The Queen was ‘relieved’ Meghan Markle would not be attending Prince Philip’s funeral, a new book has claimed.
According to author Tom Bower, she reacted to hearing the then-pregnant Meghan would not fly over by saying: “Thank goodness.”
The funeral was on April 17 last year – just weeks after the Oprah interview with Prince Harry and Meghan aired.
One of the most striking sights of the day involved the Queen sitting alone and masked as she mourned during the service.
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Grandson Harry did make it over from his base in the US, at a time when COVID restrictions were in place. But the Duchess of Sussex remained in California.
The Queen and her alleged reaction to Meghan
In the book, titled Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsors, Mr Bower alleges there were concerns at the time about how Harry might interact with relatives.
He also claims Meghan – pregnant with Lilibet at the time- reasoned she would not travel because she was expecting.
However, going by Mr Bower’s claims, it seems that might not have been too much of a disappointment for the Queen.
In an extract published by The Times, Mr Bower writes: “The only uncertainty was the relationship between Harry and his family. How would he cope with his father and brother?
Meghan had cited her seven months’ pregnancy as the reason for not travelling.
“Meghan had cited her seven months’ pregnancy as the reason for not travelling and in Windsor Castle the Queen was preparing to face the public on one of the saddest days of her life. Philip had been her rock for the previous 70 years.
“To comply with COVID restrictions she would grieve alone inside the chapel. ‘Thank goodness Meghan is not coming,’ the monarch said.”
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ED! has approached a representative for Meghan Markle and Buckingham Palace for comment.
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