Prince Harry appeared bent on winning another polo match with his Los Padres team in Santa Barbara yesterday, despite promises not to overshadow the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, according to reports.
As he galloped on his four-legged steed in his white jodhpurs and black boots, the Royal, 37, appeared up for the task.
He was evidently ecstatic to be playing in the Friday game, as he beamed warmly at one point.
He was dressed in a similar athletic suit to his last appearance two weeks earlier, although his top was white instead of green.
The prince recently joined polo team Los Padres, having played the sport for most of his life after learning in the UK with his brother William.
Los Padres is run by his friend Nacho, who said he was ‘excited’ for the duke to join the ranks.
Harry cut an animated figure during this latest match, seen smiling and shouting encouragement later.
It came as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex told the Queen they will keep a low profile during the Platinum Jubilee celebrations next weekend and only take part in official engagements after the Monarch ‘ordered the family to come together’ with ‘no dramas’ to overshadow the events.
Harry and Meghan will reportedly take part in the service of thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral on Friday 3 June after Trooping the Colour on Thursday 2 June – but will not appear on the Buckingham Palace balcony with senior working members of the Royal family. Prince Andrew will also not make an appearance on the balcony.
In their first trip to the UK with Archie and Lilibet, Harry and Meghan are also facing a dilemma with how to celebrate their little girl’s birthday, who turns one on Saturday 4 June.
A source told The Sun: ‘Harry and Meghan will want to celebrate Lilibet’s birthday somehow with their family. But diaries are full on Saturday. There isn’t much wriggle room to fit in a birthday party for a one-year-old.’
The Queen, Lilibet’s great-grandmother, will be spending the Saturday of her Jubilee at the Epsom Derby horse racing in Surrey.
On Saturday night, the younger members of the royal family will head to Buckingham Palace for Platinum Party at the Palace, a concert starring Diana Ross, Queen + Adam Lambert, Duran Duran, Alicia Keys, Hans Zimmer, Nile Rogers, Eurovision runner-up Sam Ryder and more.
Organisers of the Jubilee are said to be ‘frustrated’ over a ‘lack of clarity’ in regard to where the Sussexes will be appearing and when, according to The Telegraph.
They said they have fears that the novelty of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex being back in Britain for the huge 70th Jubilee celebrations will ‘overshadow’ the Queen’s special weekend.
Meghan visited Uvalde, Texas, on Thursday to lay flowers at the memorial for the 19 children and teachers who were shot dead at Robb Elementary School – and those organising the royal events of next weekend are concerned that the couple’s ‘habit of making unpublicised appearances’ could lead to a ‘circus’.
The Telegraph reported that the Sussexes are ‘intending to limit themselves to public engagements’ next weekend, instead focusing on spending time with family in private, and not making these unannounced visits.
Their only correspondence with the Palace has been to discuss logistical arrangements, they reported, with royal aides being ‘kept at arms’ length’ about their wider plans.
Harry and Meghan were last in Britain when they stopped off at Windsor Castle on their way to the Invictus Games held in The Hague, Netherlands, April, where they were seen being captured by film crews making their documentary for Netflix.
It is not yet clear if the Duke and Duchess are to be joined by the Netflix camera crew.
The Queen is set to be stood beside her three heirs, Prince Charles, Prince William and Prince George for the Buckingham Palace Balcony weekend appearance, the Mirror revealed.
The three heirs and Her Majesty, who will also be joined by Duchesses Camilla and Kate, will appear on the infamous balcony at around 5pm in front of a 10,000-person crowd in The Mall.
A source said that the monarch ‘wants to see the heartbeat of her family and the future of the monarchy’.
The appearances of the Duke and Duchess’s two other children, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis will be confirmed on the day.
Princess Anne, the Earl and Countess of Wessex and their two children, Louise and James, as well as Prince Andrew’s daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, will likely watch from the royal box in the grandstand, at the Queen Victoria Memorial, outside the palace.
The royal source added: ‘Her Majesty believes it will send a strong message to the world, that despite the family’s trials and tribulations over the past few years, those at the very top are united in getting on with the job, sharing her sense of duty and dedication to serving the people of this country and the Commonwealth.’
