King Charles may have sidestepped any scutiny over his strained ties with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle with a big decision he took around his Christmas speech

A behind-the-scenes look at King Charles’ speech (Image: Instagram)

A Royal expert believes King Charles cleverly avoided intense scrutiny over Prince Harry and Meghan Markle by recording this year’s Christmas speech at a different location, rather than Buckingham Palace.

For the first time in years, the monarch delivered the Christmas address from Fitzrovia Chapel in London, breaking with the traditional Royal backdrop.

According to royal expert and author Robert Hardman, this change of location may have spared the monarch from the usual intense analysis of the photos on display, which often sparks debate when Harry and Meghan’s pictures are not included.

In the past, the Queen’s Christmas speeches have been criticised for their opulent settings, such as in 2018 when she was filmed in front of a “gold” piano at Buckingham Palace, prompting accusations of hypocrisy when she spoke of “generosity and sacrifice”.

King Charles III during the recording of his Christmas message (Image: PA)

Hardman wrote in the Daily Mail: “There can also be some advantages in moving the recording away from home. In 2018, the Queen came under attack on social media for asking for ‘generosity and self-sacrifice’ during an address recorded from the White Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace.

“Anti-monarchists grumbled that she was speaking in front of a ‘gold piano’, a gilded 19th-century piece commissioned for Queen Victoria.”

The King has avoided scrutiny of the Royal family dynamics by choosing not to film in a Royal study or sitting room, thus sidestepping any analysis of the photographs and portraits on display, which might hint at who is in or out of favour.

Instead, the neutral backdrop of the Fitzrovia Chapel reveals only a Christmas tree with sustainable decorations.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry recently appeared virtually on the first day of the inaugural Global Ministerial Conference on Violence Against Children in Colombia (Image: /)

Mr Hardman added: “By avoiding a royal desk or sitting room, the King has also avoided any micro-analysis of whichever royal photographs and portraits are in shot, and thus hinting at who is (or is not) in royal favour.

“The Fitzrovia Chapel reveals nothing more tantalising than a Christmas tree decorated with ‘sustainable’ decorations.”

The monarch’s relationship with Prince Harry has reportedly been strained since Harry and Meghan stepped down as working royals and moved abroad.

According to reports, the King is concerned that Harry might use their conversations against him in his ongoing court battle with the Home Office.

Father and son are barely talking (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Furthermore, the King was allegedly outraged when Harry referred to Queen Camilla as “the Other Woman” and a “wicked stepmother” in his memoir Spare, published in 2023.

A source revealed to the Mirror: “It was the last straw.”

The insider added: “Harry was well aware how Camilla would be a red line for his father and he crossed with flagrant disregard anyway.

“The King felt without a doubt it crossed a line – it was the ultimate act of disrespect.”