Prince Harry is celebrating his 42nd birthday on Tuesday, September 15, and wife Meghan Markle posted a special Instagram Reel to pay tribute to her husband. Along with celebrating the Duke of Sussex’s big day, the video revealed some new glimpses at the family’s life in England after they moved back to the U.K. in August—and Princess Lilibet managed to steal the show with her sweet style.

“He’s simply the best. Happy birthday, my love ❤️,” she captioned the video, which was set to a cover of Tina Turner's “Simply the Best.” In the Reel, Lilibet, 5, and big brother Prince Archie, 7, join dad Harry for some outdoor fun, but most of the photos feature the princess, including a snapshot of her wearing a headband that pays homage to one of mom Meghan’s favorite activities.

In one photo, Meghan and Lilibet ride in a golf cart as Harry leans in and gives his daughter—who is wearing a bedazzled headband—a kiss. Lili’s knotted white headband features gemstones and Mahjong tiles, and it seems she shares Meghan’s love of the classic Chinese game.

Mahjong dates back to the 1800s and has experienced a rise in popularity in the United States in recent years, with the Duchess of Sussex having regularly gathered with friends to play in California. According to Hello! magazine, Meghan is now teaching Lilibet how to play the complex tile game.

Prince Harry’s birthday video also featured glimpses at some of the family’s other hobbies, including a photo of the duke skiing with Princess Lilibet and a snap of him driving an ATV with Archie, Lilibet, and a Union-Jack themed Marks and Spencer bag in tow as their dog, Pula, runs behind.

The video comes a day after Hello! revealed that Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet have left their new school in England after just two days.

A spokesperson for the family shared that traffic and logistical concerns with the school made it difficult for their security team to get the kids there safely, with a representative stating, “The decision for the children to move school was taken following a discussion with the family’s security team about the practicalities of their current arrangements."

The children are now settling into a different school that better suits their needs, with the outlet reporting that "Prince Harry was spotted settling Lili into reception and the couple have been added to the parents' whatsapp groups."

Shop Similar

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle moved back to Britain at the end of August, but the Duchess of Sussex has remained quiet about their major news until now. On Sunday, September 13, the Duchess of Sussex shared an Instagram Reel showing off some highlights from their new life in the English countryside, and she looked the part in two pairs of designer rain boots.

Meghan wore a quilted brown Cuyana coat and chocolate Le Chameau Jameson wellies as she held hands with Prince Harry in the video, which showed various glimpses of the Sussexes and their children, Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5.

The duchess, who often goes barefoot in her Instagram posts, traded her sunny California lifestyle for some rainy English weather, sharing a clip of herself splashing in a puddle wearing a pair of jeans tucked into olive Le Chameau Vierzon boots in the Reel.

The brand's "Iconic Green" boots are also favored by Princess Kate, who has worn a slightly different Vierzonord style over the years.

The rest of Meghan's Reel shows Lilibet and Archie enjoying the British outdoors, with the duo fishing in a rowboat with dad Prince Harry and riding bikes as a herd of deer runs past.

While the Duke of Sussex has announced some upcoming charity events in the U.K., Meghan appears to be hanging close to home at the moment.

“There is a lot to do," a source recently told People. "They have just moved halfway across the world, and it’s been really busy getting the kids settled. Their focus has been on that, and will remain on that, for the time being. They are happy to be back.”

Shop Similar

Prince William and Princess Kate are just trying to live a nice, quiet life in the countryside. Splitting their time between Forest Lodge in Windsor and Anmer Hall in Norfolk, their days are spent balancing school runs and sports with royal duties. They like to avoid drama and headlines, focusing on their work and their family life. In the midst of their peaceful existence, the news that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are moving back to the United Kingdom surely shook things up.

“It was a shock to William and Kate,” a source close to the couple revealed to Us. “They’re still processing it, but their initial surprise has evolved.” While many are hoping that their new close proximity might spark some healing conversations between the two royal brothers, the source cautions that nothing is likely to change right away. “They’re taking a wait-and-see approach.”

“No one’s booking a table for two for William and Harry,” the source joked. Plenty would be happy to see Prince William and Prince Harry reunited, bonding again as brothers, but the rift between them is bigger than ever. “Everyone wants a reunion story, but it’s not something that’s in the cards,” the source said. “If fences do get mended, it will be a slow and private process, and on William’s terms.”

King Charles is reportedly “pleased” that his younger grandchildren now live nearby and “hopes for closer ties to his son.” The source stresses that the King “remains cautious about managing expectations” as everyone gets used to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s big change. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are likely more focused on such a big move, settling their children into their new life in the United Kingdom. Several sources suggest the Sussex family have settled in the idyllic Cotswolds, with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet starting at a nearby private school.

King Charles has shared a statement regarding Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's move to the U.K., which reveals whether the pair will return to official royal duties.

The Daily Mail's royal editor, Rebecca English, shared the news, writing, "In a letter of guidance to 'senior stakeholders' in the government, military, and those who represent the Royal Family around the country, Charles said Harry and Meghan's titles are in abeyance and they should not be treated as anything other than private individuals."

The King also referenced Prince Harry's ongoing call for adequate protection, writing, "security issues should continue to be directed to the relevant police authorities."

English shared the full letter in her article, which explained: "Following the decision by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to relocate to the U.K., we have received a number of requests for guidance. To help avoid doubt or confusion, The King has directed that the following information be shared."

The letter continued, "It is well known that in January 2020 the duke and duchess stepped down from undertaking representative duties on behalf of the sovereign, and are no longer working members of the Royal Family."

Furthermore, the letter noted, "This position, distinct from the state and royal duties undertaken by the working Royal Family, and with the personal latitude it brings the couple in respect of financial independence and protection of their privacy as they would wish, will continue to be fully respected."

