A royal expert has claimed that the Obamas did not invite Meghan Markle and Prince Harry to Barack’s 60th birthday party “out of respect for the Queen.”
A royal biographer also suggested that Meghan and Harry’s absence at former President Obama’s 60th birthday party may have been due to Michelle and Barack Obama’s disapproval of the Sussexes’ recent attacks against the Royal Family.
The Obamas invited several of their celebrity friends to their party
On Saturday, former US President Barack Obama celebrated his 60th birthday at his Martha’s Vineyard mansion in Massachusetts. He and the former First Lady Michelle Obama hosted several of their celebrity friends.
Guests at the party reportedly included Meghan and Oprah’s friend Gayle King, Jay-Z and Beyonce, John Legend and Chrissy Teigen, Tom Hanks, Stephen Spielberg, and George Clooney.
Meghan and Harry’s absence sparked speculation. Royal fans wanted to know whether the Obamas did not include the Sussexes on their invite list or whether they declined an invitation.
Obamas didn’t invite Harry and Meghan ‘out of respect for the Queen,’ royal biographer claimed
Writing in the Sun, royal expert Angela Levin, author of Harry: Biography of a Prince, claimed that Meghan was not invited to the party although she “desperately wanted to be the special guest at the Obama’s amazing party.”
The Obamas did not invite the Duke and Duchess of Sussex because they “wanted to take a ‘step back’ from the couple out of respect for the Queen,” Levin argued.
The Obamas met the Queen in 2009 during the G20 summit and they have a mutually warm relationship. Michelle and Barack are known to be fond of the Queen.
Meghan and Harry’s Oprah interview ‘will not have gone down well’ with the Obamas
Camilla Tominey, a royal expert and associate editor at the Telegraph, claimed that Meghan and Harry’s controversial “tell-all” interview with Oprah “arguably will not have gone down particularly well” with the Obamas because they always “put family first.”
According to Tominey writing in the Telegraph, a source close to the Obamas agreed that Barack and Michelle disapproved of Harry’s attacks against his family.
“The Obamas didn’t like Harry attacking his family,” the source reportedly said. “They value family and certainly aren’t the type of people who would want their children talking to the press.”
Michelle Obama hoped for ‘forgiveness and healing’ for the Royal Family
Speculation by royal experts about the Sussexes’ absence at Obama’s birthday party comes after Michelle reacted to Meghan and Harry’s bombshell claims during their interview with Oprah in March.
During an appearance on the Today Show with Jenna Bush Hager back in March, Michelle Obama “prayed for forgiveness and healing” for the Royal Family.
“This, first and foremost, is a family, and I pray for forgiveness and healing for them so that they can use this for a teachable moment for us all,” she said.
She also told Access Hollywood that she wished the Royals well and hoped “there is forgiveness and there is clarity and love and resolve at some point in time.”
The former First Lady added that “there’s nothing more important than family.”