Meghan Markle has been warned she “won’t get the warmest reaction” if she opts to join husband Prince Harry at a service in London in May to mark the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are on the guest list for the event, at St Paul’s Cathedral at 5pm on May 8 – and Harry is due to speak.
However, according to the schedule, which Express.co.uk has seen, Meghan will not necessarily be joining him, with her name pencilled in as “to be confirmed”.
One insider told Express.co.uk that Meghan was understood to be reticent, having had a tense relationship with the British-based royals since the couple’s controversial decision to relocate to the United States in 2020.
And, speaking to Express.co.uk yesterday, royal commentator and journalist Jonathan Sacerdoti said he would not be surprised if Meghan decided to skip the occasion – even though the Games have been consistently championed by her husband.
Mr Sacerdoti, a regular panellist on BBC World’s Dateline London, said: “I can’t say whether she will come back in May.
“So far she’s avoided he country, perhaps sensibly.
“I don’t think she’ll get the warmest welcome here if she does.”
Tensions have simmered ever since the Sussexes relocated, not least as a result of Meghan’s allegation during an interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021 that an unnamed royal speculated about the skin tone of her then-unborn son Archie.
Their subsequent Netflix documentary, and Spare, Prince Harry’s memoir, made further explosive revelations, including his claim that brother Prince William physically attacked him at one point.
Mr Sacerdoti added: “I think rifts do occur in many families. But I think it’s unusual for estranged family members to pursue a strategy of making money off gossip about the rest of their family.
“That’s because most people don’t have any currency in that direction. I don’t think people will be too interested to hear about gossip from ordinary families.
Nevertheless, in the case of the Sussexes it was something they had apparently identified as being of value to their brand and “presumably in their bank balance as well”, Mr Sacerdoti suggested.
He continued: “It’s still early days, and I think let’s be charitable, and say that maybe they are slowly finding their feet and figuring out how to live their own lives without relying totally on selling family secrets or gossip, even if they’re doing it because they think it comes from a sense of entitlement to have their side of the story heard.
“I think they ought to realise now that it is potentially damaging to the Royal Family and to the monarchy in general.
“And that while they want out of it, that’s their choice, but they shouldn’t necessarily try and bring the whole thing down around them.”
He concluded: “I hope that as time goes on, perhaps they’ll settle into their less relevant, less famous, less interesting roles and come to terms with living in their mansion without all the attention that they might have had if they’d stayed in the Royal Family which after all, they said they didn’t really want to.”
Express.co.uk’s source said: “The dates and details are being kept very hush-hush.
“Both Harry and Meghan are listed as guests and a speech has been scheduled, but there is still a question mark over whether Meghan will make an appearance. Her name has been pencilled in as a TBC (to be confirmed).”
“Both Harry and Meghan are keen for the children to become closer with Harry’s family, but she’s very anxious about returning to England.”
Express.co.uk has contacted the Sussexes via Archewell for comment.
