Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet's UK return rests on one key factor

Prince Harry is expected to come back to the UK to attend a ceremony in London on May 8 and whilst the royal is hoping to have his children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, with him, their return is down to one key factor, according to a source.

The Duke of Sussex is set to speak at the Invictus Games 10th Anniversary Service which is to be held at St. Paul’s Cathedral.

Even though his trip has not been officially confirmed, Harry is listed as a guest on the official running with the duke set to speak at the service.

However, his wife, Meghan Markle's, attendance is still in doubt, even though she is also listed as a guest at the service with the insider saying her appearance is yet to be confirmed.

And it's only down to her decision about whether she will return to the UK or not that will determine whether Archie and Lilibet will come back too.

The source explained: "The children’s attendance is still up in the air because they will only visit the UK if their mother [Meghan] decides to attend."

They added: "Harry is hoping that they will join him so that they can all enjoy the service, and everyone can meet up with members of his family while they are over."

Archie, four, and Lilibet, two, currently reside and are being raised in Montecito, California along with their parents.

The Sussex children have barely set foot in Britain, with Lilibet only travelling to Harry's home country once in 2022 during the Platinum Jubilee celebrations for the late Queen Elizabeth.

During their last visit, which took place in June, the Montecito family also celebrated Lilibet's milestone birthday as she turned one and even threw a party at their then-UK residence, Frogmore Cottage.

But experts have continuously raised their concerns over the children being absent from King Charles's life - something which, according to sources, has left the monarch heartbroken - particularly after his cancer diagnosis.

Royal commentator Michael Cole once labelled the lack of time the King gets to spend with his grandchildren from Montecito as "very sad".

He told GB News: "Well, the fact is he [King Charles] is not seeing his grandchildren.

"He has hardly seen Prince Archie and I am not sure he has even since Princess Lilibet more than once. It is a very sad state of affairs."