On Juneteenth, the Mail’s Eden Confidential column revealed something interesting about Prince Harry and Meghan’s July visit to the UK. Apparently, Harry’s uncle Charles, the Earl Spencer, will close down Althorp for two days next month. A source told the Mail: “This is highly unusual. Once the house is open to visitors, it’s not usually closed.” Charles Spencer only allows visitors into the estate in July and August too. The last time (from what we can tell) that Harry visited his mother’s grave at Althorp was probably in 2022, and Harry wrote about it in Spare. It is possible that he visited Althorp in 2023, 2024 or 2025 and no one had any idea because the Windsors always make Harry’s UK visits all about their own royal psychodrama. Anyway, now People Magazine is basically confirming that Harry is probably taking his kids to Althorp next month:
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are expected to bring their family to the U.K. for the first time in four years, and new details offer clues about where they may stay.
Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, are believed to be accompanying their parents to the U.K. in July. Harry’s trip has long been in the works, as he is set to attend events marking the one-year countdown to the 2027 Invictus Games in Birmingham, which will take place July 10–17, 2027.
The timing has drawn attention to Althorp House, Princess Diana’s ancestral estate in West Northamptonshire, which is about an hour from Birmingham. The estate’s website notes that it will be closed to visitors next month on July 10 and 11, prompting speculation that Harry and his family could visit — or even stay at — the Spencer family home during their trip.
PEOPLE has reached out to a spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for comment.
Althorp is also where Princess Diana is buried, and with the family’s visit falling shortly after the late Princess of Wales’s July 1 birthday, it would be a significant visit for Harry, 41, Meghan, 44, and their children. (Lilibet’s middle name is Diana, after her late grandmother.)
Harry has previously stayed at Althorp, which is owned by his uncle, Charles Spencer, the 9th Earl Spencer, during visits to the U.K., including in August 2024 when he returned for the funeral of Lord Robert Fellowes.
PEOPLE understands that King Charles, 77, has offered his younger son and his family accommodation on a royal estate during their potential U.K. visit. So far, however, no response has been received to the offer. The King has made similar offers before. On previous visits, Harry was offered accommodation at Buckingham Palace, which he declined.
Even if Harry and his family were to stay on a royal estate, no additional security arrangements have been offered. Decisions about protective security are made by the Home Office, not the King. After the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back from their royal roles in 2020, they lost their taxpayer-funded police protection — a decision Harry has repeatedly challenged in court, citing safety concerns for his family in the U.K.
Many of you put this together last week, so I’m late to the party. I agree with the theory that King Charles only offered “royal accommodation” after he learned that the Earl Spencer would be rolling out the red carpet for the Sussexes. The king despises his former Spencer in-laws and nothing motivates the Windsors more than the Spencers being a million times more gracious, welcoming and accepting. Incidentally, I’ve long believed that Charles Spencer has visited the Sussexes multiple times since they moved to California. Charles Spencer has indicated on his social media that he’s visited California or “the States” multiple times. There’s also a theory that Harry attended his uncle’s most recent wedding in Arizona last month too. Anyway, I’m glad that the Sussexes will spend some time at Althorp.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images.
