Royals to appear in TV special hours before Sussexes' Oprah interview

Queen Elizabeth and Kate Middleton will appear in a TV special to replace the annual Commonwealth Day service, which has been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The BBC show is being planned for March 7, which is the same day Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's interview with Oprah Winfrey airs.

The Queen and the Duchess of Cambridge are expected to be joined by senior members of the royal family, including Charles and Camilla, Prince William and Sophie, the Countess of Wessex.

It will be presented from Westminster Abbey, which confirmed the news in a statement.

"We're really pleased to tell you that BBC One will broadcast 'A Celebration for Commonwealth Day' on 7 March," it said.

"The special programme replaces this year's Commonwealth Day service which is unable to go ahead due to the pandemic, and will include a special message from HM The Queen.

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"Presented from the Abbey by Anita Rani, the programme will feature music and readings from across the Commonwealth, and reflections from The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and The Countess of Wessex."

Prayers during the broadcast will be led by the Very Reverend Dr David Hoyle.

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"The Commonwealth Service is one of the Abbey's most important annual services, but as it is not possible to gather here, we have seized the chance to take the celebration well beyond these walls," he said.

"We are so pleased that this rich and vibrant BBC programme with the Royal Family and the Abbey at its heart will celebrate our global connections at a time when we are all so physically isolated."

While both programs will air on March 7, Meghan and Harry's Oprah interview is scheduled to broadcast at 8pm in the US, which is 1am on March 8 in the UK.

It has been a busy week in royal news, with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announcing they were expecting their second child on Valentine's Day, and their interview with Oprah confirmed just a day later.

This week it was announced Harry, 36, and Meghan, 39, will not be returning as working members of the royal family.

They have been stripped of their remaining patronages and are now living lives independent of the monarchy.

The couple has numerous commercial projects in the works, including a podcast for Spotify through their Archewell Audio brand, as well as a lucrative production deal with streaming giant Netflix.