Princess Anne Hasn’t Talked to Prince Harry or Meghan Because She Wants No Parts of ‘Their ‘Drama,’ Royal Experts Say
After shocking just about everyone when they announced they were stepping down as senior royals, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stirred up more family drama when they did a televised interview with Oprah Winfrey. The duke and duchess haven’t returned to the U.K. much to face the family they claimed mistreated them, but when they did they didn’t get the warmest welcome from several royals including Princess Anne.
Princess Anne’s reaction to Harry and Meghan’s ‘drama’ was to ‘distance herself’
It’s safe to say that following Meghan and Harry’s primetime interview none of the senior royals were particularly happy with the Sussexes and Anne chose to completely distance herself from her nephew and his wife.
According to royal expert Ingrid Seward, Anne is like her late father, Prince Philip, and doesn’t care to be involved in outside “drama.”
Seward told Express that the Princess Royal follows Philip’s trait of “distancing himself from issues he didn’t consider his business. Anne has no need to get involved in the Harry and Meghan drama at all. Remember she is her father’s daughter and he frequently chose to distance himself from issues he didn’t consider his business.”
Anne and Sophie did not speak to Harry at Prince Philip’s funeral
One month after the Oprah interview, Prince Harry unexpectedly had to return to the U.K. for Prince Philip’s funeral. The Duke of Sussex reportedly did not receive a warm welcome though as Anne and Prince Edward’s wife, Sophie, did not speak to him at all.
Vanity Fair’s royal correspondent Katie Nicholl, who authored the book William and Harry: Behind the Palace Walls mentioned how Harry walked up to his brother and Kate to chat as they left the chapel but described that as just a “performance for the cameras.” Nicholl then explained that two royals who weren’t interested in talking to Harry cameras or no cameras around were Princess Anne and Sophie, Countess of Wessex.
“Certain family members, Princess Anne, for example, and Sophie Wessex, who is incredibly close to the queen, were not overly welcoming to Harry,” Nicholl said on the Dynasty podcast. “In fact, I was told that Harry went back to America feeling even more ostracised from his family.”
Anne’s son and daughter briefly talked to Meghan and Harry at the Jubilee
In June 2022, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex both returned to England for Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee. Anne’s children, Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips, were seen briefly speaking to Meghan and Harry.
Zara and her brother were already outside the church when the Sussexes exited after the service of Thanksgiving and they exchanged a few words while waiting for their transportation. However, Zara’s husband Mike Tindall was standing there as well and barely even looked Meghan and Harry’s way.
The Sussexes decided to skip the private Guildhall luncheon following the service at the last minute as well as the remaining public royal events held during the Jubilee weekend. According to reports, their decision had to do with the icy reception they got from the crowd and senior family members.
