On Sunday morning, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex attended church with the Queen. It was not the kind of church pap-stroll that the Queen has done with HRH Prince Andrew, the Duke of York over the past year. The Queen did not ride in the same car with Harry and Meghan, nor did they arrange for a photocall-like stroll in front of the church. But Liz of House Petty still wants credit for it!
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are getting in some quality time with Queen Elizabeth while they’re back in the U.K. this week. The monarch, 93, invited the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to join her for church service in Windsor on Sunday morning.
“It was a really sweet gesture that the Queen asked them to church,” a source tells PEOPLE. “It’s telling in the sense that these two are still her family. And as a family they all love each other.”
Meghan was wearing a blue fascinator-style headpiece and striking emerald ear-rings, while Harry wore a suit and tie.
Sounds like… the Queen is starting to understand that she still needs some glamorous people in her dusty, out-of-touch institution, and she’s going to use their popularity and glamour one last time during this trip. I mean, if I was in Harry and Meghan’s position, I would have refused the Prince Andrew Church Pap Stroll™ but whatever. Liz has made it clear that she will continue to punish them no matter what, and I bet this invitation came with a threat of punitive action as well. While Petty Betty is dangerously out-of-touch, Prince Charles is not. Charles, I believe, is the only one in the family who is really sorry to see the Sussexes go, and he definitely wants them to come back at some point:
Prince Harry’s relationship with his dad is “rock solid” despite quitting Royal duties, an insider claimed today. The Duke of Sussex has spent hours with Prince Charles since returning to the UK last week to fulfil his final duties as a royal before quitting the Firm. And sources say Harry has listened closely to the advice of his father who is helping to support his future plans.
The insider said: “Harry is and always has been incredibly close to his father. And nothing that has happened in the last few months has changed that. Of course everybody, Prince Charles included, would rather that Harry and Meghan had remained as part of the Royal Family. Charles, in particular, felt that the work and causes Harry and Meghan were embarking on could be really served by remaining within the Royal household. But like any loving father, now Harry has made his decision Charles is keen to support him.
“Since Harry came back he has seen his father and they have discussed what Harry wants to do in the future. Harry hugely respects his father’s opinion and has welcomed the advice he has given him.”
It sounds like Charles also wanted a touch of the Sussexes’ glamour one last time. But unlike Harry’s meetings with the Queen over the past week or so, Charles hasn’t been blasting his quiet meetings with Harry, at least not until now. I don’t know – I’ll always believe that Charles could have done a lot more to protect the Sussexes, but I also believe that Charles genuinely wanted them to stay.
As for dear old Liz, she said words ahead of Commonwealth Day and people are trying to make it sound like she was making an effort to recognize how important Meghan and Harry were for the ideals of diversity and inclusion. You can read her statement here. Too little, too late. She completely mishandled everything and no amount of church-strolling and commonwealth-specific statements will make up for it. Joke’s on Liz and Charles though – they’re stuck with Willileaks and Keen Kate now.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Avalon Red and Backgrid.
Meanwhile, the Fail is reporting that H & M will not be part of the procession at the Commonwealth service. So why did the Queen insist on them being there?
It gets better. Apparently Will and Kate are not going to be part of the procession either. Even though they are listed in the program.
WHAT is going on at the house of petty.
I didn’t read that Becks. Hilarious if true… why would the FFK and FFQC not be part of the procession? Was that the only way to cut out H & M?
Chris Ship and at least one other reporter shared that tidbit, trying to make it sound like a good thing “now they don’t have to stand around and wait for the queen!” but I guess we’ll see what actually happens when the service starts.
But IF true – I cant figure out the rationale. Maybe there was criticism about H&M not being in the procession? (which I didn’t see as that big a deal, its just the Queen, Charles/Camilla and will/kate, no anne, Edward etc) so this is to diffuse that criticism? Maybe Will and Kate don’t want to be part of it, but then shouldn’t that have been figured out BEFORE the programs were printed? It seems like the kind of detail the royals hammer out well in advance, so its surprising to me – again IF true.
