Royal family hoping ‘nothing will distract’ from VE Day after Harry interview
The 80th anniversary celebrations of Victory in Europe Day are being staged just days after the duke hit the headlines by speaking to the BBC.
The royal family is hoping “nothing will detract or distract” from the VE Day 80th anniversary celebrations after the Duke of Sussex’s bombshell interview.
The King and Queen are “looking forward” to the commemorations, taking place just days after Harry told the BBC his father will not speak to him and he does not know how much longer the King has left.
But it is understood that, out of respect for the surviving veterans, Buckingham Palace hopes “nothing will detract or distract from celebrating with full cheer and proud hearts that precious victory and those brave souls, on this most special and poignant of anniversaries”.
Charles and Camilla will lead the nation and put on a united front with the Prince and Princess of Wales and other members of the royal family this week, with events beginning on Monday with a military procession through central London.
Harry, who is thousands of miles away in California, caused ructions with his lengthy interview on Friday in response to losing a Court of Appeal challenge over his security arrangements while in the UK.
The duke, who appeared emotional and close to tears during much of the sit-down chat, described his court defeat as a “good old-fashioned establishment stitch-up” and expressed hopes of a reconciliation with his family.
But Harry’s decision to speak out appears to have worsened the chances of an end to his estrangement, amid suggestions the King, who is still being treated for cancer, and the Prince of Wales will fear more than ever that any conversation with the duke would end up in the public domain.
A Palace aide said on Sunday: “The King, Queen and other members of the royal family are much looking forward to all the week’s VE Day events, when they will unite with the rest of the nation and those across the Commonwealth and wider world in celebrating, commemorating and giving thanks to the wartime generation whose selfless devotion to duty and service should stand as an enduring example to us all – and must never be forgotten.”
Meanwhile, the Duchess of Sussex earlier posted a photo of her husband and their children in an apparent show of solidarity.
The black and white image, which was not accompanied by a message on Meghan’s Instagram, showed Harry, from behind, walking with Princess Lilibet on his shoulders and Prince Archie holding his hand as they made their way barefoot through a garden.
Veterans and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will join senior royals on a platform on the Queen Victoria Memorial in front of Buckingham Palace to watch the procession on Monday.
Members of the royal family are expected to appear on the palace balcony to watch the RAF flypast before the King and Queen host a tea party for veterans and members of the Second World War generation.
Charles and Camilla, joined by other royals, will attend a thanksgiving service with veterans at Westminster Abbey on May 8 to mark the day of the anniversary.
In the evening, the royal couple will be at Horse Guards Parade for a celebratory concert.
Large crowds gathered outside the palace on VE Day in 1945 to catch a glimpse of King George VI, Queen Elizabeth, and Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret.
The young Princess Elizabeth sneaked out into the streets with her sister to join the celebrating crowds and later spoke of being swept up in a “tide of happiness and relief”.
Following Queen Elizabeth II’s death in 2022, this year will be the first landmark VE Day commemoration without any of the royals who stood on the balcony that day.
