Taking to X, a user shared a video of the couple standing as the British national anthem, God Save the King, was played. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex appeared to stand completely still.
While military personnel could be seen performing salutes as the anthem concluded, the former working royals remained expressionless, with some social media users claiming the pair looked “awkward”.
“They must be squirming here, seeing as they hate everything the royal family stand for, especially knowing none of them, including his father, want anything to do with them,” one user wrote.
Prince Harry and Meghan at the reception in Abuja, Nigeria. Photo / Getty Images
“H and M having to stand while the room is honouring his father …” one person said.
Another added: “Must have been making him rage inside having to stand,” another wrote.
Harry and Meghan have remained estranged from the royal family since resigning from duties in 2020.
While Harry visited his father in February after hearing of King Charles’ cancer diagnosis, he did not meet with his father during his trip to London last week during the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games, due to the monarch’s full schedule.
A spokesman for the duke told media amid rife speculation about a possible meeting: “It unfortunately will not be possible due to His Majesty’s full programme.
“The duke of course is understanding of his father’s diary of commitments and various other priorities and hopes to see him soon.”
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are in Nigeria to champion the Invictus Games, which Prince Harry founded to aid the rehabilitation of wounded and sick servicemembers and veterans. Photo / AP
As for his brother and his sister-in-law, Princess Kate, who is also battling cancer, no meeting was organised, with an insider claiming: “Their relationship remains extremely fractured,” adding, “Harry has privately expressed a wish to sit down with his brother but now is not the time.”
For now, the Prince of Wales’ focus is solely on his family, supporting his wife during her treatment and looking after their three children: Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6.
Meghan last met with members of the royal family in September 2022 after the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
