Why We May See Less of the Royal Family Fab Four Appearing Together in Public

Like some kind of all-powerful Kensington Palace transformer, Prince William, Kate Middleton, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle  (opens in new tab)become even more wonderful when they’re together. Lovingly dubbed the "royal fab four" by the media, the two couples have become the representation of the monarchy for millennials, and there’s something about seeing them together at public appearances (opens in new tab) that’s particularly special.

But, with Queen Elizabeth II reportedly set to take one step back soon from her typical royal duties, it’s thought that Princes Harry and William may also be about to make some major changes in the way things work for the royal family—and that could mean we see less of the four royals together in public.

According to a report by The Sunday Times (opens in new tab), the princely brothers are looking to the future and anticipating that it may be time to ditch the double act that they’ve enjoyed while growing up. It’s said that the Duke of Cambridge, 36, and the Duke of Sussex, 34, are now “considering a royal division” of their Kensington Palace household (opens in new tab), in order to make sure they can pursue their own goals with their wives for the coming years. According to insiders, Harry and Will will soon have separate staff and offices, but maintain a close communication between the two.

A source explained: “There is a gulf in the style and approach to the type of work that William and Kate will increasingly do as future head of state and consort, and Harry and Meghan, who have more of a blank canvas with their roles… William and Harry’s double act has naturally been supplanted by the two couples and their families… They have become different people with different outlooks on life. Splitting the household is the obvious thing to do.”

Royal author Sally Bedell Smith believes that there’s truth to the idea, and argues that the idea of change has been on the cards since Meghan Markle first became a member of the royal family. She explained to Vanity Fair (opens in new tab): “I had heard that a division might be in the cards, and that it had a lot to do with Meghan—not in a negative way, but that Meghan and Harry’s interests were moving in different directions [from William and Kate’s]…The Fab Four was a nice construction, but they will only appear as a foursome from time to time.”

It’s apparently unlikely that anything drastic will happen now before the birth of Harry and Meghan’s first child but, with Prince William as heir to the throne, and Harry as sixth in line (opens in new tab), their roles are soon to become very different, and it makes sense that they’ll be on less engagements together. It's the end of an era, guys.