King Charles III is reportedly “relieved” by his son’s decision to attend the coronation but is “very disappointed” Meghan Markle nor the couple’s two children will fly over.
Buckingham Palace confirmed Prince Harry will make the trip to London’s Westminster Abbey for the coronation on May 6, while his actress wife will remain in California with the couple’s two children as Archie’s fourth birthday is on the same day.
The bombshell move comes after weeks of speculation over whether the pair would attend as they had well and truly missed the RSVP deadline of April 3.
According to The Sun, King Charles is “happy” that Harry is making the effort to attend the coronation as he wanted his “darling boy” there.
However, he feels “some disappointment” about not seeing Meghan or two of his grandchildren, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
“It is sad, he (King) is very disappointed that he won’t see Meghan or his grandchildren but understands the situation,” a source told the outlet.
Daily Mirror Royal Editor Russell Myers, who has been keeping tabs on the royal family, also confirmed the King was glad to have Harry there.
“I’m told he is relieved,” he said to Today on Thursday.
“He’s still got a lot of love for Harry, it’s his son at the end of the day regardless of all these awful deeds he’s been doing from across the Atlantic.”
However he said Prince William has “no time” for his brother at the moment amid the fallout from the couple’s multi-million-dollar media projects.
“I think there is a real concern that anything they say to Harry will be used against them,” Mr Myers added.
“We’ve seen the Netflix series, we’ve seen the explosive book come out and I don’t think we’re finished yet.”
Also speaking to Sky News Australia’s Peter Stefanovic earlier on Thursday morning, Mr Myers said it was a “convenient get out” for Meghan to use her son’s birthday as an excuse to not attend the coronation.
But he said Meghan’s decision to avoid the service was not unexpected given the couple’s fractured relationship with the royals which was not far from “rock bottom”.
Despite the King feeling relieved by Harry’s decision, his trip to London is expected to be “very quick and brief”.
“I wouldn’t expect him front and centre… I imagine he would want to come in and out with as little fuss as possible, because all eyes will be on him,” Mr Myers added.
The Sussexes had been contacted by email more than a month ago, but controversially delayed their decision to RSVP.
The coronation will be the first time the Duke has been seen with the royal family since the release of his bombshell memoir Spare earlier this year.
The book unleashed a series of allegations against the institution, just months after the pair had released a Netflix docuseries which also targeted the monarchy.
It will also be the first time Harry and William have been seen together amid the Duke’s damning claims of their falling out.
With just 23 days left until the big day, royal aides are reportedly working around the clock to ensure the ceremony runs as smoothly as possible.
However, major issues are plaguing the service including rehearsals running over time and seating plans not being arranged.
News Source: www.skynews.com.au
