Prince Harry and Meghan Markle would NOT be welcome at the Royals’ Christmas at Sandringham, insiders claim, after reports the Sussexes ‘wouldn’t refuse’ an offer to join King Charles and the rest of the family over the festive period

Harry and Meghan may have said they would accept a Christmas invitation to Sandringham but it is unlikely they would be welcomed with open arms, insiders claimed last night.

Following reports that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are keen to build bridges and ‘won’t refuse’ an offer to join His Majesty for the holidays, sources say the sudden ‘love bombing’ from Montecito was ‘bizarre’.

It comes days after sources close to the Sussexes repeatedly informed friendly publications of Harry’s intention to call his father to wish him a happy birthday on Tuesday.

They then offered surprisingly in-depth stories about how both the prince and his wife got the call and even shared a video of their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, singing to the grandfather they’ve barely seen since birth.

And yesterday, a claim in the Sunday Times from ‘friends of the Sussexes’ that they ‘want to change the state of affairs’ and would ‘willingly accept’ an invitation prompted a source to tell the Mail: ‘It seems as if they really doubling down on their reconciliation strategy.

Following reports that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are keen to build bridges and ‘won’t refuse’ an offer to join His Majesty (pictured) over the holidays, sources say the sudden ‘love bombing’ from Montecito ‘ was bizarre’.

And yesterday, a claim in the Sunday Times from ‘friends of the Sussexes’ that they ‘want to change the state of affairs’ and would ‘willingly accept’ an invitation prompted a source to tell the Mail: ‘It seems as if they really doubling down on their reconciliation strategy (photo: Sandringham estate)

‘It is so bizarre to have behaved so badly, to have demanded an apology and an admission of ‘guilt’ – in vain, I might add – from the family and now to suggest that they will simply come back in and let bygones be bygones, if only someone would be good enough to invite them.”

The insider pointed out that the couple had received invitations from both Queen Elizabeth and King Charles to join the family in Balmoral this summer, but had opted not to visit since 2018.

They added: “Which begs the question: why now? Does it have anything to do with the fact that some of their commercial deals, like Spotify, have fallen by the wayside and they’ve been ridiculed in the US on shows like South Park and Family Guy?’

“Could it be that they’ve realized complaining about how horrible it is to be a member of the royal family isn’t such a great strategy after all?”

The source noted that any invitation may not go down well with other senior royals, including the Prince of Wales, whose relationship with his younger brother is now non-existent.

There was a lot of talk in royal circles yesterday about whether the Waleses would even attend if Harry and Meghan were invited, which suddenly made Christmas with the Middleton family look all the more appealing.

Another royal insider suggested to the Mail that they believed the King would be more likely to invite Harry and Meghan to visit him in Scotland over the New Year, when the Waleses would be at Anmer Hall, their country home in Norfolk.

There was a lot of talk in royal circles yesterday about whether the Waleses would even attend if Harry and Meghan were invited, which suddenly made Christmas with the Middleton family look all the more appealing.

So the sudden wave of briefings from Team Sussex has caused enormous frustration in recent days, but King Charles has made it clear that Harry – and his family – are welcome to stay on royal property if they come to Britain.

‘It would certainly have the advantage of killing two birds with one stone; extending an olive branch to one son without causing trouble to the other,” they said.

There is also extreme wariness within the royal family after both the Duke and Duchess revealed details of private family conversations, phone calls and even text messages in their Oprah interview, Netflix documentary series and Harry’s own memoir.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the latest reports.

But sources have previously told the Mail that the king will never ‘close the door’ on his youngest son and believes their relationship can be repaired behind closed doors in time.

So the sudden wave of briefings from Team Sussex has caused enormous frustration in recent days, but King Charles has made it clear that Harry – and his family – are welcome to stay on royal property if they come to Britain.

“Normally Christmas plans are set by now as Sandringham isn’t particularly big and there isn’t much room for the whole extended family,” another source warned.

‘It would be surprising if the Sussexes had not already received an invitation if one were to be made. New Year in Scotland would be more likely.

“But as with everything to do with Harry and Meghan, let’s face it: anything can happen.”