The List Survey: When Do You Think Prince Harry Will Reunite With His Family?

It is no secret that Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, have become estranged from the royal family after their departure from royal life in 2020. A series of media interviews paint a broken family portrait from the perspective of the prince. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's infamous conversation with Oprah Winfrey in 2021 set the dismal tone, and earlier this month, Prince Harry lamented that unnamed members of the royal family "have shown absolutely no willingness to reconcile up until this point," on Britain's ITV Channel. 

The release of his tell-all memoir, "Spare," could have mired matters further. Prince Harry exposed several occasions of physical fights with his brother William, the Prince of Wales, and charged texts between Meghan Markle and Catherine, the Princess of Wales. Prince William had terrified Prince Harry over his decision to leave the royal family – though the unraveling of these relationships had not occurred overnight. The last time Prince Harry was in England was for the funeral of his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, in September of 2022. And now, as Prince Harry's popularity ratings reach a surprising new level amongst his fellow British citizens, it is unclear whether Prince Harry will ever have the best of both worlds. 

Could there be a reunion between the Sussexes and The Firm? And if so, when? TheList.com surveyed more than 36,000 readers for their take, and here is what they said. 

According to our survey results, 57% of TheList.com readers say that Prince Harry will never reunite with the royal family. One commenter replied to the poll, "The RF will never trust him again, he betrayed them at the lowest level." Betrayal is a word that has often been used in the context of Prince Harry's relationship with the royal family — both in defense of The Firm and in defense of Prince Harry. The Duke of Sussex once used the word himself in his interview with Anderson Cooper on "60 Minutes" when he said that, after repeated attempts of asking the royal family for protection, "There becomes a point where silence is betrayal," (via Forbes). 

Even still, 26% of TheList.com readers say that Prince Harry and his family will reunite in a few years from now. "They may reunite, but trust is gone, they would have to watch every word and action," one commenter wrote. 

And although the odds seem slim to most, 12% of TheList.com readers say that a reunion is possible as soon as the coronation of King Charles III this spring on May 6. 

The results of our poll also show that a small number of people, 3%, believe that reunion is possible next year in 2024. With an eventful start to 2023 setting the tone for the rest of the year, perhaps it's not too soon to call it a wash for Prince Harry and The Firm for the next 11 months. 

1% of readers believe a reunion could happen around Christmas. Last year, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle did not attend the traditional Christmas celebration at Sandringham, and speculation abounded about whether an invitation was extended at all. The Sussexes allegedly did, however, exchange gifts with William and Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales, for their children, but not between each other (per The Times). 

Some commenters also suggested that divorce between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle is inevitable, and that the potential end of their marriage would see Prince Harry reunite with the royal family. But one commenter makes a distinction clear: "Reuniting is easy, reconciliation is another matter."