King Charles ‘quickly dismissed’ bold Harry, Meghan idea

Harry and Meghan were being considered for an unexpected cameo during discussions behind closed doors, it’s been revealed.

The Trooping the Colour parade was all about Kate’s big royal comeback – but there was reportedly a brief moment where it may have also featured Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

The Princess of Wales, who has been undergoing cancer treatment, joined Prince William, their three children, King Charles and Queen Camilla, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, Lady Louise Windsor and Princess Anne for the annual official celebration of the sovereign’s birthday.

The royal family during Saturday’s big event. Picture: Henry Nicholls/AFP

According to royal author Tom Quinn, the idea of inviting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to appear alongside them was discussed behind palace doors.

“There was a brief discussion among the senior royals about inviting Harry and Meghan to Trooping the Colour,” he toldThe Mirror.

“But the idea was quickly dismissed because even if the couple accepted the invitation there is a feeling that they cast a dark shadow over everything.”

Harry and Meghan at the 2018 Trooping the Colour. Picture: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Aside from the fact they are not even on speaking terms with William and Kate, Harry and Meghan have also become polarising figures among the general public following their public criticisms of the royal family in recent years.

Harry has only seen his father once this year, during a brief meeting lasting less than an hour following Charles’ cancer diagnosis, while Meghan has not been back to the UK since the late Queen Elizabeth’s funeral in 2022.

His attempt to catch up with the King again last month during his visit to London for Invictus Games events was publicly rejected, with Harry’s team releasing a statement confirming Charles has been too busy to see him.

Claims that the idea of inviting Harry and Meghan to Trooping of Colour was floated comes at the same time as a separate report hinted at just how far the family is from reconciliation.

The Daily Mail reports that a reporter “asked a well-placed source whether Harry could bring his children to see the King at Balmoral” during the royals’ annual UK summer break, and was met with a “resounding sort”.

The publication added that attempts to repair the relationship had been “complicated” by Harry’s “repeated attacks on his father and family and his dogged insistence in the UK courts that he isn’t safe bringing his family to the UK.”

The King and Queen on Buckingham Palace balcony. Picture: Chris Jackson/Getty Images

Harry’s most damaging allegations, spread across his 2021 Oprah interview, the Harry & Meghan docu-series on Netflix, and his memoir, Spare, saw the King painted as an often-distant parent, with William as hot-headed and the instigator of a physical fight between the brothers over Meghan, Kate as a cold and unwelcoming figure and Camilla as “dangerous” in her quest for a PR rehabilitation.

Earlier this month, it was reported that the King had “directly” requested his son not divulge any further private details about their family in order to mend their rift.

Quinn told The Mirror that the King had issued a firm directive to his son, telling him to “stop publicly complaining”.

“Harry has been asked directly by his father not to write or say publicly anything further about the family or his brother that might cause trouble, and everyone knows that when a king asks you to do something there are going to be consequences if you do not obey,” Quinn told the publication.

“Over the years that Harry has complained about his treatment by his family he has had just one aim – to get an apology and to see his father and brother make amends.

“Harry just can’t see that complaining in private might work; complaining publicly just makes things worse and in Harry’s case that means more and more ties to his past being severed.”

Originally published as King Charles ‘quickly dismissed’ bold Harry, Meghan idea