In the midst of their feud with the royal family, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were reportedly “unwelcome” at the star-studded 2023 BAFTA Tea Party in Los Angeles on Saturday.
“BAFTA decided it was a terrible idea [to invite them],” a charity consultant told the Sun on Sunday, adding, “They thought it would be a PR disaster.”
According to the source, because Harry’s estranged brother, Prince William, is the president of BAFTA, executives believed that inviting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to the annual event would be a mistake.
“It would be like setting off a nuclear bomb if they rolled out the red carpet for Harry and his wife. “It’s a no-go,” a British newspaper insider said, adding that Harry “roundly attacked” his family in both his Netflix docuseries, “Harry & Meghan,” and his memoir, “Spare.”
According to the report, the prospect of Harry, 38, or Markle, 41, speaking about William, 40, at the event was enough to keep them off the guest list.
“Any interviews would go viral,” said the source. “Anything negative about William would be disastrous.”
The Prince of Wales’ spokesperson declined to comment to the Sun, while a BAFTA representative said that the Sussexes’ “attendance was not discussed whatsoever.”
According to the charity’s website, the BAFTA Tea Party is a “staple fixture in the Los Angeles awards season calendar,” and “welcomes nominees, members, and guests for a uniquely elegant gathering.”
Angela Bassett, Brendan Fraser, Michelle Williams, and Cate Blanchett were the celebrities who attended this year’s gala at the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles in Beverly Hills.
After leaving their royal duties in January 2020, Harry and Markle relocated to her native California. They live in Montecito with their two children, Archie (3 years old) and Lilibet (1-year-old).
Despite their proximity to the event, William’s connection to BAFTA appears to have been enough to keep the Archewell co-founders away. William has been president of BAFTA since February 2010 and frequently attends the awards ceremony with his wife, Kate Middleton.
In his new book, Harry slammed William and Middleton, 41, escalating tensions between the brothers. The redhead royal claimed the heir apparently physically assaulted him in 2019 after they argued about Markle.
Harry also blamed William and Middleton for convincing him to dress up in a Nazi uniform for a costume party in 2005. He reiterated previous claims that the Princess of Wales made Markle cry in the days leading up to the Sussexes’ 2018 wedding.
The book also made claims about Harry’s father, King Charles III, and stepmother, Queen Consort Camilla. The 76th British Academy Film Awards will be held on February 19 in London.
