King Charles Coronation: Harry flees straight after coronation

In a fleeting trip to London, his first visit since releasing his controversial book that inflamed tensions with the Windsors, the Duke of Sussex reportedly missed out on any peace talks with King Charles or Prince William.

The brothers did not acknowledge each other during the ceremony, before Prince Harry raced to Heathrow Airport while his relatives celebrated at Buckingham Palace and watched the famous military flyover from the balcony.

As a non-working royal, Prince Harry was not invited to appear on the balcony or take part in the procession, but according to multiple reports, he was invited to join the official portrait session and an informal lunch after the ceremony.

Instead, after barely 30 hours in the UK, the Prince reportedly caught a commercial flight back to the US, where he was due to land about 10pm local time (3pm on Sunday AEST) before racing home to Montecito to see Archie before midnight.

Speaking to his cousin Princess Eugenie’s husband Jack Brooksbank during the service, the fifth in line to the throne could be seen mouthing “I’m heading off”.

Lip reader Jacquie Presser told the Daily Mail that when Prince Harry indicated with his thumb, he said the words “tomorrow” and “3.45pm”, while another lip reader picked up the word “airport”.

He hopped into a blacked-out electric BMW and was driven 32km to Heathrow, arriving by police convoy around 2.05pm (11.05pm).

The smiling Duke was later pictured smiling and holding an Order of Service from his dad’s crowning as he strolled through Heathrow’s departures terminal before being taken into the VIP Windsor Suite at Terminal 5.

Prince Harry had smiled throughout his father’s coronation as he watched on from the third row – while his sibling took centre stage alongside his wife, Princess Catherine, and three children.

Prince Harry had no formal role in event as he is no longer a working royal.

The Duke seemed keen to put on a jovial display, however, amid ongoing speculation of the royal family’s inner turmoil following the release of his bombshell memoir in January.

His wife Meghan remained silent during the coronation with few details emerging about Archie’s Californian birthday party, other than a source close to the Sussexes telling People Magazine it was “a low-key party at home” including Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland.

Journalist Omid Scobie, who wrote a book on the Sussexes, said Archie’s birthday was not the only reason Meghan skipped the coronation to stay at home with Archie and one-year-old Lilibet.

“I also know from friends of hers that she’s protecting her peace as well,” he said.

“She is aware of how much of the spotlight goes on her when she sets even a foot near the story.”

He added that the royal family was relieved Ms Markle had decided to stay home, while a source told the Telegraph that Prince Harry had been determined to attend despite the royal split.

“It is about showing up, showing support and being there for his father,” the source said.

“It was a very personal decision, not a PR one.”

Prince Harry was photographed beaming at the airport after the ceremony, where he had been relegated to the third row between Princess Eugenie’s husband Jack Brooksbank and Queen Elizabeth II’s 86-year-old cousin Princess Alexandra.

He was obscured for much of the ceremony by Princess Anne’s feathered hat, after they had greeted each other warmly, and was photographed glancing sternly in Prince William’s direction.

The pair reportedly have not spoken in months since the release of Harry’s memoir Spare, which included a series of intimate revelations including an argument with Prince William over his marriage to Ms Markle that turned into a physical fight.

Prince Harry had arrived at Westminster Abbey with Princess Beatrice and husband Edo Mapelli Mozzi, and remarked to the heavily pregnant Eugenie: “Wow look at you, it’s amazing.”

The Duke of Sussex maintained some contact with King Charles in the lead-up to the coronation, including over his imminent eviction from Frogmore Cottage, where he stayed the night before the coronation likely for the final time.

‘DEFIANT DISPLAY’: HARRY’S BODY LANGUAGE

Prince Harry smiled and appeared happy throughout the two hour ceremony, before making a swift exit as the King and Queen clambered into the Gold State Coach.

Body language expert Judi Jones told The Sun the prince put on a “defiant display”.

“If we were expecting some signals of anxiety, reflection or even the look of a penitent, Harry decided to disappoint the critics,” she told the outlet.

“He arrived in the guise of Harry the joker, miming Eugenie’s heavily-pregnant bump to make his cousin and her husband Jack laugh, before falling back to walk in alone, not in a way that looked solitary or shameful, but with a jaunty stride and beaming grin as he spoke or acknowledged people in the congregation like old friends.

“It was a very counterintuitive act of body language defiance and resilience and a very different, cockier Harry than we have seen on his most recent visits to the UK.”

As he took his seat at Westminster Abbey, Prince Harry could be seen pulling a series of faces which Jones said showcased how at ease he felt.

“Cocky Harry again here, yes he straightens his tie but the bobbing around in the seat and wincing is pure joker prince again, suggesting the seats are too hard,” she said.

“He’s joking with Eduardo and laughing with someone to his left, rocking from side to side to get maximum sociability.”

Similarly, body language expert Dr Louise Malher said Prince Harry’s “ body was relaxed and he walked calmly”.

“Throughout the ceremony the jaw tension he so often shows seemed to creep in, but he seemed to play along with the ceremony, and at the end he sang God Save the King with the others. He did not sing it with enthusiasm, his mouth barely opened, but he did sing it.

“More importantly, when the King passed, Prince Harry bowed his head and held it to show his respect.”

ANDREW ALSO SNUBBED

Prince Harry wasn’t the only one excluded from a ceremonial role; his uncle Prince Andrew, Duke of York, was also denied a part in the coronation service due to a cloud of controversy.

Prince Andrew encountered a chorus of boos as he arrived.

Prince Harry, on the other hand, was warmly received. He walked down the aisle standing tall, looking around and nodding and smiling to people he recognised.

He even offered a brief word to one of those he passed.

The Prince walked alone, behind his cousin, a pregnant Princess Eugenie, and her husband Jack Brooksbank.

Princess Beatrice and her husband, English-Italian aristocrat property developer Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, brought up the rear.

HARRY ‘EMOTIONAL’ ABOUT HISTORIC EVENT

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s biographer Omid Scobie said in an interview last week that Prince Harry always wanted to attend his father’s crowning ceremony — even with all the blowback from his family over his tell-all memoir, Spare.

“There was never any question on whether he would want to come or not. It was a question at one point on whether he would be invited, I think,” Mr Scobie said on British TV.

“From what I understand, the Sussexes had to wait for some time to really get the confirmation whether they were 100 per cent welcome at this event,” he continued.

Even though the rebel royal, 38, and his wife, 41, fled to the US in 2020 to live a more private life, Mr Scobie said Harry respects the line of succession, the NY Post reports.

“Ultimately, he is fifth in line to the throne,” the Finding Freedom author said. “He is a Councillor of State. There is a serious constitutional reason for him to be here, and he takes that seriously, even though he’s not a working member of the royal family.”

HARRY ‘RECONCILING’ WITH KING

Mr Scobie further said the historic event would be an “emotional” one for Prince Harry.

“Unfortunately, there is nothing carved out in the ceremony for him, and I would imagine if Harry and Meghan were working royals still, and everything had worked out differently, there may have been some way for them to have been orchestrated into it, or at least to be visible on that big balcony,” Mr Scobie said.

“But obviously that’s not the case, and people are wondering where Harry will be.”

Although Prince Harry and King Charles have spoken a few times over the phone since the January release of the book, Scobie said the Duke’s relationship with Prince William remains cold.

“There has been minimal contact since the Queen’s funeral,” Mr Scobie shared.