Was the King really too busy to meet Harry?
The Duke was Home Alone in London, this week
Prince Harry has had a busy week, flying to London to attend the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games, then heading to Nigeria, with Meghan. But his family was even busier, if reports are to be believed, meaning they couldn’t make time to meet him, even though he was only in the country for three days.
The Sussex camp put out a statement saying the King’s commitments meant he couldn’t see his son, but his mother’s family turned out for him. At the service at St Paul’s Cathedral on Wednesday, where he was greeted by cheering crowds, his uncle Earl Spencer and aunt Lady Jane Fellowes were in attendance, giving him a hug. The Sun ran a front page saying, “Diana’s Family Backs Harry.”
“Now that Harry has left the Royal Family, the Spencers have laid claim to him again,” royal biographer Ingrid Seward told The Telegraph. To be fair, he didn’t throw them under a bus in Spare, so it’s not surprising relations are warmer. However, we do think it a little poor that he couldn’t get even five minutes with his dad, who was, after all, only a few miles away. Kerry wrote an opinion piece for The Sunday Telegraph. Here’s an extract:
It was Home Alone Harry, this week, but unlike Kevin’s, the prince’s family was actually in the same city, they just couldn’t find the time to see him. Ouch.
Jetting into London from California for three days, The Duke of Sussex attended a special service for the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games at St Paul’s Cathedral, on Wednesday. But despite his dad hosting a garden party at Buckingham Palace the same day, apparently the King’s schedule was so crammed, he just couldn’t squeeze his son in.
Bit mean… it’s five kilometres between the two landmarks – Harry could have done it in 25 minutes at a light jog and still been in time for a Pimm’s and a vol-au-vent. But it was “computer says no” from Buckingham Palace, according to the Sussex team.
“In response to the many inquiries and continued speculation on whether or not the Duke will meet with his father while in the UK this week, it, unfortunately, will not be possible due to His Majesty’s full programme,” they said in a statement. “The Duke of course is understanding of his father’s diary of commitments and various other priorities and hopes to see him soon.”
Access to the monarch has always been difficult – when Charles was young he remarked he “virtually had to make an appointment” to see his mother, but I always wondered what stopped them catching up for a chat over cocoa, in their jim-jams, of an evening. Why does it have to be so formal? I get that if your dad is the King, you can’t just pop for a pub lunch, but even a monarch must surely have five minutes to spare for his Spare, if he wants. Maybe that’s the key, he doesn’t want, enough.
Understandably, Charles is probably petrified Harry will be jotting down everything he says, in order to print it in Spare: The Sequel, or share it on Harry & Meghan Moan Some More on Netflix. Or perhaps, more pertinently, Camilla finds it hard to be benevolent, after Harry assassinated his step-mother in his best-seller, calling her, “dangerous” and accusing her of “playing the long game” and leaking stories.
So, sadly, Harry found himself Home Alone, having flown 8,800 kilometres to discover his family couldn’t be bothered to go from their couch to 5k, to say hello.
Maybe next time.
We salute you, Anne
Talking of busy royals, there are none busier than Princess Anne. True to form, she’s already undertaken a third of all royal duties this year, after shouldering more events, due to the recuperation of the King and Catherine, Princess of Wales.
The Princess Royal completed 172 engagements between January and April this year, which is a third of the total of the whole family. She’s upped her already busy schedule to help out her brother, including attending the funeral of King Constantine of Greece in Athens, in January, straight after a royal tour of Sri Lanka and going to the funeral of President Hage Geingob in Namibia in February.
She’s just returned from a tour of Canada and The Telegraph’s royal editor, Hannah Furness this week penned a diary of what it’s like joining the inexhaustible princess on the road. “You never quite know what she’s going to say yes to, but it’s never an outright no,” one of her team said. “She’s probably been to more industrial estates than any other royal.” We salute you, Anne!
William’s having a super Scilly time
From investitures at Windsor Castle, playing volleyball in Cornwall to picking pasties on a day trip to the Isles of Scilly, William was also having a busy week.
On Wednesday, he conferred an MBE to Claire van Straubenzee, the mother of one of his best friends, Thomas, whose younger brother, Henry, was killed in a car crash at the age of 18 in 2002. Claire set up the Henry van Straubenzee Memorial Fund, of which William and Harry were joint patrons. The van Straubenzees are described as being like a second family to the princes.
The following day William was in Cornwall. As the Duke of Cornwall, he visited the site of his housing project tackling homelessness, and later joined in a game of volleyball on Fistral beach in Newquay. He finished the week on Friday on the Scilly Isles. Looking cool in shades and taking a boat from Tresco to St Mary’s, he met staff at a community hospital, bought five Cornish pasties for the family and had fun answering schoolchildren’s questions. (FYI: his favourite colour is blue.)
Replying to a well-wisher asking after Catherine, he said: “She’s doing well. The children are very jealous that I’m here.”
Take a picture-perfect day out
We can’t wait to see the new exhibition, Royal Portraits: A Century of Photography, opening this Friday at Buckingham Palace’s King’s Gallery. With more than 150 images from the 1920s onwards, highlights include glorious pics of Princess Margaret and The Queen Mother by royal favourite Cecil Beaton to works by Rankin and Annie Leibovitz and many others. Snap up tickets here.
On this day in royal history
It’s only six days since we were celebrating the one-year anniversary of Charles and Camilla’s Coronation, yet on May 12th, 1937, the King’s grandfather George VI and beloved grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, were crowned at Westminster Abbey. Maria was given this fantastic souvenir book, published by The Daily Express in 1937 to mark the event. It’s a fascinating snapshot into a bygone age. Just look at all the periscopes held aloft in Trafalgar Square in the bottom left-hand pic!
And… Happy 43rd Birthday, Zara!
Wishing the brilliant Mrs Tindall a lovely celebration this Wednesday.
I guess that not meeting Prince Harry was part self preservation on the King and Queen's part. When a family member has been bad mouthing you and airing all his dirty linen in public then coming back all needy and demanding when your health is low, then dealing with that stress is something extra that just isn't needed. It would have been a huge effort for the King to show up and meet those thousands of the public at the Garden Party. We have no idea of the strain and effort that this must have taken on him. I am sure that there was nothing left in the tank for Harry's dramas. The King is giving his strength and energy to his people. Had Prince Harry done the decent thing by his family and just quietly lived in Montecito doing good works, then perhaps he would have been welcomed back to help with the load during the King and Catherine's illness, but he has burnt his bridges and keeps on lighting little fires. Maybe he was asked to bring the children. No Grandkids, no meeting!