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- Earl Spencer is greeted by his nephews the Duke of Cambridge (right) and Duke of Sussex (left) as he arrives for unveiling of a statue they commissioned of their mother Diana, Princess of Wales, in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace, London, on what would have been her 60th birthday. Picture date: Thursday July 1, 2021. .,Image: 619024740, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- FILE PHOTOS: As the 20th Anniversary of the death of Princess Diana approaches (31st August 2017), Cover Images take a look at these re-digitized images from the archives of celebrated British Photographer, Mauro Carraro. Approximate date of images is shown in caption below. August 1987 Princess Diana with Prince Harry on holiday with teh Spanish Royal family in Majorca,Image: 347670758, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: ***Not Available for Subscription Clients***Editorial Use Only. No stock, books, advertising or merchandising without photographer's permission***, Model Release: no
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- WINDSOR, ENGLAND – MAY 19: Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer and Karen Spencer arrive at the wedding of Prince Harry to Ms Meghan Markle at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018 in Windsor, England.,Image: 515240626, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR SEVEN DAYS – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Avalon.red – sales@avalon.red London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles: +1 (310) 822 0419 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251 Madrid: +34 91 533 4289, Model Release: no, Credit line: – / Avalon
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- Earl Spencer at the unveiling of a statue of his sister, Diana, Princess of Wales, in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace, London, on what would have been her 60th birthday. Picture date: Thursday July 1, 2021. .,Image: 619024591, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- The Duke of Sussex during the unveiling of a statue commissioned of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales, in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace, London, on what would have been her 60th birthday. Picture date: Thursday July 1, 2021.,Image: 619146822, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- The Duke of Sussex with his uncle Earl Spencer, at the unveiling of a statue of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales, in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace, London, on what would have been her 60th birthday.,Image: 619146847, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Dominic Lipinski / Avalon
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- Palma de Mallorca, SPAIN – Prince William furious after the controversial interview with his mother Lady Diana in 1995. **SHOT ON 08/08/1987** Pictured: Princess Diana BACKGRID USA 25 MAY 2021 BYLINE MUST READ: Best Image / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- USA Rights Only – London, UK -20190404- Celebrities attend the global premiere of Netflix’s Our Planet, held at the Natural History Museum. -PICTURED: Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Sir David Attenborough, Charles, Prince of Wales, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex -PHOTO by: Anwar Hussein/PA Images/INSTARimages.com -42159452.jpg This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact Instar Images LLC for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207 This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. Instar Images LLC reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded Featuring: Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Sir David Attenborough, Charles, Prince of Wales, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex Where: London, England, United Kingdom When: 04 Apr 2019 Credit: Anwar Hussein/PA Images/INSTARimages.com **USA Rights Only**
So will PW vow to add Althorp on his Boycott List?
*TO his Boycott List
It’s probably on the list for quite a time… The Spencers, showing up for Harry as they did and do, fell from Willnots grace years before.
Only if he has no plans to ever visit his mother’s grave again.
I honestly don’t think he has visited, or we would have heard him crowing about it via the rota. Have we ever seen him with any of the Spencers outside of weddings or christenings?
I’m not sure if William even wants to visit his mother’s grave. After hearing him say that his mother was paranoid, it occurred to me that he might have been programmed to view her as once being a danger to the monarchy.
Yes he has, with the two older kids. It was to commemorate the anniversary of Diana’s death. Harry and Meghan were dating, months away from being engaged. Meghan flew over to be with Harry for the private event, William banned Meghan from the private event by the gravesite. It was okay to have all the W&K nannies there but not Meghan.
People Magazine got this story from several Sussex Squad accounts AND Celebitchy, after supporters and commenters drew the logical conclusion that Althorp was being closed for a reason – and positing the theory that this was the reason it was being reported that king C had suddenly offered them a royal residence, as though that were some sort of unattainable or sought-after perk.
We’re at the point where “journalists” and so-called royal experts simply sift through supporter accounts and mine their comments and theories for storylines, which they repurpose as their own personal exclusives.
It’s “Duchess Meghan”, People Mag. You used everyone else’s titles ,so be consistent.
(they all do that on purpose)
If this turns out to be true, this will be lovely for the Sussexes. I imagine Harry will have so many stories about his mum to tell his kids.
And it makes total sense that a Spencer invitation would spur Charles to up his game. He never does the right thing until he has no other option (to borrow what may be an apocryphal quote from Churchill).
I hope they have an amazing visit and Meghan continues to use her star power to support her and Harry’s endeavors and she manages to avoid being photographed with the Windsors ever again.
They want to pretend everything is all white; go for it. It really seems to be working out for them.
(I posted this on another story and realized it fits better here)
Wouldn’t it be something if everyone came, and while the parents were busy with Invictus stuff, the kids romped through the gardens at Althorp with Uncle Charlie? Now I’m dreaming of the BM flipping out if Uncle Charlie posts to his SM a picture of him and his great niece and nephew (from behind of course).
