Meghan Markle latest news: Prince Harry & Meg ‘felt sidelined’ & hurt after being left out of Queen’s Xmas speech photos
MEGHAN and Harry both 'felt sidelined' after they were absent from any of the family snaps during the Queen's 2019 Christmas speech, a book has alleged.
Finding Freedom claims that the couple were dismayed when no picture of them and their son Archie was visible on the desk in shot with Her Majesty as she spoke.
Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand wrote how it made Harry and Meghan feel they "had long been sidelined by the institution and were not a fundamental part of its future."
They continued: "One didn’t have to look further than the family photos displayed during the Queen’s Speech on Christmas Day. In the Green Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace, where the Queen delivered her address, viewers glimpsed photos of the Cambridges and their children, Charles and Camilla, Prince Philip, and a black-and-white image of George VI.
"Noticeably absent was a photo of Harry, Meghan, and their new baby, Archie. Palace sources insisted that the photos were chosen to represent the direct line of succession, but for Harry and Meghan, it had been yet another sign that they needed to consider their own path."
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Queen will stay at Windosr
THE Queen will spend Christmas at Windsor Castle as she won’t travel to Sandringham as the decision is described "precautionary approach” due to rising Omicron cases in the UK.
This means that the monarch will have a more relaxed and low-key Christmas this year. Experts claim there will be no games of charades and limited gift-giving.
Instead of the usual 30-person celebration is used to hosting for, this year she is expected to have no more than 15 family members.
Royal commentator Phil Dampier told The Sun: "Obviously it's going to be much smaller and it's going to be similar to last year.
"Except obviously, the one big difference is that is not going to be there.
"It wouldn't surprise me if Prince Charles and Camilla, and possible Prince Edward and Sophie Wessex and maybe some others - a small hard core of people - join her for lunch."
Phil added that: "I can't believe that she'll be on her own completely. So I'm sure that some members of the family will join her on the day."
Princess Anne ‘has secret weapon’
According to a royal author, the popularity of Princess Anne may be linked to a trait she has taken after her beloved father Prince Philip.
Ian Lloyd, author of The Duke: A Life in 100 Chapters, told Express.co.uk: “Princess Anne is very, very popular.
“Whenever I meet people and talk about who is their favourite royal, somewhere there is a mention of Princess Anne in that.
“And a few years ago there was a poll on who could be Britain’s president if it became a republic, and Princess Anne topped it.
“That was one poll, but I think people would like her as a president, I think partly because she is quite un-PC and like her father she is very forthright.”
House next to Sussexes goes up for sale
YOU could end up living next to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry if you manage to snag the $29.5million “Palace of Versailles.”
The incredible five-bedroom, 10-bath mansion is located in the Birnam Wood community in Montecito, which has become popular among other celebs such as Oprah, Ellen Degeneres and Adam Levine.
The mansion spans 12,000-square feet and sits on two acres of land.
The home comes with imported French marble countertops in the kitchen and all throughout the estate as well as gold bathroom fixtures and chandeliers.
The marble alone is worth millions of dollars, along with brickwork from Italy. There is also a woodwork design inspired by the Titanic movie for the lower-level large closets.
Xmas decision on Meg & Harry – only ‘time will tell’
Royal expert has claimed that the Royal Family’s Christmas plans will be subject to a “late decision”, following speculation about whether or not Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will return to the UK.
The Daily Mirror’s royal editor Russell Myers has questioned if The Duke and Duchess of Sussex would return to the UK to celebrate Christmas with the Queen.
He said: “I think it will be a fairly late decision because things are so fluid at the moment.
“Who knows what will be happening, so I don’t think it’s going to be anytime soon.”
Cambridge’s’ love playing family favourite game
Brits have previously heard of the Royal’s love of charades, although it seems the next generation have begun to favour board games – despite some struggling with defeat.
Prince William explained: “We’re playing board games with the children quite a lot. We love Monopoly, that’s good.
“And Risk, that’s a good game. It goes on for hours, and usually everybody gets very cross because they lose.”
Royal variety performance special guests
Kate’s parents joined their daughter for the occasion.
Carole and Michael tend to keep a low profile, but made sure they didn’t miss the Royal Variety Performance.
Kate is the couple’s eldest child, and she is followed by Pippa, and then James.
Michael and Carole are self-made millionaires thanks to their Party Pieces business.
Car crash interview
In what was described as a car crash interview with the BBC in 2019, the Prince’s claimed he never met her and the photo was doctored.
Andrew famously claimed in the interview he was medically unable to perspire, a response to Virginia's account of an alleged sweaty dance in London.
The criticism over what was seen as a failure to fully explain his relationship with Epstein saw him banished from royal duties.
Epstein hanged himself in prison in New York in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking offences.
Meghan could give evidence in Andrew’s sex case
MEGHAN Markle could give evidence in the sex case being brought against Prince Andrew by Virginia Roberts Giuffre, her lawyer has said.
David Boies reportedly believes the Duchess of Sussex has “important knowledge” and can be relied on to “tell the truth” about the royal’s behaviour.
Virginia Roberts Giuffre, now 38, is suing Andrew, alleging he sexually assaulted her in New York, London and on Jeffrey Epstein's private island when she was 17
She has spoken about being abused by multi-millionaire Epstein and alleges the paedophile and Ghislaine Maxwell introduced her to the royal.
The Duke of York has strenuously denied any wrongdoing and strongly refuted the allegations made in the lawsuit.
Boies has now that Meghan could be served with a deposition to give evidence in the case.
“She is somebody we can count on to tell the truth,” he said.
He said since the Duchess of Sussex lives in the US “we have jurisdiction over her” and “at least for a period of time, was a close associate of Prince Andrew”.
"Everything with Harry and Meghan has been hugely stressful"
An insider has claimed that Prince Harry and Meghan’s departure from their roles as senior working royals “has been hugely stressful” on Kate and Prince William.
One close insider told PEOPLE Magazine that: “Everything with Harry and Meghan has been hugely stressful, but if anything, it’s pulled [her and William] closer together. She was upset about it because [William] was so upset. Seeing her husband so distraught was tough.”
However, the insider said that Kate is, “no pushover. She has an inner strength for sure.”
Prince William urged by Queen to stop
Prince William has been urged by the Queen to stop flying in helicopters with wife Kate and their children amid safety fears.
Her Majesty is said to be “terrified” disaster could strike – threating the succession.
A source close to the 95-year-old monarch revealed she raised concerns with the future king, saying she is “terrified” disaster could strike.
An unwritten rule stops senior royals from flying together.
But the protocol has been relaxed as William’s family grew and began to split their time between London and Norfolk.
Shopping made easy
WHEN you are the Queen, it’s not always possible to take a leisurely stroll around the shops looking for Christmas presents.
So Her Majesty, 95, has a very special shopping experience set up for her so she can pick gifts for her four kids, eight grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.
According to former butler Paul Burrell, who worked for the Queen and Princess Diana, the monarch gets her very own John Lewis pop-up shop at Windsor Castle.
He told “Firstly, she has catalogues sent to her, and then the Oxford Street branch of John Lewis sends her a selection of almost everything they stock.
“There is a little ‘shop’ set up in the drawing room at Windsor Castle and the Queen can pop in and choose gifts at her leisure. Late at night, after dinner, usually around 10pm, she’ll pop into her little Christmas shop and do some shopping.
“The Queen always chooses practical gifts that can be used – never ornaments or decorative things. So she might pick some picnic plates, a tablecloth, or a couple of hand towels. Then they are wrapped up and a truckload of presents are ready to go to Sandringham.”