Buckingham Palace is addressing rumors about the royal’s birthday tributes to Prince Harry, like Meghan Markle’s absence from a birthday pic.
Prince William, Kate Middleton, and King Charles captured attention on Sunday by unexpectedly sharing heartfelt birthday wishes as Prince Harry celebrated his 40th birthday.
Wishing a Happy 40th Birthday to The Duke of Sussex! https://t.co/ZKJbYDmV6L
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) September 15, 2024
Amid ongoing family tensions, Buckingham Palace faced criticism for choosing a birthday photo of a solo Prince Harry. Some interpreted it as excluding Meghan Markle on purpose. The palace pushed back at claims that it cut Meghan out of the image of the happy married couple.
A spokesperson for Buckingham Palace has reportedly confirmed to several news outlets that the photo in question was not altered in any way and was used in its original format as received.
“The Duchess was not cropped out by Buckingham Palace,” royal sources insisted to Us Weekly on Tuesday. “The image was provided to them by a picture agency, as a complete stand-alone image of The Duke.”
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However, digging deeper, it seems there are two nearly identical versions of the 2018 image in Getty. One features the newlyweds together at a table in Dublin.
Meanwhile, the other is a close-up of a beaming Harry in a gray suit. Of course, this picture is the same one used by Prince William, Kate Middleton, and King Charles for their 40th birthday posts.
The official Instagram and X accounts of the Royal Family were the first to share the photo.
“Wishing The Duke of Sussex a very happy 40th birthday today!”, the account wrote alongside the image.
The social media accounts of the Princess and Princess of Wales promptly echoed this sentiment. They shared the message on their Instagram Stories and X account.
“Wishing a Happy 40th Birthday to the Duke of Sussex,” they captioned the reshare.
The birthday tributes were unexpected, especially since Harry’s immediate family has refrained from making any public remarks to commemorate his birthday since Queen Elizabeth’s passing in September 2022. Of course, this is amidst the continuing tensions within the royal family.
Meanwhile, Harry reportedly celebrated his birthday alongside Meghan and their children, Prince Archie, age 5, and Princess Lilibet, age 3.