Prince Harry And Meghan Markle Made An Appearance At Maundy Thursday Service (But Skipped A Visit With Prince William And Duchess Kate)
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were in the UK this week because I guess they found a security team for this trip that could guard their bodies to their expectations upheld by the gold standard of celebrity security. We have already learned that upon their arrival across the pond, they took a visit with Harry’s grandmum Queen Elizabeth, a reunion that was a long time coming, and one that wasn’t completely unexpected, considering Liz’s reported ongoing issues. Harry and Meghan decided to stop and see Harry’s family on the way to the Invictus Games in The Netherlands. But they didn’t just get in some family face time. They did, just not with all of Harry’s family, (as noted above). According to reports, The Sussexes also did a little impromptu royal family volunteer work by replacing The Queen at an annual Easter service celebration.
The Queen has been notably absent from several in-person royal events over the past few months, which kind of makes a person think she’s finally realized that after 95 years, she can toss the baton to someone else. And that’s just what she did for this year’s Maundy Thursday service. Anyone who saw The Queen make it to Prince Philip’s memorial last month might have figured she was back doing appearances and that it was business as usual, but Philip’s memorial service was a one-off, apparently. Maundy Thursday is the day of Easter holy week that celebrates Jesus’ last get-together with the disciples before he found himself on the cross, like the washing of the feet and the Last Supper. I have attended my fair share of Maundy services, and they’re not exactly the most exciting way to spend 40 minutes in church (truly, not a chocolate egg or pastel hat in sight). But still, Harry and Meghan decided that was something they wanted to do. via Deadline:
Her Majesty the Queen has missed the traditional Maundy Thursday service for the first time in 50 years, with the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall standing in for the monarch.
British media reports that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were also present at the ceremony in Windsor, after meeting the Queen – a fortnight before her 96th birthday – for the first time since they stepped down as working members of the royal family and departed the UK in 2020.
Deadline notes that details of Harry and Meghan’s visit were not revealed beforehand, so it was a bit of a surprise that they would show up at the annual Maundy service with Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla. And, as British media reports, the last time Queen Elizabeth skipped a Maundy service was in 1970, but that was because she was on tour in New Zealand. No pictures of Harry and Meghan have been released from the service, and they didn’t pose for pictures outside with Charles and Camilla afterward.
A wonderful morning at the Royal Maundy service at St George’s Chapel, Windsor. 💐 pic.twitter.com/4z1GVh6UJ6
— The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall (@ClarenceHouse) April 14, 2022
Harry and Meghan obviously had better things to do than pose with spring posies on the church steps. But whatever they had to do was clearly more important than swinging by Kensington palace and knocking on Prince William and Duchess Kate’s front door. via Express UK:
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who are living in the US after quitting royal duties, made a surprise visit to see the Queen and Prince Charles at Windsor Castle on Thursday on their way to the Invictus Games in The Hague. But ITV’s royal editor Chris Ship said Harry did not see his brother the Duke of Cambridge while in Britain. Mr Ship told ITV News: “One person he didn’t see while he was in the UK was his brother William.”
That news should shock no one. Because as we already know, Harry and William’s relationship is about as healthy as their uncle’s alleged financial activities. It was reported that one of the last times William and Harry saw each other in person, at their Grandpa’s funeral, they got into it and brought some messiness worthy of a best-selling tell-all biography. Obviously, William’s house wasn’t high up on Harry’s list of sightseeing while in the UK. It’s probably for the best. I’m sure it would only be a matter of time before one of the brothers spotted a pile of rabbit turds in the garden, and loudly announced, “Oh look, the Easter Bunny dropped off your present early.”
And here’s Harry and Meghan arriving at a reception for the start of the Invictus Games today:
Pics: INSTAR