King Charles Not 'Obsessing' Over Prince Harry, Meghan As …

Reuters

KEY POINTS

• King Charles and Camilla are "just getting on with it" rather than worrying about Harry and Meghan, a TV host says
• Gyles Brandreth said the King is letting the Sussexes live their own lives in California
• The royal author said there are photos of Harry and Meghan at Clarence House

King Charles III is not concerned about the drama surrounding his son Prince Harry and daughter-in-law Meghan Markle as he prepares for his upcoming coronation, according to a royal author. While there had been a lot of speculation over the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's alleged tension with the royal family and coronation plans over the past several months, Gyles Brandreth suggested that the couple's situation likely isn't among the King's priorities at the moment. "I don't think they [Charles and Queen Camilla] are obsessing about it the way that we are.

They are just getting on with it," the British TV host and former politician told Page Six, noting that the royal family is busy preparing for the May 6 crowning ceremony. Brandreth also said that King Charles seemed to have signaled during his "very good" first speech as monarch in September 2022 that he is letting Prince Harry and Markle live their own lives in California. "He settled [it]," the "Elizabeth" author continued. "He announced that William was going to be the Prince of Wales.

He sort of made the situation clear and wished Harry and Meghan love and well as they build their life overseas. So, you know, in this country, I think we've accepted. Well, that's what they're doing. ....

We're just getting on with it." Brandreth has met King Charles and his wife Queen Consort Camilla many times over the years and often goes to Clarence House for charity events. "I'm a trustee of something called The Queen's Reading Room, which is a real passion project of the new queen," he said.

He shared that "there are pictures of Harry and Meghan" on "the piano [and] on the mantlepiece" of the King and Queen Consort's London residence. Earlier this month, Buckingham Palace announced that Prince Harry will attend his father's coronation but that Markle will remain in California with their two children, Prince Archie, 3, and Princess Lilibet, 1. Ahead of the coronation, Prince Harry and King Charles have had "positive conversations," an insider told People.

The King is said to be "pleased" his younger son will be there, but a wider reconciliation hasn't happened yet. "At this point, it's become so personal," an unnamed "close friend" of the Sussexes told the outlet. "Maybe what they wanted wasn't achieved, but at the end of the day, he's going there to support his dad." Meanwhile, Markle's decision to skip her father-in-law's coronation has sparked speculation among royal experts and pundits.

Lady Colin Campbell suggested that Markle may have wanted to come and "flaunt herself" but that the palace "blocked" her "demands." The royal pundit speculated that the former "Suits" star ultimately chose not to go due to fear that her "brand" would be adversely affected if she made an appearance at the historic event.

Former BBC journalist and investigative reporter Tom Bower, on the other hand, told Page Six he thinks that "everyone" in the royal family is likely "delighted she's not coming."

"They made sure that [Markle] wasn't going to come by making sure that she was told she'd have to curtsy three times, that she wouldn't be in the spotlight, that she wouldn't play any part in the whole thing and that if she came, they'd be put in row 54 in the back behind the column," the "Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the War Between the Windsors" author joked.