Sunday, March 7, is going to be a big day for royals fans. That’s the day that Meghan and Harry’s 90-minute prime-time Oprah interview will air on CBS, and now the queen has announced that she will also air a televised statement that day, just hours before Harry and Meghan’s appearance.
The queen’s speech is to mark Britain’s Commonwealth Day, on March 8. Usually, there is an annual Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, but due to COVID-19 concerns, the in-person ceremony has been scrapped. Instead, the queen and other royal-family members without podcast deals will address the nation in a prerecorded video filmed at Windsor Castle.
Last year’s Commonwealth Day service was Meghan and Harry’s last official royal engagement after they stepped down as senior members of the royal family. After that, the pair bounced around to Canada, then L.A., before eventually settling in the tony community of Montecito, near Santa Barbara. They’ve also signed deals with Spotify and Netflix, and this month, they announced they’re expecting a second baby together.
Back in England, the royal family is apparently extremely nervous about Harry and Meghan’s tell-all Oprah interview. Sources told the Daily Mail that segments of the interview may have been cut or reedited due to the rifts they caused. (These rumors have not been confirmed.)
In any case, while the two appearances falling on the same day could possibly be a genuine coincidence, it seems like it will be hard for the queen’s staid prerecorded address to compete with one of the most anticipated interviews of the year.