Prince Harry is reconsidering plans to bring his wife and children to meet King Charles for the first time in four years. He reportedly had second thoughts after learning that his request for police protection had been turned down. Bizarrely, it comes just 24 hours after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex confirmed details of their visit to Britain next month for five days of engagements relating to the Invictus Games. They planned to bring Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet along with them. Insiders said on Saturday night that the King is likely to be deeply dismayed if the meeting does not now go ahead. And the Duke himself had been described as 'desperate' for Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, to see their grandfather. They were also said to be planning a poignant visit to the Althorp Estate in Northamptonshire, where Harry's mother Princess Diana is buried. One source told The Mail on Sunday: 'On Friday night the Sussex office issued an op [operational] note saying that the full family would be coming to the UK and they had accepted royal accommodation. Next day they pull out. 'It's a total joke and a farce.'

They are totally playing into the hands of those who say they court drama like this to sell Meghan's jam.' While the children are not expected to attend any public events, the Duchess was scheduled to join her husband on visits to Royal Hospital Chelsea and an Invictus event in Birmingham. Details of the trip were announced on Friday evening. But shortly afterwards, according to reports, the Duke was told that his application for security for the visit had been denied.

The King's estranged son was stripped of his 24-hour, taxpayer-funded armed guard on visits to the UK after he quit royal duties and moved to the US in search of a lucrative commercial career. He then lost a High Court appeal over the move, which he vehemently criticised as an 'establishment stitch-up'. But it then emerged that the Home Office, via its risk management board Ravec, had ordered a reassessment of his situation. However, the Duke was told last week that the review had not taken place and had in fact been 'paused'.

It means his family's taxpayer-funded protection in the UK does not extend beyond royal residences. The Sussexes do, however, travel with their own bodyguards. On Saturday, a source close to the California-based Duke and Duchess accused the Home Office of 'wilfully creating conditions that are making it nearly impossible' for them to move around Britain. Since quitting royal duties to move abroad in 2020, Harry has not been given police protection for anything other than official royal occasions, such as Queen Elizabeth II's funeral. Normally he must provide 28 days' notice of plans to visit Britain, with security decided on a case-by-case basis.

King Charles last saw his grandchildren in 2022, when the Sussexes were in Britain for Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee. The family celebrated Lilibet's first birthday together at Frogmore Cottage in Windsor. A source said: 'The precarious security situation and endless speculation about where the family will stay is making the planning and logistics for the private security team increasingly difficult. There have been three separate incidents in the UK in less than 12 months that we know of, each involving a fixated person getting to within feet of the Duke.'

'In some circumstances, because of the limitations on what private security have the authority to do, they weren't able to remove the person. 'Harry is a big guy, a former soldier and generally pretty robust when it comes to handling these incidents. 'It's what impact such moments would have on the kids that everyone is most concerned about.' While Meghan shares photographs and videos of their children on social media, their faces are obscured, and they do not attend public events with their parents.

Among the options said to be under consideration would be to fly the Duchess and the children in and out of Britain in one day, from a location in mainland Europe. Prince Harry is said to have been given assurances from Buckingham Palace that there is 'hope' a meeting with the King could still happen. The Sussexes' private security team has drawn up its own risk assessment, which has identified serious concerns. A Government spokesman said: 'The UK Government's protective security system is rigorous and proportionate. It is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information on those arrangements, as doing so could compromise their integrity and affect individuals' security.'