Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shocked the world when they revealed their decision to step back from their senior royal roles and start a new life away from the UK.

But it wasn’t just fans who were left stunned as many members of Harry’s family had also been left in the dark, with some reports suggesting King Charles and Prince William were only given 10 minutes’ notice before the couple made their statement. 

Once the bombshell message had dropped on Instagram, the royal family and their most trusted advisors set to work working out the logistics of what Meghan and Harry’s post-royal situation would look like. After many tense meetings, including the now infamous Sandringham Summit, a date was set and the couple’s final royal engagement was in the diary – Commonwealth Day.

The annual event, normally a highlight in the royal calendar, was always going to be a tense one with tensions still running high between Palace walls – but a body language expert has claimed the meeting between Princess Kate and Meghan was particularly awkward.

In line with tradition, Meghan and Harry arrived at Westminster Abbey before Prince William and Kate as they are less senior. They took their seats in the second row and waited for the senior royals to arrive. Meghan beamed as the rest of the family walked in, including her father-in-law King Charles, then the Prince of Wales, before doing a small awkward wave in Kate’s direction.

Speaking at the time, Judi James described the wave as a “rather odd greeting ritual”. She told The Mirror : “It wasn’t the warm reunion that we were all hoping for. The tension in Harry’s body language especially was palpable. “When he arrived, the minute he and Meghan had to drop hands, he immediately reached for his wedding ring which is a self comfort. Even when she was beside him after they had stopped holding hands, he was missing her, needing her support.

As Harry walked up the aisle, they both waved at the children, but his face otherwise was quite tense and unsmiling. Harry and Meghan looked a lot more genuinely cheerful, and Harry especially, through a really affectionate smile at Kate. But when it was William, you could see Harry was slightly more rigid and his lips were closed.”

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