Even before the Princess of Wales disappeared from public view, there was a concerted effort to make it seem like Prince William had “replaced” his brother with new and better surrogate brothers. One might ask why a 40-something man of means and education desperately “needs” a replacement brother, but no one did ask those questions, likely because they know the answer already. For months, it was decided that Mike Tindall was/is William’s surrogate brother. Then Mike revealed the “One Pint Willy” nickname and it seemed like people cooled off on Mike-as-Willy’s bro. More recently, they’ve tried to say that William’s cousin Peter Phillips is his surrogate brother. Now royal expert Jennie Bond says that it’s all of the above – that terrible Harry left and William “had to choose other members of his family to lean on.”

Insiders say that the tension between William and Harry has made it difficult for everyone, but it’s also meant that William has had to choose other members of his family to lean on.

“When two people in a family fall out, it makes life very difficult not only for them, but for the rest of the family, too,” Jennie Bond, a former BBC royal correspondent, said, according to OK! “Loyalties are tested and there is no easy answer. This is a time when William needs all the love and support he can get from his family.”

Bond notes that William has been spending more time and relying on Peter Phillips (Princess Anne’s 46-year-old son) and cousin-in-law Mike Tindall. They were both in attendance at a Buckingham Palace garden party last week, as were Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, who may not be working royals anytime soon, but could also lend an ear and a shoulder to William.

Bond added that “[Harry] is not, and will not, be here to help or provide a shoulder to cry on.”

“I’m really glad that William has a cousin who is almost like a brother to him in Peter Phillips,” Bond continued. “Peter is incredibly down-to-earth, solid, and has been there for both William and Harry in good and bad times.”

The expert went on to say that Phillips “formed a physical bridge between [the brothers] when Harry came back for their grandfather’s funeral as he walked between the brothers—as if to keep the peace. It was good to see Peter supporting William at the recent Buckingham Palace garden party, along with William’s other ‘replacement’ brother, Mike Tindall. I can imagine the three of them having a lot of fun together. This is William’s inner circle.”

Speaking of their close friendship, Bond finished by saying that William must be with people he can “trust” and that Phillips and Tindall are great guys he can rely on now and when he’s sitting on the throne as king.

“People he can trust absolutely and who are showing that they are there for him when the going gets tough,” Bond said of what William needs as he navigates Kate’s recovery, his father’s treatments, and a full schedule of his own. “I think it gave us a glimpse of the future for when William becomes king. He may not have his brother at his side, but he will have a band of loyal and close relatives to help him represent the monarchy. I’m sure that, whenever they can, they will step up to help William when the burden of kingship finally falls on his shoulders.”

[From InStyle]

LMAO @ “and a full schedule of his own.” They think if they keep repeating those lies about William’s schedule, maybe people won’t realize that William has maybe done a dozen public events in three months, and half of those events were “going to football matches.” Pick a struggle too – if you’re saying that William needs all of this time off so he can look after Kate, so be it and don’t lie about his “full schedule.”

As for William leaning on Peter and Mike… the thing is, I KNOW William has his own friends. It’s the royal experts who are stuck in this mindset that William can only associate with family members, or that he needs a “Harry replacement.” The positioning of “poor lonely William, he’s desperate for a brother” is so weird given that William made the choice to completely cut off Harry AND he has plenty of friends, yes-men and sycophants. That being said, I’m not even sure William is self-aware enough to understand how alone he really is, actually.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Avalon Red.