Something weird is happening today, that’s for sure! M and H’s thunder threatening too many people or what?
I’m wondering if W &K pulled out last minute and maybe won’t even be at the service? I can see rageoholic Will getting so pissed that he pulls out in a fit.
I think W&K’s decision actually was last minute, because some of the RRs on Twitter added that info like it was an afterthought. Wonder if Will threw a fit about H&M’s choice and decided to do the same.
Sounds to me like WillieLeaks threw a tantrum about them being involved in the walk in and TQ was like ‘ok so neither of you can walk with me and you can take all the seats’.
Is everyone looking forward to the Commonwealth Service coverage as much as I am?
Maybe Will and Kate saw what Meghan was going to be wearing and they just threw in the towel right then and there.
Sorry I can dream, can’t I?
But it could be real. Meghan HAS been slaying it with the fashions since her return. Harry looks pretty dapper, himself. And together, my God! Nobody wants to be walking in a procession with that many “meghawatts” when they desperately want themselves to look “incandescent” with something other than rage.
Meghawatts, lol, good one, Guest with Cat!
Oh please, Charles is the worst. All the problems started leaking after his book and he threw both Harry and Will under the bus.
He used Meghan for good PR when he walked her down the aisle but he doesn’t give a crap about anyone.
Basically. I think Charles was the only one who truly understands what they could have done for the BRF (and most importantly for him!). But he still was jealous.
The Queen must be reading celebitchy with the church invite. Although I do think she was the only one that wasn’t jealous of them.
Another site mentioned that a plaque was unveiled at Sunday’s Windsor service for a soldier named Reddy killed in Afghanistan. Reddy was the son of one of the gardners at Windsor. The article said Harry very much wanted to be at the service to pay his respects to Reddy’s family. So, did the Queen invite them or did Harry just go to church with Meghan to honor Reddy? Who really knows? I’m glad to read reports that Harry has had some contact with at least his father…if reports are true.
As to the Queen’s diversity speech: I would like to see the royal family ‘walk the walk instead of talking the talk’ as they always do. The Sussexes were jettisoned by the senior royals and it wasn’t because Meghan’s wardrobe was better than Kate’s or because she works harder. It’s because she was ‘Duchessing while Black,’ so I — for one — don’t want or need any of them lecturing me about diversity. They need to take a seat when it comes to diversity because they have spoken loud and clear with their behavior surrounding Meghan exactly what their true opinion is on this issue.
Exactly. I do think Charles understood better than anyone else in the family how good Meghan’s arrival could be for them all. But that did not translate into him protecting the Sussexes when they needed him the most.
If there is anyone who can turn a reputation around, it’s Charles. See what he did with Camilla. The fact that he did not anything to help Harry and Meghan speaks volume IMO.
I could not agree more! I loathe Charles. In my opinion he’s the man behind the curtain. The narratives are what he wants them to be. I don’t think Harry and Charles are close at all. I think if anything Harry is doing his best to have a relationship with the parent he has left and possibly excuses some of his behavior because Charles was raised to shake hands with his mother. He’s just a petty, petulant, Pompous prince who will never NOT get his way.
Thank you @GG. Charles is in so deep with the exile of the Sussexes. It’s revolting. He is vile and I for one do not believe the rehabilitated image they have fabricated for him. William is basically little Charles. He learned everything he knows from the master manipulator.
Oh, but don’t you know? Charles is a victim of mean William, his own son, the most powerful royal known to man!
ITA 100%!
I have said this all along: Charles is the only one of this bunch smart enough to plan long-term and he does not like to be outshined. So I agree with the poster above: he understood how valuable Meghan could be but he wanted none of it. That’s why he lets William do all the dirty work (and Will is not smart enough to understand that he is being used).
Those pre-sussexit pictures aren’t even very old but the difference is astounding. She really did make an effort to dull herself down for them.
I noticed that too. And maybe it’s just me but Meghan has outshone Kate from day 1.
So what I’m hearing is that Harry met with the Queen privately and they went to church with her and their relationship is still good and the Queen loves him.
I’m also hearing that Harry has been meeting with Charles and Charles loves Harry and supports him etc.