Not that I want to see the kids. They’re not my kids and that’s creepy, honestly. I just want the BM to search for the fainting couch and beg for the smelling salts while choking themselves on their pearls.
From your lips to god’s ears!! This would be amazing!! I don’t know if Meghan and Harry would allow photos to be shared like this but it would be awesome!
I hope the Sussexes only visit the Spencers and leave the entire BRF on read. They’ll be a lot safer.
And the media and courtier crashout will be hilarious.
I remember the crashout when the Spencers showed up to the Invictus church service in London, thereby proving Harry is not ostracized. They are already doing the same thing without confirmation, so that’s all you need to know about the fragility of these people.
I love how the Spencer family supports Harry, Meghan and his family. They are one of the few families in the UK who can do so — more aristocratic, same society ties (maybe even stronger?) — and probably know a few secrets. They judiciously poke the Royal family (Harry visiting them, Meghan and the Spencer tiara, etc.) in a DGAF and FAFO way. (And while I assume they support William, even he knows not to mess with them.)
BTW: If you saw Charles Spencer’s eulogy for Diana, you know he was never ever going to make up with Charles, Elizabeth, Philip, courtiers, etc.
I was about to post that if you saw him expertly and cleanly drag them for filth at Diana’s funeral, he doesn’t mess with them. Why would he? The Spencer’s are more British than the German Windsors and they rate higher on the aristocracy scale than the Windsors ( more snooty, high born family members). Charles Spencer is Hillary Clinton cackling all day when it comes to Chuckles. He said he’d look out for them and he looked out for the one who needed it.
Pissing of King Charles probably ranks in his top 5 hobbies/favorite things to do
People mag reached out to the Sussexes for comment but did they hear back? Cuz they didn’t say. Did we know before this that Harry stayed at Althorpe when he went to Robert Fellowes funeral? Anyways, yeah, someone said last week that it’s like the Spencer tiara all over again.
It will be a simple thing for Diana’s sisters to visit Althorp as well while the Sussexes are there. Archie and Lili need never appear in public. They will have lots of Spencer relatives and their staff to entertain and care for them!!
Althorp is also much nearer to Birmingham than any of the royal residences. Highgrove wouldn’t be bad, but Althorp is nearer.
As if there isn’t already enough madness being spewed–and they’ve yet to even leave Montecito, H&M would be crazy to stay at any of the royal residences—the walls have ears, so who knows what fiction would be generated by a two-day stay!
Agreed, I don’t trust the Windsors as far as I can throw Camilla. They’re the enemy within the walls.
People Magazine asking Harry and Meghan’s team to confirm if they will be staying at Althorp is just crazy and mischief making. As if they’re going to the press were they will be staying in the UK.
Harry’s Uncle Charles has really stepped up for the Sussex family. Yes, he married too many rich women for money to keep up Althorp, but that is not my concern. I sure do hope the whole Sussex clan does go to Althorp and are perfectly protected from derangers (including the royal family) who would harm them. Uncle Charles truly knows the score as Princess Diana’s brother. He knows perfectly well the danger the royals and their minions present. I was meh about him before, but now I see him as a knight in shining armor. You go, the Better Charles.
If I were the Sussexes, I would 100% rather enjoy the company of Charles Spencer and his new wife, Dr. Cat Jarman, than any of the Windsor clan. Imagine being able to nose around the beautiful Althorp estate, hang out with Charles and Cat and enjoy going down the rabbit hole with them on myriad subjects, LOL! Also not having the men in grey spying on their every move and leaking info to the media. If I were Harry I would never agree to stay in any of the royal homes. You can’t trust those people as far as you can throw them.
Has charles written off the Sussex’s or does he want them to bend the knee first? On just a human level i hope he is simply “waiting harry out” and hasnt abandoned his grandkids. This is sad. Harry needed to leave but I hope charles loves him and his grandkids. Flip side i hope he loves william and his kids. Its terrible that its even a question.