- While there’s still no official word as to whether Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will join the royal family for Christmas at Sandringham, it seems unlikely they will attend.
- The Duke and Duchess of Sussex haven’t taken part in a U.K. Christmas since 2018, spending the last five Christmases at home in California.
- There’s also the factor of Harry’s continued estrangement with his brother Prince William, who is expected to be at Sandringham for Christmas.
While it remains unclear if Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been invited to the royal family’s Christmas celebrations at Sandringham—no official confirmation has been made either way—the Sussexes haven’t spent Christmas there since 2018, back when Meghan was still pregnant with Prince Archie, who was born in May 2019.
It’s likely that Harry, Meghan, Archie, and Princess Lilibet will again opt for a California Christmas, as they’ve done for the past five years. Back in September, Harry and his father King Charles had a hope-filled meeting at Clarence House, the King’s London home, but according to a new Us Weekly cover story, “that’s as far as it has gone,” a source said.
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Their September meetup was the first time that Charles and Harry had seen one another face-to-face in 19 months, ever since Harry flew to the U.K. upon hearing that his father had been diagnosed with cancer in February 2024.
Harry and his older brother Prince William remain estranged, and an insider speaking to Us Weekly said that there are new concerns over “whether or not trust can be rebuilt” after Harry and Meghan attended Kris Jenner’s celebrity-filled 70th birthday party last month.
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“If they are going to go out and look like Hollywood players, it’s at odds with what the palace and royal family members would do,” the source said, adding that the likelihood of the Sussex family receiving an invitation to Christmas at Sandringham was “slim.”
As for the King’s Christmas celebrations, “Charles prioritizes duty, but he’s also a family man who knows his time is precious,” an insider shared. After being diagnosed with cancer in February of last year, the King’s cancer treatment continues, with the source poignantly adding that the King “wants a special last Christmas in case it’s his last.”
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That will entail all of the royal family’s Christmas traditions, like his annual King’s Speech and walking to church at St. Mary Magdalene on Sandringham’s grounds with the rest of the family. “Nothing would stop Charles from doing that,” the insider said. “He will do everything expected of him, and more.”
“His health isn’t the best,” an insider shared. “They’re taking it day by day.”
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As for Harry and Meghan, even as drama might try to find them in the public sphere, “It never creates friction between them,” a source told People. “They’re fully aligned and always operate as a team. It never puts them at odds.”
Meghan, for her part, dismisses outside chatter—which she refers to as “just noise”—but Harry takes it more personally, especially when it comes to barbs thrown at Meghan, People reported.
On December 3, Meghan’s Netflix holiday special With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration aired, an hourlong glimpse into traditions she holds dear at Christmas.
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“I love the holiday season,” Meghan said in the trailer for the special. “It’s about finding time to connect with the people we love, embracing traditions and making new ones.” Of her new additions, Meghan said, “Hopefully we have these for quite a long time. A tradition has to have a beginning.”
