After the shockingly intimate revelations in Prince Harry’s memoir, Spare, the public expected the royal family to take some distance from the ex-royal and his wife—more distance, that is, than what’s already afforded by their relocation to Montecito, California. But a new report suggests that Harry and Meghan Markle haven’t been excised from royal circles just yet, and in fact have been invited to the royal event of the century: King Charles’s coronation.
Friends of the royal family have revealed to the Daily Mail it’s expected “that both Harry and Meghan will definitely come,” after weeks of speculation that the Sussex couple had not yet been invited to this milestone event.
“They fully expect that,” the friend told the British tabloid of an appearance from Harry and Meghan, adding that they should not expect to be airing old grievances during their trip. “They should realize that there is only one subject that many members of the Royal Family will be willing to discuss. . .and that’s the weather.”
While the royal family may “expect” the Sussex duo’s presence for the coronation, it remains to be seen whether Harry and Meghan will take them up on their reported invitation, particularly since there’s a major conflict with the scheduled date. The coronation is set to take place on May 6, which royal fans will recognize as the fourth birthday of young Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, Harry and Meghan’s son.
“From what I know of Harry and Meghan, they will both want to spend some time with their son on his birthday,” another source told the Daily Mail—which means that Harry and Meghan could be skipping the ceremony for reasons apart from their lingering feud.
As with every royal visit since Harry and Meghan’s official exodus as senior royals in 2020, the invitation will likely come with stipulations about exactly how visible the Sussexes should be during the event, and they’re likely to be excluded from appearing on the balcony of Buckingham Palace along with other senior royals like Prince William, Kate Middleton, King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla. But an invitation would nonetheless be a meaningful signal that the royals don’t want to cut Harry and Meghan off completely, displeased though they may be with the couple’s candor in their Netflix series and Harry’s book.
Earlier this year, Harry had told ITV‘s Tom Bradby that “the ball is in their court” regarding his attendance at the coronation, and that “the door is always open,” if his family was “willing to sit down and talk about” their unresolved conflicts.
As such, the standoff between Harry and his family across the pond may not come down to whether or not the invitation is extended, but whether Harry and Meghan are willing to accept the kind of invitation the royals likely have in mind: for the Sussexes to come, smile politely, and keep any complaints to themselves.