Per the statement, "The charitable work of the duke and duchess is a personal matter for them both and undertaken in their private capacity. In short, their position is akin to private citizens with commercial and charitable interests."

The letter also noted that Meghan and Harry will continue to use their royal titles as previously designated, which includes no longer styling themselves as His or Her Royal Highness.

Shop Royal Family Books

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have moved back to Britain for the time being, but their relationship with Prince William and Princess Kate isn't showing any signs of improvement. The brothers have not spoken in several years, and a source recently told People magazine that the Waleses are avoiding a "knee-jerk reaction" to the move. While other royal insiders have suggested that it's on Prince William to reach out and fix their relationship, the Daily Mail's Richard Eden shared what a friend of William and Kate's said—and why he disagrees that a reconciliation should be forced.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex touched down in Birmingham, England last week with their children Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, and the family is reportedly looking to settle down in the Cotswolds. Although they spent time with King Charles and Queen Camilla in July, Harry and Meghan have not interacted with the Prince and Princess of Wales since Queen Elizabeth's funeral in September 2022.

At the moment, the Sussexes have no plans to become full-time working royals again, and it's not expected that they'll be making public appearances with the family in the near future. But Richard Kay of the Daily Mail noted, "At some stage they are going to have to engage, because they can't not engage forever."

However, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Sussex have done just that in recent years. They didn't interact at King Charles's May 2023 coronation, and the brothers avoided each other at their uncle Lord Robert Fellowes's funeral in 2024. Prince Harry has also visited the U.K. several times for charity events and court appearances in recent years, but hasn't seen his brother.

"William knows that, above all, his responsibility to the monarchy, to the institution, has to take first place, so he'll have to put whatever personal differences he has to one side," Kay said. Continuing that Harry and William should "hammer out some kind of official line, even if it's sort of grip and grin in public," Kay added that "some kind of public-spirited sense of reunion between the two" would go a long way.

Kay's colleague, Richard Eden, wrote that he disagrees with his friend, noting that he thinks "the pressure being put on William and Catherine is unfair and wrong." Eden said he felt Harry and Meghan "betrayed and insulted the couple not only in their Oprah Winfrey interview but in their Netflix series, Harry's memoir Spare and in a seemingly endless stream of interviews that Harry gave."

After speaking to a friend of the Prince and Princess of Wales, the columnist said that the couple's plan is to "go on ignoring the Sussexes."

"It makes no difference if Harry and Meghan are in Oxfordshire, California or Timbuktu," the insider said. "William and Catherine will continue their lives of public service. They intend to lead by example."

Meghan Markle honored "the life and legacy" of her late friend and feminist activist Gloria Steinem—who died at the age of 92 on Wednesday, September 2—in a heartfelt Instagram post on Thursday morning.

The Duchess of Sussex shared three photos, including a snapshot of her son Prince Archie, in the post, writing that she was "grateful to know that in these last few weeks and days" Steinem "knew exactly how loved and admired she was."

The first photo features Meghan and Steinem relaxing on chairs outdoors and was taken during the 2020 "backyard chat" she had with Steinem when Meghan interviewed her for the Makers Women platform. The two formed a close bond following the discussion, and the duchess noted that Steinem loved Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet "with her whole heart," sharing an image of a framed photo of Steinem putting her arm around a toddler-aged Archie.

In a final, striking black-and-white image, Meghan and Steinem sit on a sofa with their cheeks pressed together in the author's eclectically decorated living room.

Meghan also revealed the meaningful gift that Steinem gave her in the post, sharing, "You all know her many accolades and the way in which she helped shape the world for women and all people - “we are linked, not ranked” she would tell me, and the bracelet she gave me said exactly that. I still wear it with pride."

The Duchess of Sussex, who recently moved back to Britain with Prince Harry and their two children, noted that she worked with Steinem to call "young voters to encourage them to have their voices heard" and attended public events. "But privately, she was even better than you would imagine," she added.

In a 2024 interview, Meghan told Marie Claire that Steineim "came for Thanksgiving" at their Montecito, California home, and in her post, she reflected on their friendship. The duchess thanked Steinem for "introducing me to one of my best friends (forever the champion of female friendship), loving our children with her whole heart, counseling me during hard times, and giving extraordinary advice and perspective with a cup of tea and an unrivaled cheekiness and wit."

Meghan Markle might be the most famous royal with American roots, but as the Sussexes settle into their new life back in Britain, there’s another member of the Royal Family who has American blood. Stephanie Green, author of American Crown, tells Marie Claire that Prince William will be the first British monarch with American ancestry—and he could even become an honorary U.S. citizen one day.

Green, who is active with the Daughters of the American Revolution, says that she was surprised to learn how Princess Diana “could have been a member” of the organization due to one of her patriot ancestors. The discovery sent Green down a rabbit hole of “sleuthing and discovering,” and the author found herself amazed with the story of Diana’s American ancestors, including her great-grandmother, Frances “Fanny” Burke Roche.

“She was one of the most celebrated beauties of the Gilded Age,” Green says. “She was born in New York in 1857 and I don't know if you watch the show The Gilded Age, but she is right out of that show.”

Much like Gladys Russell on the HBO period drama, Fanny Burke Roche married into the aristocracy, although her relationship with James Burke Roche, the son of an Irish lord, ended in divorce, as did her second marriage. Fanny died in 1947, and her granddaughter, Frances Shand Kydd, would give birth to the future Princess Diana in 1961.

Green says that she drew multiple parallels between Fanny’s life and Diana’s. The late princess's cousin, Lord Formoy, let Green borrow Fanny's diaries, and the author said the more she read about Diana's great-grandmother, the more she "realized how much she and Diana were alike."

"Diana, as you know, suffered from bulimia, from depression. So did Fanny. She's writing in her diary and she's covering every little margin of the diary page with just spilling her guts out about how unhappy she is, how trapped she is in these marriages that didn't work out, how trapped she is by her father," Green shares.

