Did Adele and Harry Styles really turn down invitations to perform at the upcoming celebration of the coronation of King Charles III?
Reps for the two artists have declined to comment on reports that they chose not to take part in the Coronation Concert at Windsor Castle on May 7.
Styles is on a break from his Love On Tour between March 25 and May 13 but UK tabloid The Sun quoted a source as saying he would be “unable to get key band members together.” Adele’s Las Vegas residency wraps up on March 25 but perhaps she's too busy working on seating arrangements for her wedding reception?
Elton John’s rep told Rolling Stone that he was, in fact, asked to perform at the coronation celebration but can’t due to “scheduling issues.” (He has two days off between his concert in Hamburg on May 5 and one in Berlin on May 8 – and it’s only a 90-minute flight to London.) It’s possible John’s longtime friendship with the late Princess Diana makes him reluctant to celebrate her ex-husband.
Also rumoured to have turned down the gig are Spice Girls, Ed Sheeran and Robbie Williams.
Sheeran has a concert in Texas on May 6 but none until May 13.
Williams’ former Take That mates Gary Barlow, Mark Owen and Howard Donald have signed on, along with Kylie and Dannii Minogue, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Lionel Richie, according to The Sun. Also reportedly in talks is Olly Murs.
Rolling Stone noted that “to perform at a royal event in 2023 would be to align yourself with blatant scandal” if one believes the allegations against Prince Andrew and those made about the royal family by Prince Harry in his memoir.
“The royal family has faced a number of PR disasters in recent times, and anyone performing at the show would have to consider whether there would be a backlash from appearing amongst their fans,” Simon Jones, a publicist for Little Mix, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson told Rolling Stone.
Neither Buckingham Palace nor the BBC, which is producing the Coronation Concert, have publicly addressed the reports.