Why Buckingham Palace Hasn't Announced Date Of Prince Philip's Funeral: Report

Buckingham Palace has yet to confirm the date of Prince Philip's funeral likely due to reasons related to the COVID-19 pandemic, a royal expert has said.

The palace broke the news Friday that the Duke of Edinburgh died at age 99 but has not yet announced when his funeral will be held. Royal biographer Omid Scobie speculated that the palace will take into consideration pandemic restrictions when choosing the date, including the 10-day quarantine Prince Harry and other guests flying in would have to undergo if they enter the U.K.

"People who will be attending this funeral, perhaps on diplomatic terms, will still have to quarantine for 10 days when they enter the country. That, of course, could include Prince Harry as well," the "Finding Freedom" author told Entertainment Tonight. "There are many things that they are going to need to take into account before they announce the official date."

Scobie also speculated that the palace's hope that the public will heed its request not to gather due to the pandemic could be another reason for the delay in the announcement of the date of the service.

"I think what they don't want to happen is have the entire country know where it's taking place and then to all want to congregate there," he continued. "There has been a lot of work going on behind the scenes to make sure that this is a COVID-safe gathering."

As for the members of the royal family, the royal correspondent said they are will enter a period of mourning. They are also expected to wear black in their scheduled engagements in the coming days or weeks.

"We'll see the queen's royal mourning period followed by all members of the royal family," Scobie added. "If there are any appearances of them in the days or weeks ahead, we will see them dressed appropriately in black... All royal engagements over the next eight days at least have been put to one side."

Scobie also said that Prince Philip's death may be an opportunity for the royals to come "together as a family and really supporting each other." Though he believes the duke's passing "had been a long time coming," there's still "a huge sense of sadness" across royal households.

Meanwhile, Britain’s government website may have accidentally revealed that Prince Philip’s funeral will be held on April 17 despite the lack of announcement from Buckingham Palace, New York Post reported.

"On April 9, 2021, Buckingham Palace announced the death of His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh," read the post on the Gov.uk website. "From this date, a period of national mourning began and will continue for eight days until the morning of the funeral."

However, the post has since been deleted, and the government website now only says, "further announcements will be made in due course."