King Charles Cancer Fight 'Fills Him With Regret' Over Losing Archie And Lilibet, Royal Expert Says

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.

King Charles And The Regret He Is Said To Carry

Larcombe says Prince Archie's recent seventh birthday has 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.

King Charles Cancer Battle And A Growing Family Rift

The news of Charles'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.

He pointed back to the Platinum Jubilee visit in 2022, saying a senior royal figure made it 'very plain that the King was thrilled to spend time with his grandchildren.' There were hopes, he said, that from that point 'things could be improved', but instead 'there've been quite a few setbacks since then.'

King Charles US Trip Backlash And Questions Over Missed Visit

One of the most visible of those setbacks unfolded during Charles and Queen Camilla's high‑profile state visit to the United States. The couple spent four days travelling between Washington, New York and Virginia on a tour tied to preparations for the 250th anniversary of American independence.

They met President Donald Trump at the White House and paid their respects at New York's 9/11 memorial. They did not, however, travel west to see Harry, Meghan and the children in California.

The Palace did not officially promise a reunion and there is no public evidence of a private meeting having been planned, but the optics were always going to be fraught. According to Palmer, the trip may have led to 'awkward' conversations at Archie and Lilibet's school and nursery as classmates saw wall‑to‑wall coverage of their grandfather in the US without any sign of them.

Viewers on social media criticised Charles for meeting Trump but not crossing the continent to see his estranged son and grandchildren.

'He'll visit a felon but not his son and grandchildren. How on‑brand for him,' one user wrote.

Another asked bluntly what had happened to plans to see Archie and Lilibet, while a third pointed out that Prince Andrew is reportedly not allowed to visit the King, yet Charles had sat down with the US president.

When Did King Charles Last Spoke With Harry and Megan?

Harry and Charles last saw each other in person in September 2025 at Clarence House, where they shared tea and exchanged gifts.

Royal correspondents interpreted that meeting as a tentative thaw after years of interviews and memoirs that exposed private grievances, from Harry's ITV documentary sit‑downs to the publication of Spare.

Later this summer, Harry and Meghan are expected back in the UK to help launch the 2027 Invictus Games. It is not yet clear whether Archie and Lilibet will travel with them.

Harry and Meghan stepped back as senior working royals in 2020 and moved to Montecito, California, with their young son Archie. Their daughter Lilibet was born in the United States, and both children have grown up largely outside the royal fold.

King Charles last saw Archie, now seven, and four‑year‑old Lilibet during Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June 2022, when the Sussexes briefly returned to the UK and joined the family at events including Trooping the Colour.