King’s Coronation in crisis after Elton John and Spice Girls turn down chance to appear
Several musical celebrities have snubbed invites to perform at King Charles’s Coronation celebrations, sparking worry among planners. Elton John, the Spice Girls, and Harry Styles are among the A-list celebrities who have already snubbed the chance to perform at His Majesty’s big Windsor Castle concert on May 6. The concert will take place following the Coronation ceremony at Westminister Abbey earlier in the day.
Other big-name British celebrities like Ed Sheeran, Adele, and Robbie Williams have also turned down the chance to perform at the concert.
Robbie William’s absence raised eyebrows after it had been expected that a Take That reunion would take place.
Take That’s Gary Barlow, Mark Owen, and Howard Donald are due to headline the concert.
It is also expected to feature Kylie and Dannii Minogue, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and US soul legend Lionel Richie.
The Duke of Sussex’s “scathing attacks” in his book Spare have damaged his relationship with his brother to the point it has created “seismic fractures”, a royal author claims. Royal author Christopher Andersen claims those seismic-level fractures have invaded all of Meghan and Harry’s relationships. As a result, he warned Prince William and Kate could give them the cold shoulder.
According to sources close to the Coronation planning, officials have turned to The X Factor runner-up Olly Murs to fill in the gap.
One royal source told The Sun: “Organisers are working against the clock to pull together an exciting line-up but have hit a series of challenges.
“Elton John was top of Charles’ list but due to his European tour, which sees him performing in Germany the Friday before then again soon after the Windsor concert, he isn’t able to make the dash to the UK work.
“Meanwhile, man-of-the-moment Harry Styles is also tied up with touring and unable to get key band members together as they’ll be on much-needed downtime.”
The last national royal celebration – Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Party at the Palace last June – featured Queen, Duran Duran, Diana Ross, and Alicia Keys.
The embarrassing snubs come as invitations for 2,000 guests expected at the event go out in the next two weeks.
The guest list number is a quarter of the number that attended Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation in 1953
Prince Albert of Monaco and Princess Charlene were the first foreign royals to say they will be at the coronation.
Scores of other foreign royals, leaders and dignitaries are expected to attend.
It remains unclear whether Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle will be in attendance at the event.
Among plans for the ceremony, Prince George – the son of Prince William and Kate, Princess of Wales – is expected to play a “big part” in the celebrations.
