Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have officially returned to Britain with their two children, Archie and Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor, to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee, Vanity Fair confirmed. While the couple will not appear on the balcony alongside other working royals at Trooping the Color, an official celebration of the queen’s birthday, they are expected to make appearances at a number of events over the long weekend.
Back in February, the queen celebrated her actual Platinum Jubilee, an occasion that marks her 70 years as Britain’s monarch, and the nation will celebrate the achievement with a special bank holiday weekend. The four-day celebration kick off on June 2 with Trooping the Colour, and a thanksgiving service will be held at St. Paul’s Cathedral on Friday. The following day, the royals will attend the Derby Horse Race, and on Sunday, thousands of people will take to the streets to celebrate the queen. The festivities will end with the Platinum Jubilee Pageant, a musical celebration featuring Diana Ross, Sir Elton John, and Alicia Keys, among others.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have brought their son, Archie, back to the nation for the first time since breaking from the royal family and leaving for the United States. Their daughter, Lilibet, has also made the trek across the pond for the first time.
The couple and their kids were pointedly not invited to stand on the Buckingham Palace balcony during Trooping the Colour this year. “After careful consideration, the Queen has decided that this year’s traditional Trooping the Colour balcony appearance on Thursday 2nd of June will be limited to Her Majesty and those members of the Royal Family who are currently undertaking official public duties on behalf of the Queen,” a Buckingham Palace spokesman said in a statement to People on May 6. Instead, the pair will watch the ceremony from the Major General’s Office in Buckingham Palace, Entertainment Tonight reports. Harry and Markle last attended the event in 2019.
Harry’s uncle, Prince Andrew, was also not invited to stand on the balcony with the other working royals. The prince was removed from duties following sexual abuse allegations and revelations about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. However, the Sussexes and the Duke of York are expected to attend other jubilee events, including a Thanksgiving service at St. Paul’s Cathedral. The Sussexes are also expected to appear at the Derby Horse Race on Saturday, which is also Lilibet’s first birthday, and the queen is expected to meet her great-granddaughter for the first time. Harry and Markle are also expected to attend the Platinum Pageant on Sunday night.
Harry and Markle most recently paid the queen a visit in April while traveling to this year’s Invictus Games in the Netherlands, stopping by Windsor Castle and reuniting with the queen for the first time since stepping down. The couple have been active since, with Harry speaking out about his concerns about social media on May 16. The couple also shared an affectionate moment at a polo game in Santa Barbara, CA, on May 22.
The Sussexes recently renewed their lease on Frogmore Cottage, where the couple lived before moving to Montecito, CA, and where they will be staying during the Jubilee, an act that may signal that they intend to spend more time in close proximity to the royal family in the future.
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