UPDATE 2:04 EST: Buckingham Palace has now officially confirmed the rumors Harry and Meghan will be spending Christmas in the United States. In an official statement, they announced:
“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are looking forward to extended family time towards the end of this month. Having spent the last two Christmases at Sandringham, [the couple] will spend the holiday this year, as a new family, with the duchess’ mother, Doria. This decision is in line with precedent set previously by other members of the royal family, and has the support of Her Majesty The Queen.”
“…and has the support of Her Majesty.”
Well, that’s a statement. Clearly the Palace is aware of the stories out there. This is the most they’ve said so far to quell the rumors of a Royal rift.
Do YOU think the purported holiday row has been much ado about nothing? Or are the Royals doing what most families do around Thanksgiving — stuffing it all down and pretending nothing’s wrong?
Could Meghan Markle and Prince Harry be planning to celebrate Christmas in California?
It’s been rumored on and off for quite some time, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex could be looking for a second home in the El Lay area, with suspicions raised even higher when it was confirmed they will be spending Thanksgiving in the Golden State.
A source close to the couple has shared with Vanity Fair “there is a possibility” they’ll choose to miss out on Queen Elizabeth‘s Christmas at Sandringham and stay in CA instead.
Related: Does The Queen Like Kate Better Because She’s Not Meghan??
The insider explained:
“The plans have not been finalized. They will be in America for Thanksgiving later this month and there’s a chance they might choose to stay out there a while longer which might mean missing Christmas.”
Their vacay to the United States to celebrate the upcoming holiday will mark baby Archie Harrison‘s first trip to his grandmother Doria Ragland‘s home in Los Angeles, and falls during a six-week break for “family time” from royal obligations.
A friend of the former Suits star added:
“It has always been important to Meghan that Archie grows up aware of his American heritage and they plan to spend more time in the States as he grows up. They’ve not had much time off and this feels like the right moment to take a proper break.”
It’s understandable since there’s a baby involved that Meg would want to make sure both sides of Archie’s family get equal time together! And we all know they can’t just fly off to California whenever they want or they’ll face the wrath of online critics!!
For comparison, Prince William and Kate Middleton have alternated celebrating Christmas with the royals and with the Middletons in years past. We can imagine once William takes the throne, things may be a little different in that department!!
A friend of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge explained to the publication:
“Kate is expecting her entire family over the Christmas holidays and so there wouldn’t be space for other guests in any case.”
The source added it is “highly unlikely” we’ll see the core four together for the December holiday:
“Things between them are still not great. The feeling is that Harry and Meghan have rather alienated themselves from the rest of the family. If they do come for Christmas it might be a particularly frosty one.”
Sally Bedell Smith, the Queen’s biographer, also chimed in:
“The Queen won’t want it to fuel any more rift rumors. Given that Harry and Meghan didn’t go to Balmoral over the summer, it could be seen as another piece of evidence that they are going their own way if they don’t show up for Christmas.”
Smith continued:
“The Queen is pretty tolerant and she may not begrudge them missing Christmas given Meghan’s mother is in the States. It will be a useful time for the couple to re stock re assess and decide how they want to move forwards. Christmas at Sandringham is a deeply embedded tradition in the royal family however and it’s expected that everyone will be there, but the Queen does sometimes make allowances.”
Thoughts on all this, Perezcious readers? Now taking bets on where Meg and Harry will end up for the holidaze!!
Sound OFF (below) in the comments with your take.
[Image via John Rainford/WENN.]
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