Coronation souvenir programme includes ‘olive branch’ to Harry and Meghan

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are included in the official souvenir programme for the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla.

A family portrait from 2018 is featured, showing Charles and Camilla, who were then the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall; Prince William and Kate Middleton, previously the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and their three children.

It was taken to mark Charles’s 70^th birthday in 2018 and came six months after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were married at St George’s Chapel at Windsor.

Two portraits were taken for Charles’s birthday. One shows the family looking at the camera head-on, with Charles, Camilla, Prince George and Princess Charlotte sat on a bench, while William and Kate, who is holding a baby Prince Louis, and Harry and Meghan stand behind them.

The second photograph, which is in the £20 programme, shows them in a more relaxed state, with Meghan, Camilla, Kate and George laughing at something behind the camera. Both were taken by royal photographer Chris Jackson.

Some reports have suggested that the inclusion of the photo is an “olive branch” to the Sussexes, as their rift with the royal family continues.

Last week, Buckingham Palace confirmed that Harry will be attending the coronation on 6 May, after months of speculation over his presence. However, Meghan will remain at their California home with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.

The coronation falls on the same day as Archie’s fourth birthday and is said to have been a factor in the couple’s decision.

According to The Telegraph, Harry held “peace talks” with his father before confirming his attendance at the coronation.

The publication cited a friend of the couple as saying there had been some “positive conversations” between Harry and Charles. However, there was reportedly no reconciliation between Harry and William.

The programme contains a foreword by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, who revealed some details about the mysterious anointing ceremony that will take place during the coronation.

Welby wrote about the “magnificence and pomp” of the historic occasion, but said the anointing of the King will be a moment of “stillness and simplicity”.

It is the only part of the coronation that will be shielded from public view, as it was during the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.