Prince Harry Avoided Meghan Markle's Attempt to Hold Hands at a Royal Event, So Their PDA Days Could Be Over

The royal family follow a lot of etiquette rules in public. Among them is a lack of PDA between royals (opens in new tab) and their spouses. While Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have shown PDA (opens in new tab) in public before, it seems like they might be moving toward tradition now that they're married.

During the Young Leaders Reception at Buckingham Palace, Meghan was caught on camera reaching toward her husband's hand. Instead of going in for a comforting hand hold, however, Harry quickly moved his hand away, as seen in video published by The Sun (opens in new tab).

Meghan and Harry haven't been the most traditional royal couple, but this could be a sign that they're planning to start prioritizing royal etiquette at public engagements.

"The Queen rarely holds hands with her husband in public and this seems to have set an unwritten precedent for the other royals," body language expert Robin Kermodetold The MailOnline.

It's not just the Queen and Prince Philip who hold back on public displays of affection. Prince William and his wife, Kate Middleton very rarely show affection in public.

"It is very clear that William and Kate are emotionally close, however, they do not seem to feel the need to prove their love—particularly when on official state business," Kermodetold explained.

Of course, the PDA ban isn't set in stone. As Kermodetold says, it's more of an unwritten rule. During their engagement, Harry and Meghan were all about the hand holding.

"While Prince Harry and Meghan holding hands is atypical for royal engagements, it is a seemingly welcomed gesture to show unity and celebration of their engagement period," Royal etiquette expert Myka Meier told People. "There is no protocol that says they can not show affection on official engagements, and this gesture makes them relatable and lovable to the public."