Prince Harry and Meghan to join the Queen for Platinum Jubilee service at St Paul’s Cathedral

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are expected to join the biggest Royal Family reunion since their wedding next week as the Queen’s relatives gather en masse to celebrate her reign at St Paul’s Cathedral.

All of the Queen’s cousins, children and grandchildren are due to attend the Platinum Jubilee service of thanksgiving for what will be the biggest royal outing of the bank holiday weekend, although the youngest family members will not take part.

Some of her older great-grandchildren such as Prince George, aged eight, Princess Charlotte, seven, and Mia Tindall, also eight, may attend, although their involvement is not yet confirmed.

The most recent additions to the family, including the Sussexes’ son, Archie, three, and daughter, Lilibet, who turns one next Saturday, are thought unlikely to be present.

The service will take place on Friday June 3, bringing the monarch’s nearest and dearest together. The last time the Duke and Duchess, who are due to fly over from California with their children next week, were surrounded by so many members of the Royal family was when they married at Windsor Castle in May 2018.

The Duke of York will also be among the congregants in what is expected to be his sole appearance of the festivities.

The Queen’s relatives will attend as family members, meaning the Sussexes and Prince Andrew, who are no longer working members of the Royal family, will attend in a private capacity.

The monarch’s participation is unlikely to be confirmed until the day, but it is said to be one of the jubilee events she is particularly keen to attend.

The service will be the only public event of the four-day celebration for which she will be surrounded by all four of her children – the Prince of Wales, the Princess Royal, Prince Andrew and the Earl of Wessex.

Her grandchildren are all expected to join her, from the eldest, 44-year-old Peter Phillips, to the youngest, James Viscount Severn, 14.

Her cousins and their respective partners – Princess Alexandra, the Duke and Duchess of Kent, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and Prince Michael of Kent – are also due to attend, as are her niece and nephew, Lady Sarah Chatto and the Earl of Snowdon, with their families.

Palace aides are working on plans to ensure that the Queen can attend with dignity, as she will be unable to walk up the many steps at the cathedral’s main entrance. Staff are also considering how she can best travel to the service in comfort and make her way in through a side entrance without being photographed if necessary.

Aides have confirmed that she has been experiencing “episodic mobility problems” since the autumn.

Members of the Royal family are expected to arrive at St Paul’s from 11am. Great Paul, the largest church bell in the country, will be rung before the service, which will be broadcast live on BBC1.

It will include bible readings, anthems, prayers and congregational hymns to express thanks for the Queen’s reign, faith and service, her desire to foster unity and peace and her commitment to care for God’s creation.

A new anthem by Judith Weir, the Master of the Queen’s Music, which sets to music words from the third chapter of the book of Proverbs, will be performed.

Most members of the Royal family will attend other events throughout the four-day weekend, but not in such large numbers.

Many, including Prince Charles, Prince William and Princess Anne, will attend Trooping the Colour on horseback next Thursday. Plans are being drawn up that could see the trio take the royal salute during the parade in the monarch’s place, although no final decision has been made.

It is hoped that the Queen will be well enough to appear on the Buckingham Palace balcony alongside the working members of her family for the traditional RAF flypast after the ceremony.

Some of the younger royals, such as the Queen’s grandchildren, are thought likely to attend the Platinum Party at the Palace, while it is thought a second balcony appearance could be on the cards following the street pageant next Sunday.