Prince Harry makes subtle jab at King Charles by revealing the key way he’s a very different dad to Archie and Lilibet

The Royal couple released their official Christmas cards earlier this week, a yearly tradition which has seen different pictures featured on the cards every time. This year saw six pictures from various points during the Sussex family’s year, and it even features a picture of Archie and Lilibet. The Duke and Duchess have often done all they can to keep their children out of the spotlight, so that makes this new Christmas card pretty unique.

In the center of the six images on the front of the card is a photo of Harry, Meghan and their two children. In it, we can see Lilibet and Archie running towards their parents who are both holding out their arms to hug their children. It’s a wholesome and innocent family photo, but is there more to it than that? Some experts believe this picture to be a subtle jab at King Charles from Harry.

Is there more to the photo than meets the eye?

According to body language expert, Judi James, the photo shows what she calls “tactile family love,” showing that the Sussexes have “moved away from their first Christmas card with Archie.” James continues, “Back then it was Archie face-on and close up to the camera, very much the star of the pose, as his two casually dressed parents watched adoringly in the background.”

This new card essentially portrays the message that Harry and Meghan are much more loving and attentive parents than they used to be, which is something that could get under King Charles’ skin in particular.

In Harry’s memoir, Spare, the prince noted that his father did not hug him, not even after the news of Harry and William’s mother, Princess Diana’s death, saying: “Pa didn’t hug me. He wasn’t great at showing emotions under normal circumstances. How could he be expected to show them in such a crisis?”

Clearly, in Harry’s mind, his father was not the best at showing his affection for his children, so could this Christmas card be a way of making a subtle dig at his father? It certainly shows how far the prince has come and how he is much more present and emotionally available for his son and daughter. 

Compared to Charles’ apparent method of parenting, the picture demonstrates that Harry is a great father figure to Archie and Lilibet.

Judi James went on to point out that Harry appears to be the dominant one in the photo, “these poses tend to swing in Harry’s favour, making him look not just the hero adored by Meghan but also rather dominant.” This echoes what other body language experts have noted about the couple, particularly in their brief appearance in their Netflix docu-series, POLO.