"So as I say in the book, despite all of their beauty, their clothes, their fabulous homes, their jewelry, these two women are just proof that you can be miserable and still have all of these things."

Like the late Princess of Wales, Diana’s great-grandmother also was the mother of two sons, and she says that twin brothers Maurice and Francis had “so much in common with Harry and William.”

“They both had glamorous mothers,” the author shares. “They both were the product of divorce. They both were subject to media speculation, and they both served their country in the military. They had transatlantic separations for a lot of their lives, but yet they remained very close brothers and they were always there to support each other.”

Green adds it makes her “very sad” to think about the comparisons between the two sets of brothers and see how Harry and William’s “relationship has deteriorated.”

As for Harry and Meghan's recent move back to the U.K., Green calls it "another twist to William's American story."

"The book is really about William because he's going to be King one day," she says, adding there's an "irony in having a King with all of this American blood, but having a brother whose wife is American who's going back and forth across the pond."

Diana’s American family ties don’t stop with the Gilded Age. Green says that the future King William’s family can be traced all the way back to the American revolution with his patriot ancestor, Benajah Strong, who was the uncle of famed spy and American martyr Nathan Hale.

Green visited Strong’s grave in Connecticut, which reads “food for worms,” and she said it struck her how ironic it was that his ancestor will become the future King.

“I have a chapter called ‘Food for Worms,’” she tells Marie Claire. “So you think, okay, this is William’s six-times great-grandfather who risked his life and his fortune to fight in the American Revolution to get rid of a King. And then in 2026, his sixth-time great-grandson is going to be King of England and he's going to be buried at Windsor Castle in this huge, ornate tomb.”

When asked what she'd like the U.S. public to know about Prince William's American connections, Green says she'd like to stress "How much closer we are than we think," adding, "And I'd like the British people to know that their future monarch is much closer to our country than we think."

"Having a royal family is within our DNA," she adds. "And so my hope is that someday Prince William will receive honorary American citizenship like Winston Churchill did. I just think it's a wonderful twist of history and I think it shows that families and countries are much closer than we than we think—and that story is still unfolding."

Swiftly following in Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's footsteps, Sarah Ferguson has decided to move back to the U.K. after seven months in exile. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's ex-wife has remained incognito throughout 2026, following fresh allegations regarding her alleged involvement with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were revealed.

People reported news of Ferguson's return to the U.K., noting that the former Duchess of York "has been 'keeping a low profile' and staying out of the country amid the fallout from her ties to Jeffrey Epstein." The outlet further shared that the ex-duchess "will be renting a six-bedroom property for around $8,000 per month."

The Sun revealed that Ferguson's new "gated home is situated in the Home Counties," which encompasses the area surrounding London. The newspaper also claimed that the former duchess's rental could be costing as much as $13,500.

Of Ferguson's decision to move back to the U.K., one source told the Sun, "She's had her eyes on a return for some time but it takes time to find the right new house."

The source continued, "She hasn't had to worry about accommodation for 20 years as she had Royal Lodge with Andrew. Now's the right time to get back to her life."

As for why August 2026 was the appropriate time to move back, the source claimed, "With everyone looking out for Harry and Meghan she thought she could slip back under the radar after seven months away."

According to the Sun, Ferguson's move back to England is due to take place "imminently," though further details remain closely guarded.

Shop Royal Family Books

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have officially left their Montecito, California home to move to the U.K. with their two children—Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. According to royal sources, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex haven't cut all ties in the U.S., but they're excited about multiple aspects of their U.K. move.

As reported by People, Meghan and Harry "left California" on Tuesday, August 25, and traveled "by private jet to England with their children...and their dogs, Pula and Mia."

One source told the outlet, "They wanted to spend time with the people they're closest to before they left and for the kids to have some special time with friends."

The source continued, "It wasn't a goodbye forever. It was much more, 'We'll be back, but this is what we're doing right now.'"

Basically, leaving Montecito was likely an extremely emotional affair for Meghan and Harry.

The source also shared, "They've been planning this for some time, and they feel it's the right thing for their family, but that doesn't mean leaving was easy."

The decision to move to England was probably quite difficult for the Duchess of Sussex, as she was raised in California.

"Meghan really loves their life in Montecito and their home there," the source told People. "There's excitement about what's ahead too, especially for the kids. They're really happy for them and for everything they'll get to experience."

According to the Daily Mail, Meghan and Harry are particularly excited about building a new home together in England.

"They have an English countryside dream," one royal source told the publication. "This will be the first time that Harry has lived in the U.K. as a private citizen where no one can demand any access to him."

As Meghan and Harry aren't senior working royals, they'll be entitled to privacy and won't be required to take part in official duties.

"Now [Harry] is going to have a chance to enjoy all of the things he loves about the country, but as a private citizen," a source explained. "They will have more freedom now."

Shop Royal Family Books

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle touched down in Birmingham, England on August 26 to start their new chapter living in the U.K., and the first member of Harry’s family has spoken out on the couple’s surprising move.

The Duke of Sussex’s first cousin Lady Eliza Spencer, who is the daughter of Princess Diana’s brother Charles Spencer, told the Mirror that she was looking forward to Harry’s return to Britain.

“Absolutely, it’s exciting!” Eliza said during the launch of her rosé brand, Lala V, at London beverage retailer Hackstons on Wednesday night. “We would love to be able to find some time to visit.”

Lady Eliza’s new business venture shares something in common with Meghan Markle, who launched lifestyle brand As Ever in April 2025. Along with jam, baking maxes and flower sprinkles, the Duchess of Sussex also sells her own wine, including a rosé, which was added to As Ever’s collection last summer.

