The planning of King Charles’ coronation has been filled with drama—mostly thanks to a weird little balcony at Buckingham Palace that the royals lurked on for a few minutes after the ceremony. But, like all Buckingham Palace balcony moments, this one has literally no chill and has actually been kinda contentious.
Apparently, the Buckingham Palace balcony is THE place to be, and Charles’ attitude is pretty much “you can’t sit with us.” Meaning, that instead of having a gaggle of random family members and friends show up with him, as was the case during Queen Elizabeth’s coronation…
Charles went with senior royals only. Which is why his son Prince Harry was nowhere to be found, and why his disgraced brother Prince Andrew and his kids, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, were excluded. Instead, the royal balcony was limited to King Charles, Queen Camilla, Kate Middleton, Prince William, Princess Anne, Sophie Wessex and Prince Edward, the King and Queen’s pages, and members of Queen Camilla’s family.
Royal expert Angela Mollard gave some insight into the decision ahead of the coronation, telling The Express that Charles wants to showcase a slimmed down monarchy—which is one of the reasons Harry wasn’t invited to partake.
Speaking of the Sussexes’ alleged request to be on the balcony, Mollard explained “the Queen wanted a slimmed-down monarchy. Charles is further enforcing that. He has dealt beautifully with Andrew and they need to turn around and say there’s no chance they’ll get a place on that balcony.”
Mehera Bonner is a celebrity and entertainment news writer who enjoys Bravo and Antiques Roadshow with equal enthusiasm, She was previously entertainment editor at Marie Claire and has covered pop culture for over a decade.