On the morning following the death of his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, and before boarding a plane in Aberdeen on Friday, Prince Harry placed his arm on the shoulder of an airport worker who expressed his sympathy while accompanying him on the airport runway.

It was a warm and informal moment characteristic of Harry, whose friendly personality has long made him one of the most famous members of the royal family – until his decision to step back from royal duties caused a far-reaching rift in the family.

Harry was the last to arrive at Balmoral Castle on Thursday where the Queen's relatives rushed to be with her in her final hours, and the first to leave on Friday, reflecting the fact that he was no longer part of the immediate family circle.

In happier times, Harry and his grandmother were briefly seen by the wider public when they appeared together in a comedic video in 2016 and interacted with the banter of Barack and Michelle Obama before the Invictus Games competition. 

But it was pure coincidence that Harry was in England when Elizabeth died, and no plans were disclosed before her death for him to meet his family during his visit to the United States, where he lived with his American wife Meghan. With the mother’s departure, family dynamics are expected to improve, and watchers will keenly observe signs of reconciliation as the grandeur and ceremony of Elizabeth’s funeral unfold.

How the royal family will deal with Harry, Meghan, and their children will also be a major theme of the post-Elizabeth era – one of those family dramas that has made Windsor House a permanent subject of global intrigue.

According to royal rules, the king’s grandchildren automatically become princes or princesses of the kingdom, so Charles, Harry’s father, is now king, and his children Archie, 3, and Lilibet receive these noble titles. Lilibet was named after the queen’s childhood nickname.

But this innovation alone is unlikely to restore harmony in Harry’s dealings with Charles or his older brother Prince William, who is now the heir to the throne.

The brothers were close for many years after their mother Diana died in a car accident in 1997 when William was fifteen and Harry was twelve, but their relationship has been strained since Harry and Meghan began distancing themselves in January 2020.