UK royals to appear on TV on same day as the Sussexes

UK’s Queen Elizabeth and other senior British royals will appear on TV on the same day that Oprah Winfrey’s interview of her grandson Prince Harry and his wife Meghan is aired. For almost 50 years, the royal family have attended an annual Commonwealth Day service at London’s Westminster Abbey in March, but it has been cancelled this year because of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. Instead, the 94-year-old monarch, who heads the association of 54 nations, will deliver a televised message as part of a programme entitled A Celebration for Commonwealth Day, which will be broadcast on the BBC on March 7, the Abbey said. That means it will air hours before Harry and Meghan’s much anticipated tell-all, their first indepth interview since they moved to the United States, will be broadcast on CBS.

Harry and Meghan announced last week the interview with the US chat show host, in which they are expected to air their grievances about how they were treated inside the family following their fairy tale wedding in 2018. Shortly after revealing the interview, Buckingham Palace announced the couple had permanently quit royal duties, just over a year after they rocked the monarchy by announcing plans to “step back” from their roles.

The Queen ordered the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, as they are formally known, to relinquish their honorary titles and patronages following the confirmation that they would not be returning as working royals.