When asked if she’d be swapping some business tips with Meghan, Lady Eliza replied with a simple, “Maybe!”

Eliza, who announced her engagement to longtime boyfriend Channing Millerd last August, has not announced her wedding date just yet, but has been working on building her new brand alongside her fiancé, who also serves as her business partner in the venture.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are rumored to be settling in the Cotswolds, and have enrolled their children Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, in a British school. A friend of the couple recently told the Daily Mail that Harry and Meghan could be in Britain for a decade or longer.

Discussing Prince Harry's plans, the source said, “The way he sees it is that he will be here for the next 12 to 15 years, minimum. He sees himself as a full-time father and he will be here for them spending every Saturday watching Archie play rugby. That is the agenda.”

Sounds like there will be plenty of time for Spencer cousin meetups soon.

Princess Diana never met her sons’ wives, but her legacy lives on in some of the extraordinary pieces of jewelry that were passed down to Princess Kate and Meghan Markle. While the Princess of Wales received the most iconic piece from Diana’s collection, her sapphire and diamond engagement ring, the Duchess of Sussex also was given a number of the late royal’s jewels.

One of the diamonds in her three-stone engagement ring comes from Diana’s collection, and Meghan also regularly wears the princess’s Cartier tank watch, but the Duchess of Sussex has worn several of her late mother-in-law’s other earrings, bracelets and rings. Now that Prince Harry and Meghan have moved back to the U.K., Princess Diana’s jewelry will once again return to Britain.

“The notion of seeing Meghan on U.K. soil wearing Diana’s jewelry again would be significant because these pieces are now living quite distinct lives,” jewelry expert and Abelini founder Nilesh Rakholia tells Marie Claire.

“We remember them on Diana, but Meghan has been wearing some of them for years too,” he adds. “They are no longer simply pieces associated with one woman.”

Asprey Cocktail Ring

The most memorable jewelry moment from Harry and Meghan’s wedding came when the couple left Windsor Castle to head to their reception, with Meghan wearing Princess Diana’s enormous aquamarine cocktail ring on her right hand.

“The aquamarine is probably the piece I’d be most excited to see back in Britain because it now belongs to two very recognizable jewelry moments,” Rakholia says.

“For Diana, it became associated with a period when she was stepping into a new chapter of her life and making choices on her own terms,” he shares of the Asprey ring. “Then, years later, Meghan wore it on her wedding evening with that very clean Stella McCartney dress.”

As the Duchess of Sussex starts her own new chapter in the U.K. after six years in California, the ring feels like a fitting piece to bring out once again.

Cartier Watch

When Meghan was starring in Suits, she treated herself to the special two-tone Cartier Tank Française watch she’d always wanted, but little did she know that she’d one day inherit the same timepiece owned by Princess Diana.

The former Suits star told Hello! in 2015 that she had her watch engraved “to M.M. from M.M.,” sharing that she planned to pass it down to her future daughter. “That's what makes pieces special, the connection you have to them,” Meghan said.

Fast-forward to 2020, and the Duchess of Sussex was pictured wearing Diana's all-gold version of the Cartier Tank Française for the first time, and she’s worn it almost constantly for the past six years.

“For me, this is one of the most fitting pieces Meghan could have inherited,” says Rakholia. “She already had a relationship with Cartier before she ever met Harry.”

He adds, “This is what makes Diana’s watch feel like a particularly natural heirloom for Meghan. She wasn’t introduced to the design through the Royal Family. She had already independently chosen the same watch for herself because it suited her own taste.”

Butterfly Earrings

Princess Diana owned a pair of diamond butterfly earrings featuring blue gemstones, famously wearing them during a 1986 tour of Canada. Decades later, the Duchess of Sussex debuted the sparkling studs during her first major royal tour with Prince Harry in October 2018.

She's gone on to wear the earrings on several other occasions over the years, and Rakholia notes that although the studs "feel distinctly of their period," the Duchess of Sussex "has worn them in a way that stops them feeling like costume jewelry from the 1980s.”

The timing of Meghan’s first public wear has since given the butterfly earrings another association. "Diana wore them as a young princess. Decades later, Meghan wore them at the beginning of a tour when the world had just learned she was expecting Diana’s grandson," Rakholia says. "That connection didn’t exist when Diana owned them; Meghan created it simply by wearing them."

"That is exactly how heirloom jewelry accumulates meaning," he adds. "The physical object hasn’t changed, but the stories attached to it have."

When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepped down as senior working royals in 2020, it sent shockwaves around the world, and there was one member of the Royal Family who gently suggested that shaking things up might not be the best approach. Now that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have moved back to the U.K., royal author Katie Nicholl says that Princess Anne saw it all coming.

At 76, Princess Anne has been there through a number of tumultuous times in the Royal Family, and Nicholl recently told Hello! magazine that the Princess Royal “predicted” the Sussex family’s move wouldn’t pan out the way they’d expected.

“Harry has always had a very good relationship with his aunt Princess Anne,” the author said. “This relationship has certainly been tested and when I sat down with her to interview her back in 2020, just after Megxit, she gave me a very sort of coded message, which was, it's all very well the new younger royals doing things differently, but they shouldn't try and reinvent the wheel.”

In the April 2020 Vanity Fair interview ahead of her 70th birthday, Princess Anne hinted at her feelings about the Sussexes, who had left Britain just a month before. “I don't think this younger generation probably understands what I was doing in the past and it's often true, isn't it?” Anne said. “You don't necessarily look at the previous generation and say: ‘Oh, you did that?’ Or: ‘You went there?’”

She continued, “Nowadays, they're much more looking for: ‘Oh, let's do it a new way’ and I'm already at the stage, ‘Please do not reinvent that particular wheel. We've been there, done that. Some of these things don't work. You may need to go back to basics.’”

