Harry and Meghan holding hands at Queen’s funeral are 'under no obligation to follow royal protocol'
LONDON, ENGLAND: Prince Harry and Meghan appeared to walk hand in hand at Queen Elizabeth II's funeral procession service at Westminster Hall on Wednesday, September 14 but this time the Duke and Duchess of Sussex did not break any royal protocol.
Despite the couple receiving widespread outrage for their PDA on Saturday, September 10 for their walkabout outside Windsor Castle alongside with Prince William and Princess Catherine to lay flowers to honor the Queen. The couple was again seen holding hands but this time body experts claim the couple is under no obligation to follow royal protocol because they are not working members of the royal family.
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Body language expert Inbaal Honigman said, “Harry and Meghan are grieving relatives and are under no obligation to follow royal protocol." Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex quit their royal duties in 2020 and claimed they would work to become financially independent. “Their hands are there to support one another emotionally during this loss,” Honigman told the British newspaper the Daily Express. Prince Harry and Meghan were grief-stricken as they held hands and followed Prince William and Kate out of the cathedral after the Westminster service. Emotional Prince Harry was seen crying during his beloved Queen grandmother's funeral services. In the recent The Cut magazine interview, the Duchess said that she and Harry were "happy" to leave Britain and were "upsetting the dynamic of the hierarchy just by existing" even before they quit as senior royals.
Whilst Honigman further explained as to why Prince William, who is next in line for the throne and is now the new Prince of Wales and his wife, Princess of Wales Kate Middleton, did follow protocol William and Kate were walking ahead of Harry and Meghan as they walked out of the cathedral, as the Queen begins her period of lying in state, the celebrity body expert remarked, “William is there in a public capacity. He may have just lost his grandmother, but his job, as the eldest son of the King, is more important right now, than his grief.” King Charles III on Saturday, September 10 was proclaimed as the century's new monarch after his Queen mother's death. King Charles III did not hold hands with Queen Consort either, the body expert pointed out claiming they are the “working members.” At his confirmation ceremony, King Charles pledged to “follow the inspiring example” of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.