Her Majesty will be joined by Prince Charles and Camilla, Prince William and Kate, Prince Edward and wife Sophie, Princess Anne, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, the Duke of Kent and Princess Alexandra. The Cambridge and Wessex children are also expected to appear, as is Anne’s husband Tim Laurence.
The Queen will welcome Harry and Meghan with open arms next week as her entire family gathers to celebrate her historic Platinum Jubilee, with sources saying the 96-year-old monarch is ‘looking forward’ to seeing her great-grandchildren, Archie and Lilibet.
She is likely to spend time with them privately next Saturday, when Lilibet celebrates her first birthday.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their children are set to stay at Frogmore Cottage, their Windsor home – a short drive from the Queen’s private apartments at the castle.
The sovereign has made it clear she does not want any family dramas to overshadow next weekend’s four-day national celebration.
The modest monarch wants the Jubilee bank holiday weekend, which runs from Thursday to Sunday, to be ‘an occasion in which the country, including her own family, comes together’, a source said. Harry, 37, and Meghan, 40, will attend the national Service of Thanksgiving for the Queen at St Paul’s Cathedral on Friday. It is understood the Sussexes are likely to attend at least one other public engagement – although sources have strongly warned that the public should ‘not expect them at every event’.
They will also spend time with Royal Family members privately, introducing the Prince of Wales to Lilibet for the first time. He has not seen Archie, three, since he was a baby. It is unclear whether the Sussexes will spend time alone with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their three children. William is known to have been hit hardest by his brother’s perceived betrayal.
One insider stressed: ‘Her Majesty is typically very keen that the Platinum Jubilee be a celebration not of herself and her own longevity, but of the institution of the monarchy and the people that support and sustain it.
‘It is also a chance for people to come together after a very difficult period for this country. She doesn’t want anything to overshadow it – and that includes any family issues.’
As the nation prepares to celebrate the Queen’s unprecedented 70 years on the throne:
- Britons are predicted to spend £3 billion over the Jubilee weekend;
- An estimated 16,000 street parties will be held across England;
- The Met Office says a ‘plume of warm air’ will bring widespread sunshine for the bank holiday;
- But travellers were warned to expect a week of disruption on roads, trains and at airports.
It is understood other members of the Royal Family support the Queen’s magnanimous gesture towards the Sussexes, although, privately, there are nerves about how the week will turn out.
Meghan has not seen most of them since she acrimoniously quit as a working royal two years ago, while Harry has only briefly seen his grandmother, father and brother.
There is also still a great deal of hurt over the couple’s repeated attacks on the family.
The Queen – who is in Scotland enjoying a break at Balmoral as part of attempts to ‘pace’ her diary – has always made clear that Harry and Meghan are ‘much loved’ members of her family, despite the pain they have caused. She chose to invite only working royals – as well as William and Kate’s children – on to the Buckingham Palace balcony for Trooping the Colour on Thursday in a bid to avoid any public family awkwardness, particularly so early in the weekend of celebrations.
But there have been suggestions that Harry and Meghan could be in the VIP section to watch the spectacular military event in Horse Guards Parade. They will definitely be at the Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s on Friday.
Another issue is where to seat the Sussexes: should they take their place in the Royal Box at events and if so, who will they be next to in terms of family dynamics and body language, bearing in mind the eyes of the world will be upon them?
It is not known if the couple will be accompanied by a camera crew from Netflix or personal photographers to document their trip to England. But they would be given no special treatment if they did.
A spokesman for the Sussexes said: ‘The duke and duchess are excited and honoured to attend the Jubilee celebrations.’
On the trail of colossus corgis
Jubilee visitors to London can follow in the paw prints of the Queen’s most faithful friends.
A trail of 19 giant corgi statues are being installed across the capital, each one in different designs by various artists.
Up to six and a half foot long, they will be located in public spaces, gardens, stations and windows from Victoria station to the Royal Courts of Justice.
Visitors can follow clues, or a special map, to locate each corgi, which will be auctioned for charity in the autumn.
Red, white and ooh! Union jack blooms
Green-fingered Britons are celebrating the Platinum Jubilee with patriotic planting of red, white and blue flowers.
Garden centre bosses said floral displays in the colours of the Union Jack are proving popular as families prepare for jubilee garden parties. Commemorative Queen Elizabeth II and jubilee roses are also selling well. Horticultural Trades Association president Boyd Douglas-Davies said: ‘Red, white and blue plants are flying out.’
