There could be a “horribly awkward” reason why Prince Harry not attending King Charles's birthday celebrations might end up being for the best, according to a royal expert.
King Charles might’ve already marked his birthday publicly with Trooping the Colour this summer but this was just an official birthday celebration. His actual 75th birthday on 14th November will likely be marked privately with his nearest and dearest, however ahead of this it was alleged Prince Harry had “rejected” an invitation to be there. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s spokesperson later countered these claims to MailOnline, instead stating that there had been “no contact” at that time “regarding an invitation to His Majesty’s upcoming birthday”.
Now it’s been suggested by the BBC’s former royal correspondent Jennie Bond that Prince Harry not attending anything for King Charles’s birthday might save him from a “horribly awkward” moment.
Opening up to OK!, she claimed that the Duke of Sussex’s presence might “inevitably” affect the mood at the birthday celebrations.
"I hope Harry was invited. But…imagine how horribly awkward his presence would make the whole evening,” Jennie declared, before comparing the harmonious family “unit” in the UK with the Sussexes on the other side of the pond.
She said, “What we have now is a pretty stable, happy family unit in the King and Queen, William and Catherine, the Edinburghs and the Princess Royal and their families. On the other side of the Atlantic we have the estranged and disgruntled outsiders, Harry and Meghan.”
In Jennie’s opinion, if the Duke and Duchess of Sussex “or just Harry, rocked up at Clarence House it would inevitably put a real dampener on the celebration.”
She believes that the “air is still heavy with recrimination and hurt on both sides” and that this “needs to be sorted” before they can “genuinely unite in celebration”.
Following the reports and Sussex response regarding whether or not Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan had received an invite to King Charles’s 75th birthday, the couple aren’t currently expected to make the trip over from their Santa Barbara home. However, it’s possible that they could reach out privately to send birthday wishes to His Majesty.
Earlier this year ahead of the release of his memoir, Spare, Prince Harry told ITV’s Tom Bradby that he “would like to have [his] brother back” and “would like to get [his] father back” in his life. He declared that the “ball is in their court” and that there was a “lot to be discussed”, though sadly he, Prince William and King Charles have only reunited once publicly since then - at the King’s coronation in May.
The claims made in Spare, particularly regarding King Charles and Prince William, haven't dispelled the ongoing rumours and speculation of a “rift” between them and Prince Harry. And whilst Jennie has revealed the “horribly awkward” reason Prince Harry not coming over for his father’s birthday might work out, it’s not clear when he will next be in the UK.
It’s possible that he and Meghan might join the Royal Family at Sandringham for Christmas, but since they haven’t done so for the last four years this might be unlikely. Meanwhile, exactly how King Charles will be spending his 75th birthday isn’t known but the Royal Family’s social media accounts shared a special throwback video of pictures from throughout his life as a special tribute.