I’m not hearing anything about William. And you know if the brothers had met, someone (cough) would have leaked that shit immediately.
So whatever we think about the first two points – how much love and support is actually there – the royal family has at least caught on enough to put the stories out there about it. Meaning, the family realizes that its important to emphasize that Harry is still loved, the Queen isn’t refusing to see Meghan, etc. But we are hearing crickets from KP about this.
Him and his wife hightailing it to Ireland for most of m&h’s farewell tour and now deciding last minute not to join the procession either (even tho they’re listed in the program) tells me that things are definitely Not Okay between them. Charles is Harry’s dad so while I have mixed feelings about them allegedly working things out I’ll keep em myself.
The event yesterday was to unveil a plague to commemorate a fallen afghan solider who was the son of a royal gardener.
You just know somewhere in the 21 rooms of Apt 1A at KP someone is ‘incandescent with rage’.
“Very sweet of the queen.” Correction, “Very gracious of H&M to participate with any member of the BRF.”
Eh, the Queen and Charles have both either directly or through courtiers allowed the Sussexes to be put through hell. I think if Harry is getting along with them now, it’s because he’s a sweet guy who loves family. Not because of those two. They have never demonstrated they understood what love is. “Love…whatever that means.” Pfft.
It all looks like a last ditch desperate pr exercise because instead of coming back with heads bowed and a contrite demeanor via the back door that’s allegedly propped open for them, Harry and Meghan proudly walked through the front, heads high and showed they can turn raindrops into diamond sparkles. Lol that haters derisively called Meghan “sparkles”. She turned that one around on them. She sparkles and glows.
I do hope she visits the UK frequently for her patronages and more school visits, though. They’ve clearly enjoyed having her and it’s a lot of fun to see her and Harry outshine the Cambridges. I hope Meghan and Harry have had fun with all of this, too.
Charles knows enough about love to want to forever be Camilla’s tampon. He just didn’t love Diana and *knew* he couldn’t say that out loud. Sorry, this Pompus Petulant Petty Prince will never get any “love” from me. Okay…MAYBE if he comes out in full vocal support of H,M&A and denounces the RR, but we all know that isn’t gonna happen. There are too many buried “bodies” out there.
That whole tampon statement has always really bothered me about Charles. It’s just fraught with all sorts of psychological issues about Charles and women for me. I just can’t unhear it whenever I look at him.
She didn’t invite them, just another spin from BP. Harry and Meghan went because they were unveiling a plaque for a dead soldier who served in Afghanistan. BP leaked that the queen invited them and the papz got the pictures to go with the storyline.
Honestly, I like this. It shows me that SOMEONE has realized how bad they bungled the past year, PR-wise. Even if she didn’t invite the Sussexes – the story that she did is meant to make the queen look good. And that tells me that someone realizes the queen has been looking bad. Of course its obnoxious to use the Sussexes for good PR now, when she could have done something a year ago, but its still interesting to me.
This right here is the truth!
Wow, these people.
Did she even invite them? I thought they went to the service because of a dedication to a fallen soldier.
I am still at a loss as to how Petty and Chuck gave in to the tantrums of someone who wants to literally destroy their life’s work. There will be no monarchy once Willileaks becomes Prince of Wales, they have to know that.
Anyways they were there for a fallen soldier but the Queen’s handlers were all too happy to spin it as tho she invited them. I know they’re both ready to be done with all of this.
Right? How anyone can think the BP spin is sth positive is beyond me.
Oh sure, now she’s sucking up to the Commonwealth. Now that she and the other racists pushed through the disaster that was Brexit, they are starting to realize how important the relationship with the Commonwealth will be, especially with regards to trade agreements.
It won’t stop them from treating the people who are from or have roots in the non-white Commonwealth countries like dirt, though. Hopefully this will be the push needed for some of those countries (like my own home country!) to leave.
If true is seems that Harry went to pay his respect (unveiling of a plaque) to a fallen military officer who’s family lived on the grounds at Windsor. It seems that officer’s father or other relative was/is a gardener at Windsor.
