Prince Harry skipped royal wedding to avoid 'awkward' encounter with estranged brother Prince William: expert

Prince Harry has avoided yet another run-in with estranged brother Prince William. 

On Friday, the Prince of Wales attended the wedding of Hugh Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster, and Olivia Henson at Chester Cathedral in northern England. While the Duke of Sussex was invited to attend, Harry regretfully declined in an effort to avoid an "awkward" encounter with William, a royal expert told Fox News Digital. 

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"Hugh is extremely amiable and diplomatic. He has managed to maintain a friendship with both Prince William and Prince Harry," British royals expert Hilary Fordwich said. "He had a phone call with Prince Harry, who had been invited, but they decided it would be too awkward for him to attend. Prince William is an usher, and it would have been more than awkward for him to have ushered Harry to his seat."

Additionally, both brothers wanted to avoid taking the attention away from the newlyweds on their special day. 

"Even if Harry showed up and slunk into the back row, there would be enough press coverage and general hysteria over the two brothers being in the same room to overshadow the wedding entirely," Christopher Andersen, author of "The King," told Fox News Digital. 

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"Harry's presence would have turned the whole affair into a media circus, and he didn't want to do that to his friend," he added. "If he learned that Harry had accepted the invitation, it's likely that William would have backed out. Harry knows this."

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"This is the future, I'm afraid," he concluded. "There is no sign at the moment that William is willing to give an inch."

The ongoing rift between the brothers has stemmed from Harry and wife Meghan Markle's royal exit in 2020. 

The couple's exit was cited for what they described as the unbearable intrusions and racist attitudes of the British media. 

Since moving to Montecito, California, the couple has sat for a two-hour TV interview with Oprah Winfrey and launched a six-part Netflix docuseries about their life together, while Harry also released his best-selling memoir "Spare."

During the king’s coronation in May, the brothers — who sat separately — were never seen speaking or even acknowledging each other. 

Harry flew to the U.K. to visit Charles after the monarch's cancer diagnosis in February. 

However, Fordwich told Fox News Digital at the time that Harry was reportedly not allowed to stay at any of the royal homes and did not have a reunion with William.

Last month, Harry arrived in London to participate in a panel for the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games. While the event celebrated the 39-year-old’s own cause, royal watchers told Fox News Digital at the time that Harry’s visit to the U.K. would not spark a reconciliation with his family.

"There was just too much drama between the brothers and their wives, and there is lingering bitterness on everyone's part," Andersen told Fox News Digital. "So, the chances of even a meeting between Harry and the rest of the royal family, much less some sort of reconciliation, seem extremely slim."

Fox News Digital's Stephanie Nolasco contributed to this post. 

‘View’ co-host mocks the idea that Black Republicans exist: ‘Like looking at unicorns’

"The View" co-host Sunny Hostin on Friday mocked the idea that Black Republican voters exist.

The co-hosts were discussing recent comments from Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., that Black families were "together" and voted more conservatively during the Jim Crowe era

Hostin then seized upon the fact that the Florida Republican was addressing a group of Black conservatives when he made the remarks and suggested such voters are mythical creatures.

"These Black men that he was speaking with, I’d love to see them," Hostin said. "It would be like looking at unicorns."

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After several of her daytime talk show co-hosts took turns criticizing Donalds, co-host Joy Behar asked Hostin whether she believed the lawmaker was making the points out of "stupidity, or is it something else?"

Hostin accused the congressman and potential GOP vice presidential nominee of "pandering to Donald Trump."

"I thought it was interesting that the framing was a room of Black Republicans," Hostin said. She held her hands up to her eyes and jokingly scanned the audience, adding, "Where are they? Where are they? Because if you look at the stats, 77% – 81%, I’m sorry, of Black men are part of the Democratic Party."

"Black voters consistently align with the Democratic Party," Hostin continued. "Over 95% of [Black] women are part of the Democratic Party."

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While the majority of Black voters are registered Democrats, recent polling has shown that former President Trump has made notable gains.

Trump's support among Black voters has doubled compared to the 2020 election, 10% at the time, according to polls in recent weeks. CNN data guru Harry Enten said that could be "deadly" for President Biden’s re-election bid and help Trump win the White House.

"If you’re pandering yourself and your community and your history to a man like Donald Trump, who is a disgraced, one-term, twice-impeached, convicted felon — we get to say now — is even more despicable in this country," Hostin said on Friday.

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