal expert told The Mirror that the 77‑year‑old monarch's cancer diagnosis has sharpened his sense that time with his California‑based family is quietly slipping away.
Larcombe saysPrince Archie's recent seventh birthdayhas thrown the distance into sharp relief for King Charles. 'I think King Charles is full of regret over the whole situation, he definitely wouldn't have wanted it to go this way,' he told The Mirror, adding that the King has often spoken about how much he enjoys being a grandfather.
Those who have followed his public life will remember how proudly he posed in the 2018 photograph released for his 70th birthday, surrounded by his sons, daughters‑in‑law and grandchildren, with Prince George perched on his knee.
In a separate reflection on grandparenthood, Charles once said: 'The great thing is to encourage them. Show them things to take their interest. My grandmother did that, she was wonderful. It is very important to create a bond when they are very young.'
He has had ample opportunity to do exactly that with his UK‑based grandchildren. Charles is regularly pictured with Prince George, now 12, Princess Charlotte, 11, and eight‑year‑old Prince Louis, whether on the Buckingham Palace balcony or during more relaxed family moments.
The contrast with his relationship with Archie and Lilibet could hardly be starker. There have been only brief, carefully controlled encounters, with the children's lives in California glimpsed mainly through Meghan's occasional social‑media clips, such as a video of a family trip to Disneyland for Lilibet's fourth birthday.
The news ofCharles's reported regret comes against the backdrop of his ongoing treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer, first made public in 2024.
While the Palace has said he has scaled back some treatment this year, it has not detailed his prognosis. That lack of clarity has inevitably fed speculation about how much time the King has to rebuild personal relationships, let alone reshape the monarchy.
Commentators have suggested that ill‑health often softens hardened positions inside families, but in this case the signs are mixed. Another royal author, Richard Palmer, told The Mirror there had once been quiet optimism that a corner might be turned.
Source: International Business Times UK
