Why Prince Harry's Latest Meeting With The Queen Was Canceled
Prince Harry opened up about his relationship with his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, during his and Meghan Markle's shocking March 7, 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey. Though the two have always shared a seemingly close relationship, Harry revealed that he was supposed to have a meeting with his grandmother in January 2020, but it was cancelled very abruptly after he and Meghan announced earlier that month — and reaffirmed in February 2021 (via The Guardian) — that they would be stepping down as senior members of the royal family.
In amongst other bombshells — including the revelation that Meghan and Harry actually got married three days before their televised ceremony at St George's Chapel in Windsor, the big reveal that the couple's second child is a girl, and Meghan denying she brought Kate Middleton to tears — Harry recalled what sounds like a very awkward phone conversation he had with the British monarch. Keep reading to find out what he had to say.
Prince Harry reveals the truth about his canceled meeting with the Queen
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's tell-all Oprah Winfrey interview aired on CBS on March 7, 2021, though CBS This Morning aired an unseen clip from the special on March 8, 2021. In it, Prince Harry got candid about a meeting he was supposed to have with the Queen that never came to be. Harry said his grandmother made an offer to meet for tea on Jan. 6, 2020 — two days before they officially announced their decision to step back from their royal roles — while he and Meghan were in Canada. When they returned to the U.K., Harry claimed he got a message from the Queen's private secretary that "basically" said she had suddenly become "busy all week" and would not be able to see him.
Harry said he phoned his grandmother that night and made it clear that he would still like to see her, though she replied by saying, "'There's something in my diary that I didn't know that I had.'" Harry continued, "I said, 'Well, what about the rest of the week?' She goes, 'Oh that's busy now as well.' Okay, I didn't want to push because I kind of knew what was going on.'" Harry called out the Queen's team after Oprah asked if she could do whatever she wanted, saying she couldn't as he recalled how the incident made him "really sad" because he thought the advice she was given was "really bad."
Did Queen Elizabeth II not want to see Prince Harry?
Prince Harry appeared to suggest during the March 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview that the Queen did not want to see him as a result of his and Meghan Markle's decision to step back from their royal duties, though Buckingham Palace has not spoken out regarding said claims and has not confirmed if the Queen really did have a busy schedule.
The couple famously announced their intention to "step back as senior members of the royal family" in January 2020 and said that they would split their time between the U.K. and North America, initially moving to Canada before their representative confirmed in a statement (via ABC News) that they had moved to California in July 2020. "After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution," they said in a statement posted to their website. "We intend to step back as 'senior' members of the royal family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen."
The Queen responded in a statement of her own in January 2020, which was posted to her official website. It claimed the royal family had "found a constructive and supportive way forward for my grandson and his family," with Queen Elizabeth II adding, "Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved members of my family."