Good Morning Britain's Ben Shephard fears the Royal Family may have made their “first misstep” if Prince Harry is forbidden from wearing his military uniform at Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.
Ben was discussing the issue on Tuesday’s edition of the ITV morning show after it has been claimed the Duke of York has been given “dispensation specifically for the funeral” whereas Prince Harry has been told he has to wear “civvies.” Andrew served in the Royal Navy and Harry served in the Army, completing two tours of Afghanistan, so under usual circumstances both would be expected to wear military uniforms for the monarch’s funeral.
However, both princes have stepped down from Royal duties and therefore are stripped of certain privileges, including being able to wear military uniforms for Her Majesty’s funeral. It has been said that an exception has been made for Andrew as “a mark of respect,” something the Good Morning Britain host fears may be a mistake in judgement.
READ MORE: Everything happening today following death of the Queen
Andrew has been a figure of controversy after he made an out of court settlement with Virginia Giuffre, who alleged the prince had sexually abused her when she was 17 years old. Andrew denied the allegations and paid an undisclosed sum, thought to be around £12million, to settle the case, though there was no admission of liability in the deal.
Harry stepped down as a working member of the Royal Family and relocated his family to California, a move that has garnered much scrutiny from the public and the media. Discussing the issue of the princes’ funeral attire, Ben said: “It feels like so far, everything has been so extraordinary to watch, and it’s been pitch perfect and bang in step with what we would all hope it to look like.
“We can see King Charles’ popularity has surged since the March YouGov poll [which is] testament to how well he’s taken up this role. It feels like this might be the first misstep from the public’s perspective that Harry wouldn’t be allowed to wear his military uniform and Prince Andrew will be.”
On Monday, Ben discussed the “protocol” for the Queen’s death and revealed the show’s production team had been preparing for the event for more than a decade. He said: “All of us here at various times over the last 10/15 years have rehearsed for this. We'll plan what's going to happen - there's a protocol about it all.
“But the reality of that moment for all of us has struck really hard.”
ITV has confirmed it will run live, uninterrupted coverage of the Queen’s state funeral at Westminster Abbey on Monday, September 19, which has been made a bank holiday. All the day’s programming, from 6am to midnight, will be broadcast simultaneously on the main channel and five digital channels and the ITV Hub.
It also confirmed there will be no advertising on any channel on the day, and further details of coverage will be announced in due course.
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