Prince William Reportedly Has a Petty Request for Peter Phillips’ Wedding — Just to Upstage Harry
All eyes are on Prince Harry, who is reportedly set to attend the upcoming nuptials of his cousin Peter Phillips to NHS paediatrician Harriet Sperling. The couple announced their engagement on August 1, after just over a year of dating. While Harry’s attendance could spark a much-anticipated reunion with the royal family, Prince William is said to remain reluctant to heal the rift with his estranged brother. A Palace insider has revealed that William allegedly requested a prime seat at the wedding to assert his status as King and subtly upstage Harry.
As reported by Cosmopolitan, the senior Palace source spoke to British journalist Rob Shutter, claiming that Harry and William do not want to have anything to do with each other at the wedding. They said, "The feud is still active and raw. They made it clear: no photos, no interactions, and absolutely no sitting next to one another." According to the insider, the Prince of Wales allegedly requested a better seat than his brother at the wedding, and that his team "insisted his seat reflect his future role as king. And that means Harry’s position must be visibly beneath his. They don’t even try to hide the hierarchy anymore."
Meanwhile, Harry’s team is said to have allegedly requested that he and William arrive at the nuptials separately and avoid posing for official portraits together. A source close to the Duke of Sussex shared, "He doesn’t want to be part of some fake PR reunion. He’s not interested in pretending things are fine when they’re not." Another insider from the royal family echoed this, saying the brothers would go to great lengths to avoid each other at their cousin’s reception. They spilled, "They’ll be in the same room—but not in the same frame. No speeches, no toasts, no warm moments. Just frost."
Interestingly, this isn't the first time things got awkward at a family event. According to PEOPLE, last year at the funeral of their uncle Lord Robert Fellowes at St. Mary’s Church in Norfolk, royal fans noticed the clear tension between the feuding brothers. Though both attended, they kept their distance, arriving separately, sitting apart, and avoiding any interaction. Reportedly, William and Harry didn’t exchange a single pleasantry or even make eye contact during the entire service. Their feud dates back to 2020, when the Duke of Sussex stepped down as a senior royal to move to California and publicly aired grievances against his family in various interviews and his memoir.
As for Phillips and Sperling’s royal engagement, the couple released a statement to HELLO! that read, "Mr Peter Phillips, the son of HRH The Princess Royal and Captain Mark Phillips, and Ms Harriet Sperling, daughter of the late Mr Rupert Sanders and Mrs Mary Sanders of Gloucestershire, have today confirmed their official engagement." Phillips proposed to Sperling with an engagement ring from the prestigious Mayfair jeweler Pragnell, featuring a classic three-stone diamond design that pays homage to the late Queen Elizabeth’s engagement ring.