Nicholl says she took the Princess Royal’s comments “very much to be a word of warning, a cautionary word to Meghan and Harry that yes, of course there needs to be changes, but, but not to do anything too drastically.”

“I think she will be one who has sort of sat back, predicted all of this, not been surprised that they're coming back somewhat with their tails between their legs because things haven't worked in America,” the royal biographer added.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle arrived in the U.K. on Wednesday, August 26, touching down in Birmingham, England via private jet as they prepare to settle into their new home with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.

Last week, People confirmed that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have enrolled their children in a British school and are planning to stay in the country for an extended period. But on August 25, a friend of the couple told the Daily Mail that their visit might be longer than it seems.

After news broke that Meghan is being considered for a role in Netflix’s The Gentleman, which films in Britain, many assumed that a temporary move was motivated by the duchess’s acting career. But a friend of the Sussexes told the Daily Mail that Prince Harry’s plans for family life in England are much more long-term.

“The way he sees it is that he will be here for the next 12 to 15 years, minimum,” the source said. “He sees himself as a full-time father and he will be here for them spending every Saturday watching Archie play rugby. That is the agenda.”

“Meghan has been aware of Harry’s views and discussing with him how they will bring the children up for years. It is not sudden,” the friend says of their move.

The insider added that Harry and Meghan “are the best and most committed parents” and are focused on providing Archie, 7, and Lilibet, 5, with the best possible education.

“There is no hankering after a royal status or royal engagements, it is not about that,” the friend shared. “He specifically doesn’t want to do that. This is about Harry wanting what is best for them and he wants them to be raised British, in Britain, and go to a public school. That is what the move is about.”

When sharing some of the potential motivations behind the Sussex family’s move this week, royal expert Rachel Bowie of PureWow told Marie Claire that education was one of the top priorities for the family.

“As any parent knows, the choice of school for our kids is not a decision that's entered into lightly,” Bowie says. “The U.K. is also world-renowned for its options. We may not yet know where Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet will attend school in Britain, but we can guess that this is a decision that Harry and Meghan considered at length.”

Bowie adds that for Archie and Lilibet, attending a British school will allow the children to “better understand their modern roles within the monarchy, just as it has done for the royal family members who came before.”

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are moving back across the pond six years after fleeing England for Montecito, California. This time around, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, will choose a more private residence to live in for an extended period.

“Meghan is agreeing to try it, but she isn’t moving back to Britain. Six months is the test. She wants an exit strategy,” a source claimed to Rob Shutter.

Meghan and Harry’s representative also gave half a year as an estimated time. However, the rep also noted to The New York Times that the couple is flexible, saying, “It’ll be an extended period of time—it could be six months, it could be a year, it could be more—I don’t think even they know yet.”

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s move came together quickly: they reportedly got jump-started on planning their extended stay after a trip to England last month.

During their previous visit, the Sussexes reunited with King Charles and Queen Camilla. After four years, The King and Queen met with Meghan, Harry and their children at Highgrove House in the countryside of England.

Prior to her last trip to England, Meghan has made minimal visits to her husband’s home country since they both stepped back as working royals and moved to Montecito. Since announcing their exit in 2020, the duchess has been vocal about her reasons for leaving, which she has said included severe scrutiny from the British media and royal family.

When it was announced that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will be leaving the United States and making a shocking move to Britain, the first question many people asked was “why now?”

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped down as senior working royals in 2020 and seemed to be thriving in sun-soaked Montecito, California. But on August 19, multiple outlets confirmed that the couple had enrolled Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, in a U.K. school and would be establishing a non-royal residence for an “extended period” of time.

After news broke that Meghan had been offered an acting role in the U.K., the picture became clearer, but royal experts tell Marie Claire that there could be numerous other factors at play behind the Sussex family’s big (temporary) move.

Meghan's Career

Whether Meghan is starring in the upcoming season of Netflix’s The Gentleman remains to be seen, although People reported on August 24 that the Duchess of Sussex “remains in talks” to take part in the U.K.-based show, “despite recent reports to the contrary.”

If the duchess does officially sign on, it makes perfect sense for the family to base themselves nearby while Meghan films. As King Charles’s former butler and frequent royal commentator Grant Harrold tells Marie Claire, “These jobs can take months, and Meghan won’t want to be apart from Harry.” Speaking on behalf of CanadaCasino, Harrold continues that the move “could be huge for her acting goals, so I think Harry will be supportive.”

It Forces the Issue with William

Rachel Bowie, royals expert for PureWow and the former co-host of the "Royally Obsessed" podcast, says that Harry’s move could help push a potential reconciliation with his older brother, Prince William.

“The brothers famously haven't spoken in years and William especially seems to have zero interest in mending their relationship,” Bowie says. “But with Prince Harry local again, how long can William avoid the issue? That was perhaps a motive in Harry’s decision to return home.”

Noting that Prince Harry has “been quite open about his interest” in reconciliation with his family, Bowie says, “The U.K. is only so big. If Harry’s goal is to mend things with his brother, their proximity will likely be a repeated headline until William decides to, at least publicly, nip it in the bud.”

The 2027 Invictus Games

Next summer, Prince Harry’s Invictus Games will be heading to Birmingham, England, and he carried out a number of U.K. engagements in July to celebrate one year until the event. The games for wounded, injured and sick military veterans and armed services personnel are one of the Duke of Sussex’s biggest passions, and Harrold noted that the 2027 games “would be a key reason for the return, as they are in the U.K. next year.”

“Maybe Harry needs to be on the ground and needs to be here for some of the planning,” Harrold says. “Perhaps he feels that being here would make things easier and allow him to be more involved. Again, it ties in very nicely if Meghan has got this acting deal, because it means he can then focus on that while she's doing what she needs to do.”

Archie and Lilibet’s Education

Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet are growing up, and with Lilibet now of kindergarten age, they’re at a crossroads with their education.

