Friday evening news briefing: The reason Prince Harry might be …

Good evening. The King has greeted well wishers on The Mall during a surprise walkabout on the eve of the Coronation. We have the latest Royal family news, as the nation prepares for history to be made tomorrow.

King Charles greets crowds in surprise walkabout

The King and the Prince and Princess of Wales have greeted well-wishers on the Mall, as hundreds gathered on the eve of the coronation. 

The royals shook hands with members of the public, who had eagerly lined the route in hope of catching a glimpse of the monarch before he is crowned at Buckingham Palace.  Judith Woods writes that the Coronation festivities will put the King and Queen's popularity to the test, but that there's a spellbinding magic in majesty.  Earlier on Friday, the King and Prince of Wales attended Westminster Abbey for the final Coronation rehearsal where they were joined by Queen Camilla.

You can follow the latest Coronation build-up news on our live blog.

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The reason Prince Harry might be missing from official Coronation portraits

The Duke of Sussex may not appear in the official Coronation portraits as he prioritises a swift return to his family in California, The Telegraph understands.  Prince Harry, 38, is expected to arrive in the UK hours ahead of his father's Coronation.  However, it will be a fleeting 24-hour visit, as he dashes back in a bid to see his son, Prince Archie, on his fourth birthday, which falls on the same day. 

Our Royal Editor Victoria Ward has the full story here.

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Starmer claims Labour is on course for majority

Sir Keir Starmer claimed Labour is on course to win a majority at the next general election after the party made gains and the Tories suffered heavy losses at local elections across England.  However, polling expert Professor Sir John Curtice has poured cold water on Labour's claims.  You can click here to see the full election results across England and in your local area

Meanwhile, a Cabinet minister described the introduction of voter ID as a "thoroughly good thing", despite claims thousands were left unable to vote in Thursday's local elections.

Evening Briefing: Today's essential headlines

Covid | The World Health Organisation has said the Covid-19 pandemic no longer qualifies as a global emergency.

Comment and analysis

World news: Russia orders evacuations 'ahead of Ukrainian counter offensive'

Russian forces have announced the evacuation of occupied areas of the Zaporizhzhia region in southern Ukraine which lie in the path of an anticipated counter-offensive. Get up to speed by reading our Ukraine live blog, as the head of the Wagner mercenary group launched a vicious attack on "Kremlin b-----s" over a lack of weapons supplies.

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Interview of the day

Andrew Lloyd Webber on the loss of his son: 'It will be of considerable sadness to be in the Abbey' Ahead of his starring role at the Coronation, the world's most successful composer reflects on monarchy, music and grief

Read the interview

Business news: Old bangers dominate Britain's roads as drivers resist net zero

The cars on Britain's roads are getting older and older as net zero plans leave drivers in a tizz about what new vehicles to buy. Howard Mustoe explains why the number of ageing cars is set to rise even more.

Editor's choice

Simon Heffer | How Charles mastered the art of being King Technology | Why everyone from Joe Biden to Elon Musk is terrified by AI Fashion | Princess Anne, the accidental fashion star

Sport news: Napoli celebrate Serie A title - now they fight to keep their history makers

Napoli have stormed to their first Italian title since 1990, but Mike McGrath asks whether they will be able to keep hold of the players who helped them win Serie A?

Today's cartoon

Click here to see more cartoons from Matt.

And you can find our political cartoons here.

Three things for you

And finally... for this evening's downtime

The Telegraph's Coronation quiz | Test your knowledge on the history and organisation of the big day with our bumper 50-question quiz

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