Prince Harry 'Still Cares' for Royals 'Despite the Pain'—Omid Scobie
Prince Harry "had to wait for some time" for his coronation invite and there were questions over whether he would be invited at all, according to the co-author of best-selling royal biography Finding Freedom.
Omid Scobie has been busy finishing his second book, End Game, which considers whether the monarchy has a future. However, he took time out to speak to U.K. talk show This Morning about King Charles III's coronation on May 6.
Scobie said that the Duke of Sussex has been in touch with Charles to express his desire to attend. However, Harry has had "minimal contact" from his brother Prince William since Queen Elizabeth II's funeral in September, Scobie told the ITV show.
He said: "There was never any question about whether [Harry] would want to come or not. It was a question at one point of whether he would be invited, I think. From what I understand, the Sussexes had to wait for some time to really get that confirmation that they were 100 percent welcome at this event.
"Of course, this all follows the release of [the Duke of Sussex's memoir] Spare, but for Harry, there was certainly no question about it," Scobie said. "Ultimately, he's fifth in line to the throne. He's a counsellor of state. There's a serious constitutional reason for him to be here, and he still takes that seriously, even though he's not a working member of the royal family.
"But also, as we've heard from him time and time again in his interviews, despite the pain he's experienced from his own family, he still cares for them," Scobie added. "So much can happen over time, and I don't think he would ever want to look back and regret not being here for that moment."
Harry's wife, Meghan Markle, will remain in California, where their son, Prince Archie, is due to turn 4 on the same day, May 6, as the coronation.
Scobie, however, felt that Meghan was staying back to avoid the limelight on a day that is supposed to be about the crowning of the king and Queen Camilla.
"People around the Sussexes guided press at the time that this was very much about Archie's 4th birthday," Scobie said.
"I disagree with that to some extent because I also know from friends of hers that she's protecting her peace as well. She is aware of how much of the spotlight goes on her when she sets even a foot near the story.
"A lot of that, though, it's often portrayed as intentional, that she wants to steal the spotlight," Scobie added. "But, in this case, should she have simply come over and stood next to her husband, I would imagine the commentary and the narrative on the day would be very different for the days that followed."
Meanwhile, Harry will not play a formal role in the service. As a non-working royal, he will also not make an appearance on the Buckingham Palace balcony in London.
"His role is to be here," Scobie said. "Unfortunately, there's nothing carved out in the ceremony for him. I would imagine if Harry and Meghan were working royals still, and everything had worked out differently, there may have been some way for them to have been orchestrated into it or at least to be visible during that big balcony moment after the ceremony. But, obviously, that's not the case.
"And now people are wondering where Harry will be. Will he be with the civvies [civilians] or will he be with family members? And if he is, what row will he be in? I think people will be watching to see that almost as a reflection of where he stands with his family today. He gets no say in it," Scobie added.
The prince's visit, however, is expected to be swift. However, Harry is, according to his lawyer David Sherborne, planning to attend a London High Court hearing in his civil lawsuit against Mirror Group Newspapers at some stage. The hearing has been listed to run over six weeks, starting on Tuesday, May 9.
All eyes will be on whether there are signs of reconciliation between Harry and family members, including Prince William and Kate Middleton.
Scobie said: "He also discussed his attendance at the coronation with his dad and made it clear that he wanted to be part of it, and I think that was really well received as well.
"It's interesting to compare that to where William and Harry are, which is still in the exact same place as we last saw them. There's been minimal contact since the queen's funeral," Scobie added.
Jack Royston is chief royal correspondent for Newsweek, based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