“As any parent knows, the choice of school for our kids is not a decision that's entered into lightly,” Bowie tells Marie Claire. “The U.K. is also world-renowned for its options. We may not yet know where Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet will attend school in Britain, but we can guess that this is a decision that Harry and Meghan considered at length.”

The royal expert continues that “the decision to be educated in the U.K. will help Archie and Lilibet better understand their modern roles within the monarchy, just as it has done for the royal family members who came before.”

As for timing, the children will start school in early September, and Bowie says that such a big decision can’t exactly be made on a whim. “We’d bet that news of their move had to come much sooner, at least privately, in order to ensure that security arrangements could be managed,” she shares, adding, “this had to be one of the bigger factors guiding their move.”

Missing Britain

Although Prince Harry has spoken positively about living in California, he often discusses his love for the U.K. in interviews—especially how he’d love to introduce his children to their roots. After spending six years in the United States, it might just feel like the right time for a change.

“He could, despite everything he's said, have suddenly thought, ‘Actually, I miss the U.K. I want to come back,’ and then started looking at the options and reasons for doing so,” Harrold says. “I think the last few trips to the U.K. may have reminded him just how much he misses being here.”

The former Highgrove House butler notes that after Prince Harry and his family spent time with his uncle Earl Spencer this summer, he might have felt some degree of homesickness. “Maybe it resonated with him and suddenly made him realize that he's given up his whole life to be in another country and it's a country that he didn't really know before,” Harrold shares.

Keeping the Memory of Diana Closer

As Harrold points out, Harry spent time at his mother’s childhood home, Althorp House, this summer while visiting his uncle, Earl Spencer. Keeping Princess Diana’s legacy alive is important to both Prince Harry and Prince William, and Bowie says that living in England again will give the Duke of Sussex the chance to “honor her memory more directly and in conjunction with his children, who are now older and better equipped to understand her impact on his life.”

“With the release of his memoir Spare, we know the effort Harry makes on a daily basis to keep the memory of his mother close,” she adds, pointing to the photos of the duke carrying flowers while walking with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet on the Althorp grounds, where Diana is buried.

More Time With King Charles

Harrold shares that he thinks being close to King Charles, who continues to battle cancer, “could be a very big part” of the move. “As the pair work to repair their relationship, I think Harry will want to spend as much time with his dad as possible,” he says.

Prince Harry recently reunited with his father and Queen Camilla at The King’s country estate, Highgrove House, and Harrold recalls fond memories of Charles and Harry interacting at the Gloucestershire home.

“Despite everything that's been said, Harry adores his dad,” Harrold shares. “When I was there, I witnessed the relationship between the two of them, and it was very fun and very comical. Harry used to do a lot of things to make his dad smile, and his dad used to do a lot of things to make Harry smile.”

“There's always been a strong bond between William and his dad as well, but William is the elder brother, so he's perhaps a little bit more able to take care of himself,” he adds. “I think Harry possibly got a little bit more of the extra love and attention.”

Prince William hasn’t been shy about his plans to modernize the monarchy when he eventually takes the throne. In October 2025, the Prince of Wales told actor Eugene Levy that “change for good” was on his “agenda,” and in his recent Substack, royal biographer Andrew Morton wondered if that might include removing titles of some of William’s family members.

Now that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will be moving back to the U.K.—at least for the current school year, it seems—Morton wrote that King Charles’s “cautious embrace of his returning prodigal son” will likely ruffle feathers with Prince William.

The brothers haven’t spoken in several years following Prince Harry’s move to America and bombshell memoir, Spare. And with tensions still running high, Morton wrote that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are now “well on the way to getting what they wanted” of being “half-in, half-out” royals despite Queen Elizabeth’s wishes.

“The only way that Queen Elizabeth II’s decision can now be honoured is if their titles are stripped along with their children,” the Diana: Her True Story—In Her Own Words author wrote.

“Otherwise, they are working royals by proxy with all the freedom and earning power they wanted in the first place,” he added, referencing the couple’s commercial work that they plan to continue while living in the U.K. while also carrying out their private charity work.

Morton pointed to a controversial decision made by Denmark’s former monarch, Queen Margrethe, as an example of the path William might choose to take when he becomes King.

“It’s clear an ailing King Charles will not resolve this irreconcilable tension, but a future King William V may very well follow Queen Margrethe of Denmark, who stripped four of her grandchildren of their royal titles, and remove those of his brother and his cousins Beatrice and Eugenie,” Morton wrote.

Queen Margrethe has two sons, King Frederik and Prince Joachim, and in 2022, she announced that the titles of Joachim’s four children would be discontinued in an attempt to streamline the monarchy.

If Prince William took the same step and removed the titles of Prince Harry and Meghan, along with those of non-working royals Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, Morton says that he’d likely “find a public broadly supportive of such a measure.”

No matter what the Prince of Wales chooses to do in regards to his brother is anyone’s guess. But as Morton noted, “What happens next may surprise us, and it’s quite possible King William V will be all the better for a bit of sibling rivalry as he prepares for the job of a lifetime.”

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle surprised royal fans when they announced their intention to move back to the U.K. immediately. Now, one of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's close friends has weighed in on the couple's decision to leave Montecito, California.

During an appearance on British TV show This Morning on August 21, author and journalist Bryony Gordon shared (via Hello! magazine), "What I understand is that they have decided to be more of an international family."

Gordon continued, "California is lovely. I've been to their house in Montecito. It's gorgeous. They're not letting go of it. It will remain somewhere that you can escape to."

As for why the Sussexes decided to move to the U.K. in 2026, the writer explained, "What I understand is that as lovely as California is, it's a long way away from lots of things."

The family's recent trip to the U.K. included spending time at Princess Diana's ancestral home, Althorp House, with her brother Earl Spencer. According to Gordon, Archie and Lilibet's positive experiences visiting England likely contributed to the family's decision to move.

