Prince William gave up a relationship with a reporter long after he joined Prince Harry amid much media coverage of the brothers’ breakup, royal sources said.
The heir to the throne is believed to have interrupted Britain’s Tom Bradby, who hosts ITV’s “News At Ten,” as he grew closer to Harry and his wife Meghan Markle.
Bradby spoke to the Sussex during their 2019 South African tour, where Harry first acknowledged the fall with his brother – and Markle revealed how unhappy she was in her royal life.
“William can’t trust Tom,” a source told Page Six. “Tom tried to be friends with both Harry and William, but I don’t think Tom was an honest broker.
“Brothers don’t need someone in the middle – without knowing if they can trust them – when they can talk directly to each other.”
Both William and Harry became friends with Bradby when he worked as a royal ITV correspondent.
Bradby even received his first interview with William and Kate Middleton at their engagement in November 2010.
His wife Claudia worked with Kate – now the Duchess of Cambridge – on the British fashion brand Jigsaw.
Kate worked there briefly as an accessory shop assistant before her engagement.
However, a palace source told the Daily Mail on Wednesday: “William is a sensitive soul and thinks he is in times of crisis when you find out who your true friends are.
“It would be fair to say that Bradby was not one of them.”
The source said that some employees of the Palace are “even more upset” by Bradby’s alleged “pro-Harry and Meghan” about their dramatic departure from the royal family.
Bradby is also believed to have worked to get Britain’s rights to the Oprah Winfrey interview – even though rival BBC broadcaster refused to air the interview.
“It is well known that Bradby communicates personally with Harry on a regular basis and this is quite obvious to royal assistants who know how things work,” the source added.
Bradby’s representatives did not answer calls for comment. ITCV declined a request, and a representative for Sussex was not available for comment.