Queen's balcony snub will hurt 'porcupine' Meghan's 'version of her life', says former butler
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will attend the Queen's Jubilee celebrations along with their two children, three-year-old Archie and Lilibet, who is almost one year old. It will mark their first official visit back to the UK since they stepped back from royal duties in March 2020 and settled in California.
Though the Duchess and Duke of Sussex said they were "excited and honored" to attend the event, the couple will not stand on the Buckingham Palace balcony with the royal family during the Trooping the Colour parade. A spokesperson for the Buckingham Palace announced that "after careful consideration" the Queen has decided the balcony appearance will be limited to herself and "those members of the Royal Family who are currently undertaking official public duties."
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From a Sussex spokesperson: "Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are excited and honoured to attend The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations this June with their children."
— Omid Scobie (@scobie) May 6, 2022
Joining the monarch at Buckingham Palace for the RAF flypast on June 2 will be Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall; the Cambridges and children; the Wessexes and children; Princess Anne and Sir Timothy Laurence; the Gloucesters, Duke of Kent and Princess Alexandra.
— Omid Scobie (@scobie) May 6, 2022
Princess Diana's former butler, Paul Burrell, feels that Markle will be disappointed by the missed opportunity because of how it would look to the US audience. "I think Meghan's producing, directing, and starring in her own version of her life – her own biopic – which is playing out on the American stage. I think they will care that they're not on the balcony because that is a picture that will relate to their American platform," he explains.
Burrell told OK!, "The picture of them with the Queen is an acceptance that they still belong to the club. But they don't belong to the club anymore. I think everyone will treat Meghan and Harry like handling a porcupine – very prickly. You need to be careful as you might get hurt!" He added, "The world will be watching Meghan and Harry and William and Kate and not focusing on the Queen. They have the potential of stealing the show because we're all fascinated to know how Harry's going to fit back into his family."
"I think Harry's going to look completely out of place and bewildered. I think he's a lost soul. He doesn't have a place or a chair at the table anymore. So I think to come back to this environment will be very difficult. Knowing what will come out in his memoir when it's published, listen, he’s torn," Burrell continued. He added that the rift between Harry and William would never have happened if Diana was alive.
He said, "She'd be heartbroken. It wouldn't have got as bad as this if she was still here. She'd have banged their heads together. She's probably the only person that could have done that." While Harry and Meghan have been snubbed from the royal family's appearance on the balcony, royal biographer Omid Scobie says the couple may be invited onto the balcony later in the weekend, reports Express.
Scobie told the media, "We'll definitely see Harry and Megan at the Thanksgiving service at St Paul's Cathedral." While he confirmed that Meghan and Harry "will not be out" on the balcony during Trooping the Colour, the biographer said they could make a "surprise appearance" on June 5, when the Queen may emerge onto the balcony again with family members.