Harry, Meghan Announce Plans To Attend Queen's Platinum Jubilee Minutes After Palace Bans Them

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle announced they'll be heading to the UK for Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee soon after it was revealed they were banned from the Buckingham Palace balcony.

A statement on Friday afternoon said that the couple as well as the Duke of York would not be invited onto the balcony for Trooping the Color, which is the spectacular beginning of the Queen's long weekend of celebrations, reported Daily Mail. Just minutes later, the Sussexes revealed in a tweet via their friend and journalist Omid Scobie that they will attend the events to mark the Queen's 70 years on the throne that will begin on June 2. The couple will fly in from California with their children -- Archie, 3, and Lilibet, 11 months old.

The couple's presence back in the UK threatens to overshadow the celebrations. Royal expert Tom Bower said that Harry and Meghan have been forced to accept a "downgraded role - grouped with all the other VIPs - but are clearly desperate not to be excluded." He noted that if the Palace is not remarkably careful, the couple will "milk the celebrations for their own benefit."

The Queen had made a "great decision" to restrict the balcony to working royals, said Royal author Angela Levin. On Harry and Meghan's decision to attend other events, she said that the focus "will be on them and how they behave, which the Jubilee shouldn't be about."

It is understood the two have been invited to jubilee events like the service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral on June 3. Sources claimed that the couple were snubbed from the Buckingham Palace balcony amid fears they would be booed, reported The Sun. Royal expert Carole Malone said that of course, Harry and Meghan will "hate the fact they’ve been lumped into the Bad Royals Box with Prince Andrew because comparisons will be made that all three of them have disgraced the royal family, trashed its reputation and hurt people who did nothing to deserve it." The expert said that it’s a good thing they won't be on the balcony, and that it "might have been the first time ever that a royal has been booed by the crowds."

There are also fears that the jubilee could face a "major distraction" if the Netflix film crews turn up, according to The Sun. A source said that while the family are delighted Harry and his wife are coming, "there is a real fear of tension, especially over any Netflix crew." The source added that there are "concerns tension could explode if the Netflix team comes to the UK and tries to exploit their opportunities."