On May 6, Meghan Markle plans to throw an “intimate” birthday party for her son, Prince Archie, who will turn four. The celebration will be held at the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s estate in Montecito, California, where they reside with their rescue chickens, three dogs, and Markle’s mother, Doria Ragland. According to a source familiar with the family, there may be some recognizable faces present at the party as the Sussexes “do have celebrities in their life.”
Meanwhile, Archie’s father, Prince Harry, will be attending his father King Charles’ coronation at Westminster Abbey in London on the same day. Harry will be flying commercial, not private, and plans to make every effort to return home in time for Archie’s birthday party, said the source. Harry may even take a flight back to California following the ceremony, thanks to the eight-hour time difference between the US and UK.
Buckingham Palace and the Sussexes announced that Markle will not be attending Charles’ coronation, leaving Harry to face his family alone for the first time since the debut of his bombshell memoir “Spare.” Harry is reportedly still not talking to his older brother, Prince William, but will be accompanied by his cousins Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice.
Markle has faced criticism for not attending the coronation, especially since Archie could have celebrated his birthday at the couple’s UK home, Frogmore Cottage, where his sister, Princess Lilibet, had her 1st birthday party last June. However, a palace insider said that Charles has been kept abreast of Archie and Lilibet’s lives, and the Sussexes have previously said they used to video chat with and send photos to Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip.
According to the source familiar with the Sussexes, Markle made the decision to skip the coronation in the hopes of not stirring up more drama. “She just really doesn’t want a song and dance and everything being lived out in the public eye,” said the source.
In his memoir, Harry claimed that Charles did not even embrace him following the tragic death of Princess Diana in August 1997. However, there is now a willingness to try and have a relationship between Charles and Harry, according to the source.
Markle, who has been keeping a low profile and focusing on her children lately, is believed to be bringing back her “Archetypes” podcast for a second season. Additionally, a patent application to revive Markle’s Tig website was given preliminary approval by US authorities, meaning she will be able to reboot the blog as soon as June.