"When they came in July, they had a really lovely time at Althorp…with [Harry's] uncle, Earl Spencer," Gordon said. "I think that was really lovely, and I think the kids really loved it, and I think they want to be closer to that."

When asked about the expenses required to keep homes in the U.S. and the U.K., Gordon replied, "I guess that they just have lots of money, don't they? I don't know."

The author continued, "I don't know how they're going to fund it, but what I do know is that the plan is, is that they're going to be...more international."

Basically, Meghan, Harry, Archie, and Lilibet are about to undergo a huge change when they leave Montecito to build a new life in England.

Shop Royal Family Books and Souvenirs

It's been a huge week for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, who revealed their plans to move their family to the U.K. immediately. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, along with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, are set to make England their home again. But according to multiple reports, some of the family's pets might not be making the transatlantic trip with them.

According to Hello! magazine, "[I]t's thought that the dogs will come with them." However, "the chickens are unlikely to be crossing the Atlantic." Royal fans can rest easy though as, according to the outlet, "this doesn't mean that the birds will be gotten rid of, as in the family's absence, staff will be tending to their Montecito home."

Meghan and Harry's two dogs, Pula and Mia, will move to the U.K. with the family, the publication suggested. Both dogs regularly feature on Meghan's Instagram account and also appeared in her Netflix lifestyle series, With Love, Meghan.

Footage of Meghan and Harry's chicken coop was shared during the couple's 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey. Adorably named "Archie's Chick Inn," the coop included a plethora of chickens the couple rescued from a factory farm. Understandably, it's likely not practical to move a chicken coop from the U.S. to the U.K., but the family will probably miss having the animals in their new backyard.

Meghan and Harry even adopted a bird from Ellen DeGeneres, who shared on social media, "Sinkie's leg is fixed but our chickens were still picking on her so she had to be re-homed. Luckily our friends Harry and Meghan's coop had room for one more. Not sure yet what her royal title will be."

For now, at least, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet will sadly be separated from their beloved Montecito chicken coop.

Shop Royal Family Books and Souvenirs

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are set to move back to the U.K. imminently with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. Despite presumably being incredibly busy with their transatlantic plans, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have released an emotional message regarding an important topic.

In a statement shared on their official website, Meghan and Harry addressed the fact that 29 States have decided to take Facebook and Instagram owner Meta to court regarding child safety.

"An unprecedented bipartisan coalition of 29 state governments is coming together to demand accountability for privacy violations and unsafe design features putting young people at risk on Meta's apps, Facebook and Instagram," the statement explained.

They continued, "Meta's business model is not only leading to, but reliant on, the exploitation of young people's data and attention...This trial confirms what families and experts have been saying for years—Meta's harms were a financial choice, not an innovation accident."

Meghan and Harry's statement continued, "It's hard to fathom how Meta can withstand the facts highlighted in whistleblower testimony from father and former Meta employee Arturo Bejar's recollection of Meta's 'don't ask, don't tell' approach to child safety; the well-documented internal documentation showing Meta's active pursuit of their technology's addictive properties; or the power of countless stories from parents who have lost their children to suicide, and families who have witnessed irreparable harm to their children."

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex concluded their message by writing, "We stand with [parents and advocates] as we wait to see what this trial will mean for children across the country and the world."

Following their move to the U.K., it seems clear Meghan and Harry will remain focused on the charities and issues they have always supported.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are set to move back to the U.K. with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. Numerous reports have since discussed the logistics of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's transatlantic move, amidst the news that Meghan might return to acting. But according to one royal expert, some members of the Royal Family might be planning to "avoid" Meghan and Harry for the foreseeable future.

During an appearance on Hello! magazine's "A Right Royal Podcast," the publication's royal editor, Emily Nash, discussed how the Royal Family might be feeling about Meghan and Harry's news.

Nash shared, "I think this is going to be very much one step at a time, and from people I've been speaking to who know [Meghan and Harry], I think they're very much working on the basis of let's get the children settled, let's get started on what we want to do, and then the rest is something to consider down the line."

The royal expert continued, "But crucial to them is the relationship with The King. You can't go any higher than him. And if you have him on side and you are spending time with him, then that does half of the work for you."

However, according to Nash, it's possible that some Royal Family members won't want to spend time with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex upon their return.

"There is a risk, I think, that other members of the family continue to avoid them, it might make them look petty or unforgiving," Nash shared. "Now, there's a lot that would need to be forgiven. Let's be honest about this. And you can absolutely understand why William and Kate might never want to go there."

Nash continued, "You know, their decision to leave affected that whole generation of the Royal Family."

Hopefully Meghan and Harry's move to the U.K. will go as smoothly as possible, in spite of any possible family disagreements.

Shop Royal Family Books

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s upcoming move to the U.K. sent shockwaves around the world when it was announced earlier this week, with many wondering about the motivations behind the family leaving California. But a surprising new twist in the situation emerged on August 21 when multiple outlets reported that the Duchess of Sussex has been offered a new acting role in Britain.

Bronte Coy of News.com.au broke the story on Friday, telling BBC Radio 4’s “Today” Show that the Duchess of Sussex will be returning to acting while the family temporarily lives in England. “I’m told it’s significant, and she’s very excited about it,” Coy said.

Representatives for the Duchess of Sussex declined to comment on Meghan’s potential acting role when Marie Claire reached out for clarification, but did not deny the report.

The Telegraph reported that Meghan is “poised to accept” the unknown job, adding, “It is understood the offer of the role, which was only made recently, formed part of the decision-making process in the family relocating to the U.K. but was not the sole reason.”

