Royal wedding: Prince Harry asks Prince William to be best man

It comes seven years after Prince Harry was best man at his brother's wedding

(Getty Images)

Prince Harry has asked the Duke of Cambridge to be his best man at his wedding to Meghan Markle next month.

Kensington Palace announced the news on Twitter alongside a selection of pictures of the brothers dressed in their finery, playing with lightsabers and cheering on a sports game complete with foam finger.

The royal brothers have decided to keep things in the family once again after Prince Harry served as best man to Prince William when he married Kate Middleton in 2011.

The palace says: “The Duke of Cambridge is honoured to have been asked, and is very much looking forward to supporting his brother at St George's Chapel, Windsor on May 19th.”

Before the announcement was made, some people suspected the Duke of Cambridge might be asked to share the honour with another of Prince Harry’s childhood friends, with Tom Inskip, Arthur Landon, Jake Warren and Guy Pelly all reportedly in the running.

Markle has not revealed who her Maid of Honour will be - or indeed whether she will have one at all - however it’s thought she may ask her close friend, Canadian stylist Jessica Mulroney.

After the news of Prince Harry and Markle’s relationship first broke, the couple took refuge by hiding away from the press and papparazzi at the Mulroneys’ home in Toronto.

Prince George and Princess Charlotte are likely to be page boy and flower girl at the wedding, but their new baby brother will stay at home so as not to steal the limelight.

The soon-to-be royal couple have invited 600 guests to their nuptials, and a more intimate 200 have been invited to the private reception at Frogmore House in Windsor on the evening of the wedding.