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After heading to the UK for Queen Elizabeth’s platinum jubilee, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are expected to reunite with the royal family on Friday.
The couple, who were not on the balcony during Trooping The Color on Thursday, will attend the Thanksgiving service at St. Paul’s Cathedral on Friday morning for the ongoing celebrations of Queen Elizabeth’s platinum jubilee in honor of their 70 years on the throne.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex returned to the UK this week in honor of the monarch and were seen celebrating with members of the royal family at the Trooping the Color parade. They were not allowed on the balcony, which was designated for high-level royal members.
Despite not appearing on the balcony, both Harry and Meghan were caught on camera silencing a few younger members of the royal family at a time when it has gone viral.
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A royal expert told Fox News Digital that “it must have been painful for Harry and Meghan to be excluded, along with their children Archie and Lili, from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.”
The ancient royals could appear in St. Paul’s Cathedral on Friday for the platinum jubilee. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex ride a carriage through the mall during Trooping The Color in 2019. (Samir Hussein)
“But in the end, it could have been the best,” said Christopher Andersen, a royal biographer and best-selling author of the New York Times’s “Brothers and Wives: Inside the Private Lives of William, Kate, Harry, and Meghan.”
“Right now, Harry and Meghan are hugely unpopular in the UK. In a recent poll, a staggering 87% of respondents said they would actually boo Harry and Meghan if they showed up on the balcony of the palace next to the rest of the UK. royal family “.
However, he noted that Prince Harry and his brother, Prince William, “are at least doing their best to look good” for the “good of their grandmother.”
According to another royal expert, during Trooping The Color, people were looking for former members of the royal family, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, as they have been the subject of debate since they retired from their role two years ago. , by Neil Sean. .
All eyes will be on Sussex, William and Kate Middleton, Prince Charles, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall and other members of the royal family as they appear in the cathedral on Friday.
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The cathedral was the site of the Thanksgiving services for the silver, gold and diamond jubilees. The Great Paul, the bell of the largest church in the country, which was made in 1882 and restored in 2021, will ring for service. The bell has rung eight times, but this is the first royal occasion for which it will be rung.
Services begin at 11:30 a.m. with Bible readings, prayers, and hymns, and a new hymn by Judith Weir, the Queen’s Master of Music, which includes words from the third chapter of the Book of Proverbs.
Prince Charles and Camilla (Getty Images)
The royal attendees are then expected to attend a reception at the Guildhall hosted by the Lord Mayor from 12:25 pm
Despite the Queen’s attendance at the 96th anniversary Trooping the Color event on Thursday, the palace issued a statement saying Elizabeth would not attend Friday church service.
“The queen really enjoyed the birthday parade and today’s parade, but she did experience some discomfort,” the statement said.
“Given the trip and the activity required to participate in tomorrow’s national Thanksgiving service at St. Paul’s Cathedral, His Majesty has reluctantly concluded that he will not attend.
The Queen is looking forward to taking part in tonight’s lighthouse lighting event at Windsor Castle and would like to thank all those who have made such a memorable occasion today. “
Queen Elizabeth II smiles on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during Trooping the Color with (LR) Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall; Prince Charles, Prince of Wales; Prince Louis of Cambridge; Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge; and Prince Charlotte of Cambridge on June 2, 2022 in London. (Chris Jackson / Getty Images)
Last month, the palace shared that the Queen’s attendance at events over the platinum jubilee weekend would likely be confirmed “on the same day” and Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton they were selected to direct the Jubilee celebrations as the highest members of the royal family.
Harry and Meghan moved away from front-line royal duties and moved to California in 2020, nearly two years after marrying Windsor Castle amid a series of family allegations.
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Shortly before his wedding, his father Thomas suffered a heart attack after it was revealed that he had assembled and sold photos of himself to relieve family pressures.
During an interview with Oprah Winfrey on “CBS This Morning” in March 2021, Meghan admitted that her father was persecuted by the British press and received gifts in exchange for comments and stories about her family.
When Winfrey asked Meghan if she felt betrayed by her father for talking to the tabloids, especially just before her wedding to Prince Harry – he replied: “If we are going to use the word betrayal, it is because when I asked him, when the communications team told us that the story was coming out, we called my father and I asked him, and he said: ” No. , absolutely not. ‘”
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during Trooping The Color on June 2, 2022, in London. (Chris Jackson)
Meghan said she tried to reason with him. “I just need you to tell me. If you’re telling me the truth, we can help. And he wasn’t able to do it … that has had a real resonance for me as a mother.
“I look at Archie and I can’t imagine doing anything to hurt my son. I can’t reconcile that,” Meghan added about her 3-year-old son. Since then, she has given birth to her daughter Lilibet on June 4.
“Everyone has responsibilities. Look, [the tabloids] my mother hunted. You’ve never heard him say a word. He has been silent for four years watching me go through this, “Meghan added.
Meanwhile, Prince Andrew was also expected to attend on Friday, but palace officials revealed he tested positive for COVID-19.
“After a routine test, the Duke has tested positive for COVID and will no longer be attending tomorrow’s service,” a statement said on Thursday.
Andrew left the main royal responsibilities in 2019 and was stripped of his military titles and sponsorships in January following the revelation of his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Virginia Giuffre accused the British royal of sexually abusing her when she was 17 and traveling with Epstein in 2001.
Prince Andrew, pictured in 2021, was expected to attend the Thanksgiving service at St. Andrew’s Cathedral. Paul, however, withdrew after being diagnosed with COVID-19. (Steve Parsons / Pool)
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Giuffre, 38, reached an agreement with Andrew after a judge rejected the prince’s offer to obtain early dismissal of the lawsuit earlier this year. Despite the agreement, Prince Andrew has never admitted to sexually assaulting Giuffre and has denied the allegations.
While still on the line of succession to the throne, he is ninth behind the sons of Harry and Meghan. And he can’t use “His Royal Highness” in any way.
The 62-year-old Duke of York is expected to attend League day next door the Queen and other senior members of the British royal family. It will also appear in the Court Circular the next day, The UK Times reported.
The ceremony, which is recognized as one of the “highlights” of the royal family’s summer schedule, will be held at Windsor Castle on June 13 for the first time in three years. The prince will attend privately as a royal knight.
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The Queen took part in a double lighting of The Principal Beacon at Windsor Castle, while her grandson, Prince William, watched alongside thousands of partygoers at Buckingham Palace on Thursday evening in London.
Queen Elizabeth II touches the Commonwealth Nations Balloon to start lighting the main lighthouse outside Buckingham Palace in London at Windsor Castle in Windsor, west London, on 2 June of 2022, as part of the platinum jubilee celebrations. (Adrian Dennis)
He played the Commonwealth Nations Balloon to begin the lighting ceremony, with lighthouse contest master Bruno Peek nearby. Peek has overseen the Platinum Jubilee Tags Project from its beginnings.
William was received by The Queen’s Green Canopy President Sir Nicholas Bacon and Tree Designer Thomas Heatherwick.
The 70-foot structure was designed to honor the Queen’s decades of service and stands outside Buckingham Palace.
More than 2,800 beacons were lit in the palace and across the UK, including the four highest peaks, as well as the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and the British Overseas Territories.
Ashley Bittay of Fox News Digital contributed to this report