UK's Queen has invited Prince Harry and Meghan for platinum jubilee celebrations: Report

UK’s Queen Elizabeth II has invited Prince Harry and Meghan to the celebrations of the platinum jubilee of her time on the throne scheduled for next summer. The Daily Mail reported on Sunday that Duke and Duchess of Sussex who are living in the United States after stepping down as senior working royals plan to attend the 70th anniversary of the UK monarch which also including ‘Trooping the Colour’, the ceremony that marks Queen’s official birthday parade. However, questions still remain if Prince Harry and Meghan will appear on the Palace balcony beside Queen and other senior royal family members for the RAF flypast.

The jubilee celebrations in the past have involved two balcony appearances. However, next summer, the royal aids might reportedly seek to limit the numbers to working royals only. This would imply the absence of Prince Harry and Meghan from the balcony. The media publication even quoted a source familiar with the plans of celebrations saying, “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been invited and I'm sure the Queen is very much looking forward to seeing them there.”

“The balcony moment will be decided much nearer the time but there's a limit to how many family members should be on it, and I would have thought that working Royals who contribute to the family would be higher on the list than the Sussexes,” the source told the media publication. 

Queen’s platinum jubilee celebrations

Platinum Jubilee celebrations to mark the completion of 70 years of Queen’s reign who was crowned on June 2, 1953, in Westminister Abbey, will take place next year during an extended bank holiday from June 2, 2022, to June 5. As per the traditions, the royal family members travel in a horse-drawn carriage for trooping the Colour before appearing on the Buckingham Palace balcony for a Red Arrows flypast. Reportedly, in a jubilee, the first balcony appearance is accompanied by a second one to mark the finale of the celebrations. 

Notably, for the golden jubilee of Queen’s 50 years on the throne in 2002, the balcony ‘crammed.’ The ceremony next year will also be the first such event without UK’s longest-serving consort, Prince Philip on the balcony who has been beside the Queen throughout her monarchy until April 9, this year.

IMAGE: AP