The Queen Refused to Let Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Photograph Her Meeting Lilibet

She was concerned about how images would be shared.

Members Of The Royal Family Attend Events To Mark The Centenary Of The RAF
(Image credit: Photo by Chris Jackson / Getty)

Being part of the Royal Family means the word of the monarch goes.

Unfortunately for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, that means they weren't able to capture the moment Queen Elizabeth II met her namesake, one-year-old Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, during the Platinum Jubilee this past weekend.

The little girl was introduced to Her Majesty on Thursday afternoon at Windsor Castle, and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were reportedly refused a memento.

"Harry and Meghan wanted their photographer to capture the moment Lilibet met the Queen," an insider told The Sun.

"But they were told no chance. It was a private family meeting."

The Queen was apparently concerned about how a professional photograph might be used afterwards, including being shared with U.S. television networks. Whether this means the Sussexes were allowed to take, like, iPhone pictures for private use remains a mystery.

The U.S.-based couple returned to the U.K. as a family for the first time since they renounced their royal duties in early 2020, to celebrate the Queen's 70 years on the throne. While 3-year-old Archie was born in England, his little sister was born in California, and had never met her great-grandmother before.

Their photographer's wasn't the only camera that didn't fly during the Jubilee: The Sussexes also couldn't bring Netflix cameras to film footage from the weekend for their documentary, due to a clause included in the Sandringham Agreement they signed in order to leave their roles as senior royals.

"I highly doubt they would even think about that. It would be such a bad look," a royal source previously told Page Six about the possibility of Netflix cameras.

"Even if they could sneak a camera in, they wouldn’t be able to use any of the footage. I guess they could do home video on their phones, but I honestly don’t think they would."

Iris Goldsztajn
Morning Editor

Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Bustle and Shape. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.