Kate Middleton offered to help 'defuse' the tension between Meghan Markle and the Queen in this sweet way

meghan markle and kate middleton attend wimbledon together

Another day, another revelation in the ongoing royal rift between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the wider Royal Family.

Yes, despite stepping down from their senior royal roles and relocating to California, Harry and Meghan are still all anyone can talk about here in the UK – from their first official joint magazine cover, to their whistle-stop tour of New York City last month.

Though their now-infamous Oprah interview certainly cleared up some speculation over why the couple decided to swap Frogmore Cottage for Montecito, speculation has abounded over what exactly happened in the weeks and months leading up to their dramatic exit.

The Commonwealth Day Service at Westminster Abbey, held shortly before the first UK lockdown in March 2020, was Harry and Meghan's final royal outing (and the last time the couple were seen together with the Royal Family) before they departed for the US.

Tensions are thought to have been high on the day, with Harry's brother and sister-in-law, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, appearing to avoid even greeting the couple, and many on social media branding the whole thing 'painful' to watch.

Additionally, Harry and Meghan sat behind Kate and William and little, if any, interaction appeared to take place between the former 'Fab Four'.

But according to a recent report in the Daily Mail, Kate and William actually made a last minute attempt to extend an olive branch to the couple on the day.

According to the tabloid, Harry and Meghan had hoped to remain part of the Queen's procession at the beginning of the service. Instead, they were shown to their seats before the ceremony commenced like all the other guests – a move that reportedly left them "upset and emotional".

But, says the publication, in a last-ditch effort to make peace, Kate and William made a change to the running order to ensure that they too would skip the procession and join the Sussexes in their seats ahead of the service.

So last minute was the decision that the order of services had already been printed – with Kate and William's names still on the procession.

Who knew?

We hope that the 'Fab Four' are able to heal their ongoing rift soon.

Kate McCusker

Kate McCusker is a freelance writer at Marie Claire UK, having joined the team in 2019. She studied fashion journalism at Central Saint Martins, and her byline has also appeared in Dezeen, British Vogue, The Times and woman&home. In no particular order, her big loves are: design, good fiction, bad reality shows and the risible interiors of celebrity houses.