Just In: Prince William and Prince Harry Rift Is “Hard and Sad,” Former Royal Aide to Both Men Says…..Read More

It’s very difficult to have this stuff play out in the public eye.

Jason Knauf, a former aide to both Prince William and Prince Harry, opened up about the brothers’ rift in a new interview.

Speaking on 60 Minutes Australia on February 23, Knauf—who served as both a communications secretary to William and his wife Kate Middleton and Harry and his wife Meghan Markle and as chief executive of the Prince and Princess of Wales’ Royal Foundation before departing the royal household in early 2022—said of the brothers’ fraught relationship, “It’s very difficult to have this stuff play out in the public eye, but he’s [William] chosen to keep his thoughts on it private, and I think all of us who know him really have to respect that we should do the same.”

Per the BBC, Knauf added, “But I will say, of course, it’s been hard and sad, especially for all of us who know both of them.”

He continued, “I worked really closely with the two of them and we had lots of great times.”

Speaking about some not-so-great times in the job—specifically those where his name ended up in the headlines—Knauf said, “You can’t choose just to take the fun stuff in any job. And that applies to the prince and princess as well as everyone else working for them. So I wouldn’t change anything.”

He added, per Hello!, “You know someone who has been helping other people through how to deal with the public eye. You probably had to take your own medicine sometimes.”

Of having any regrets in the role, Knauf said, “No. It’s not what I would have sought, but, you know, at the end of the day, you get to do an amazing job. You’ve got to take everything that comes with it.”

After leaving the royal household three years ago, Knauf serves as a trustee for William’s Earthshot Prize, and said he still has fond memories of Harry and Meghan: “Working on their wedding was an amazing, magical experience,” he said of the May 2018 royal wedding. “And, you know, I wish them absolutely all the best with their lovely family.”