Prince Philip's funeral on Saturday, 17 April, will be scaled down and limited to just 30 people because of the COVID-19 restrictions but one non-royal has, allegedly, been entitled to join members of the royal family.
According to reports, senior members of the royal family are definitely going to be at the funeral along with Prince Philip's grandchildren. This means that 16 slots out of the 30 will be immediately reserved for them: Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, Prince William, Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Edward, Sophie, the Countess of Wessex, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, Peter Phillips, Zara Tindall, Prince Harry, Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie, Lady Louise and James, Viscount Severn.
Prince Philip's great-grandchildren are all under 10 years old and thus may not have to be at the mass gathering. As Meghan Markle is not in attendance, the other spouses of the grandchildren, such as Mike Tindall, Jack Brooksbank and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, might not be there as well.
In-law Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, is not expected to be invited given her difficult relationship with Prince Philip. However, Ferguson has vowed not to air her YouTube programs until after the funeral as a sign of respect for the Duke of Edinburgh.
With a few slots free, this will allow the queen to invite her cousins to be at the funeral. They are Princess Alexandra, Prince Richard, the Duke of Gloucester, Prince Edward, the Duke of Kent, and Prince Michael of Kent.
It's unclear if the royal cousins' respective spouses will be given a slot as the queen might also want to ask her nephew and niece, David Linney and Sarah Chatto, to pay their respects. Linney and Chatto are the children of Princess Margaret. Princess Anne's husband Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence might be asked to join the private funeral as well as he has a special relationship with his father-in-law.
Queen Elizabeth could also invite Penny Brabourne, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, who was a regular in royal family gatherings and was constantly keeping watch over Philip when he retired at Wood Farm. Brabourne and the Duke of Edinburgh had been friends for decades and she also has a very close bond with the queen.
The non-royal who could be asked to join is Brigadier Archie Miller Bakewell, Philip's long-serving private secretary. He has been his right hand for a decade and deserves to be included on the guest list.
Part of the funeral ceremonies will be aired on television via BBC, especially the procession going to St. George's Chapel. Philip's body is lying at rest in a private chapel inside Windsor Castle until his funeral.