Forget Elizabeth!
Thanks for these details.
She didn’t invite them. This the same old BP Pr to try to make her look good.
It wasn’t an invitation.
JMO but I think Charles is advising Harry right now on how to make some money! LOL And while I do think Charles was behind some of the nasty, it spun way past his control. Hopefully, Harry and his dad can maintain a good relationship because emotionally it would be great for them both if they can rise above the politics and be dad and son. Realistically, it will be Charles’ pocketbook keeping them going for a while so there is that angle.
Charles could have defended H&M but chose not to. Full stop.
I agree, but I also know this is a family. Harry has a father and a brother (the last who he obviously has a major rift with). It’s hard to walk away from everyone and not want to keep family connections. If his dad will meet him halfway, I can see Harry wanting that (although I do not see him returning to royal life).
Maybe she did invite them because she know about the plaque unveiling? Also, I wonder if she gave Meghan those emerald (?) earrings? They totally don’t seem like her style. But maybe I am giving Queen Petty more credit than she deserves in this.
The Queen lives in another century pre-internet where she believes the peasants will believe the royal family’s ‘show of unity’ without further question. No one’s really buying her happy family act, but she clearly doesn’t think the people are worth any honesty from their side. She does the same with Andrew. She thinks people should accept it if he claims he’s innocent. We’re just supposed to forget about her precious Andrew’s actions. The world doesn’t work like this anymore. She’s lost grip and no longer understands the modern world, and I think she’s too stubborn to change her ways.
Longtime reader and lover of the site. I really wanted to comment on this story. Thank you Kaiser for providing great insight into the Royal Family that I’ve yet to find anywhere else and thank you for your witty and clever take on things. Willileaks just about took me out!
Welcome Carolinablue I grew up in Carolina, nice to see you here 🙂
Everyone’s always so effing “keen” in this family, but Charles never released any actual words of support for them, did he? It’s nice to have stories that make you sound like a good guy without actually having to do anything a good person would.
Ha, so much THIS! IMO it’s obvious Charles wanted none of Meghan’s glamour and starpower. He simply doesn’t want that kind of competition.
I might be in the minority, but I think Harry will get his military appointments back. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the BRF’s popularity continues to tank in the next 12 months…I don’t think we have seen the end of the FBI’s probe into Andrew, and with the queen’s age, anything could happen in regards to her health. They will need to bring Harry and Meghan back into the fold in some way, and I think the military appointments were something Harry didn’t want to walk away from. The BRF is fully banking on them not being successful in branching out on their own; I think when they realize just how wrong they were they’ll pull out the “look how gracious we are in giving Harry back his military appointments” narrative…
Andrew has lawyered up. There are several articles out today and Lainey has an excellent post on his hiring a super high powered lawyer who is very successful fighting extradition. I think the press are going to give Andrew a few days as the top story over this. Love me some Instant karma.
Nothing will ever convince me that at least half of Sussexit was due to Uncle Andy the Pedophile. Harry & Meghan are the only ones who had the flexibility to remove themselves from a situation where TQ won’t (or can’t) do something impactful.
I hope harry and Charles are still close. I tend to think Charles just didn’t get it. Camilla has suffered horrible abuse and they’ve never commented on it. I think he thought the same tack would work here. But he didn’t realize that while so much of the vitriol towards Camilla was based on her actions during his marriage. Meghan’s was simply because of who she was (or wasn’t) and layered with racism. Taking the same tack wasn’t going to work.but I think he said just keep your head down, be seen working hard, dont respond and it will get better. But it only got worse because Meghan was never going to be accepted by certain elements. I also think he’s outgrown a lot of his jealousy over the decades. And he has always seemed closer to Harry. The courtiers are the ones who are the worst imo. Their whole job is ensuring the continua of the monarchy and they are ruthless. In times past I think the family could separate the personal and professional (ie the queen and Margaret and Harry/William ) of life in The Firm. But Times are different now and people like Harry aren’t willing to put up with it especially when it comes to their wife and son.
Interesting comment, Courtney B. Thoughtful and insightful.