Photos of Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan were left out of the Queen’s annual Christmas speech this year, but it wasn’t personal. In fact, there’s a very logical explanation for their absence, even if the omission might seem a bit personal.
Harry and Meghan’s relationship with the press and the rest of the Royal Family has been bumpy at best - especially this past year. With the icing on the cake being Harry’s decision to spend the holidays with Meghan’s family, instead of his own, 2019 has hardly been easy on them. The couple has independently dealt with their fair share of problems - from Harry feuding with his brother William to Meghan having to put up with a relentless paparazzi - and with the holidays and new year finally arriving, there’s yet another reason for the general public to wonder whether or not there really is a rift between Queen Elizabeth II and her grandson. As it so happens, despite some concrete evidence suggesting otherwise, this doesn’t seem to be the case.
As the Queen gave her annual Christmas speech, she took note of how “bumpy” 2019 has been. She even mentioned all of the problems Duchess Meghan has been facing this year with the press. That said, despite mentioning Meghan directly, no photo of Meghan or her husband Harry was included in the video. A photo of Harry’s older brother, Prince William, as well as the rest of his immediate family, was included. However, according to Us Weekly, the photos included within the frame of the speech were limited to the Queen’s predecessor (her father, King George IV) and direct heirs (her son, Charles, her grandson, William, and his children, George, Charlotte, and Louis).
As for the other “bumpy” moments of the past year, the Queen also addressed a prominent scandal within the Royal Family: her son, Prince Andrew, having ties to the late convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein. Still, despite all of the negativity surrounding the Royal Family that’s taken precedence this year, the Queen brought the bulk of the focus to positivity, pointing out that “Small steps taken in faith and in hope can overcome long-held differences and deep-seated divisions to bring harmony and understanding." Even amid the personal chaos, she believes that things will turn out OK in the end.
As for Harry and Meghan’s omission from the Queen’s photo display during her speech, the rationale makes sense, but that’s not to say it doesn’t seem questionable. Given the hopeful focus of her speech, as well as the fact that she directly mentions her grandson and his wife, one would assume that it would be in good taste to include him. Then again, remove the royal status, and she is still just a grandmother after all - a grandmother who likely isn’t shy about holding a grudge against a family member who refused to spend time with her during Christmas.
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Source: Us Magazine
