Prince William is attending the wedding of his close friend the Duke of Westminster at Chester Cathedral today – and he went alone, without his wife the Princess of Wales
Prince William has attended the wedding of his billionaire pal the Duke of Westminster in a solo appearance.
The Prince of Wales is an usher at the ceremony at Chester Cathedral, which will see the Duke, whose real name is Hugh Grosvenor, marry his fiancee Olivia Henson. William has a close friendship with Hugh and he and wife Kate picked him to be one of the godparents for their eldest son, Prince George. However, William made a solo appearance at the nuptials today as Kate is still recovering following her cancer diagnosis earlier this year and her subsequent preventative chemotherapy treatment.
George also didn’t make an appearance at the wedding of his godfather – and this is likely due to being down to the fact the wedding is taking place on a weekday during term time and the young prince will be at school.
Also missing from the wedding today is Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, despite Harry also being close to the Duke, who is godfather to Prince Archie. With William and Harry embroiled in a bitter rift with relations said to be at rock bottom, the Sussexes appear to have made the decision to stay away from the nuptials to not let the feud overshadow his pal’s big day.
According to The Times, Harry was invited to Hugh’s wedding, but then over a phone call with the groom agreed to stay away in what is described as a “civilised understanding”. This move in turn cleared the way for William to perform his job as usher at the ceremony.
Last month, the Sunday Times also reported that Hugh wanted both princes at the wedding but came to an agreement with Harry. A source told the publication: “Hugh is one of the very few close friends of William and Harry’s who has maintained strong bonds and a line of communication with both.
“He wishes they could put their heads together and patch things up, but realises it’s unlikely to happen before the wedding. He wanted to avoid anything overshadowing the day, especially for Olivia, and doesn’t want any awkwardness.”
Not only is Kate not attending today’s wedding, she also won’t be at the final dress rehearsal for the King’s birthday celebrations tomorrow. As colonel-in-chief of the Irish Guards, Kate would usually take the salute at The Colonel’s Review, which is taking place tomorrow at Horse Guards Parade.
Palace sources have insisted that the Princess is not expected to return to official duties until given the all-clear by doctors and any appearances at royal events would be sporadic at best.
However, she has not been ruled out of making an appearance at the official Trooping the Colour on June 15. Kate, 42, is understood to be considering making an appearance on the Buckingham Palace balcony following the Trooping the Colour ceremony if she is feeling well enough.