Meghan starred as Rachel Zane in the legal drama Suits before marrying Prince Harry in 2018, and she stepped away from TV once she became a senior working royal. However, she dipped her toe back into acting last fall when she filmed a cameo role as herself in the upcoming movie Close Personal Friends.

On August 19, multiple outlets confirmed that the couple will be leaving their Montecito, California home to set up a non-royal residence somewhere in Britain for an “extended period.” Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, have been enrolled in a U.K. school and King Charles was made aware of their plans just three days before the news broke.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shocked royal fans when it was confirmed on Wednesday, August 19 that the couple will be moving back to Britain ahead of the new school year. The couple’s children, 7-year-old Prince Archie and 5-year-old Princess Lilibet, have already been enrolled at a British school, and the family will be setting up a non-royal residence in an undisclosed location. For the Duchess of Sussex, leaving her home state of California likely comes with extremely mixed emotions, as former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond told Sky News.

“'I think we should beware a pile-on on Meghan in particular, and I can see that already happening,” Bond told the network. “This is the decision they've made probably for the sake of their children, as much as for Harry.”

Meghan was born and raised in California, and she noted that starting over in England was a hard transition when she fell in love with Prince Harry. The couple made the move to Montecito, California in 2020 after they stepped down as senior working royals, and Bond noted that “Perhaps Meghan is sort of taking one for the team here, because I'm not sure this is her life's desire to live back in the U.K.”

The Duchess of Sussex has been vocal about how she struggled with her mental health while she was a working royal, and Bond cautioned the public not to place blame on Meghan for the couple's decisions.

“We have to remember that this is a woman who said that she was driven to suicidal thoughts by the way she felt she was treated when she lived here as a member of the Royal Family,” Bond said. “And that's why I say, we must beware a pile-on.”

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will continue their business activities, such as Meghan's As Ever brand, and will carry out any charity work in a private capacity, rather than on behalf of The King. “The only word we're getting from the palace is that Harry and Meghan are not going to be working royals at all, and certainly not whilst they carry on with their commercial activity, or particularly Meghan's, which I completely see she needs to do, and why shouldn't she?” Bond said. “She's an independent, relatively successful woman.”

At the end of the day, Tom Garcia-Bridgeman, PR consultant at Rhizome Media Group told the Daily Mail, “Britain may not offer them as much vitamin D as California, but a U.K. return immediately puts them at the center of a story, rather than competing for attention among LA's crowded celebrity class.”

As Prince William and Princess Kate enjoy their summer break on the Balmoral estate with King Charles and other members of the Royal Family, no doubt the biggest conversation around the dinner table is Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s upcoming move. The couple, who have lived in Montecito, California for the past six years, are making a surprise relocation to Britain this month—and for William especially, it creates a sticky situation.

The Princes of Wales has not been on speaking terms with his brother in years, and the two avoided each other at their uncle Lord Fellowes’s 2024 funeral, the last time they were seen in public together. William also did not head to Highgrove House this July when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their children reunited with King Charles and Queen Camilla for the first time in four years.

But now that Harry and Meghan will be living nearby, it opens the door for them to attend Royal Family events like vacations at Balmoral and Christmas at Sandringham once again. It’s a situation that royal author and journalist Robert Jobson says must “be difficult” for the Prince of Wales.

“Are they really going to have William and Harry sitting round a table with all that’s gone on?” Jobson told Hello! magazine, adding, “I feel that William must be slightly aghast by the whole thing.”

The royal biographer pointed out that King Charles might be “hoping that it will be a chance for reconciliation,” but noted the move will likely prove to “be very difficult for The King.”

“On one level he will reconnect. On another level it will make things complicated for him,” Jobson continued. “It will muddy the waters.”

An ocean has separated the brothers for the past six years, but with the Sussexes set to establish a non-royal residence in the U.K. this month, former BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt pointed out that Harry’s “presence back home will make it harder for his brother to duck a reconciliation.”

“The surprise return of Harry and Meghan is likely to have left William apoplectic,” Hunt added, per the Daily Mail.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have enrolled their children Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, at a British school, but any details about where they'll be living are being kept tightly under wraps—at least for now.

King Charles arrived for his annual stay at Balmoral on Tuesday, August 18, just a day before the news broke that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will be moving back to Britain. As royal circles processed the surprise relocation, Prince William and Princess Kate quietly joined the Royal Family in Scotland on Thursday—and according to one editor, the Waleses are likely “not delighted.”

Princess Anne’s children Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips are already at the castle with their families—including new royal wife Harriet Sperling—and Hello! magazine confirmed that the Prince and Princess of Wales arrived with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis at the Balmoral estate on August 20.

Speaking on Hello!’s “A Right Royal Podcast,” the magazine’s royal editor, Emily Nash, noted there’s been “complete radio silence” coming from William and Kate’s side. “I imagine they're not delighted about this,” she added.

The Duke of Sussex and the Prince of Wales remain estranged, and with the couples not on speaking terms, the Sussex family's move to Britain will open a can of worms for both.

“It's going to be a very, very difficult hill to climb, having them suddenly back in the U.K., popping up, doing things publicly, if that's where they go with this,” Nash says of Harry and Meghan. “So much has been said and done that has damaged that relationship, almost beyond repair.”

A reconciliation seems unlikely to happen anytime soon, and Nash noted that when it comes to William and Kate, “I can't see a world in which they would be welcoming them back with open arms.”

King Charles was reportedly told about Harry and Meghan’s plans on Sunday, August 16, and Nash shared that the family has “had time to process this” ahead of their Balmoral break.

“We believe the Waleses were made aware beforehand,” she said. “They didn't find out at the same time as the rest of the world.”

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shocked the world by announcing their impending move back to the U.K. on Wednesday, August 19. The couple will be relocating to Britain for an extended period and have enrolled Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, in a British school, but where they’ll be living is being kept under wraps at the moment. As rumors swirl about where the couple will chose to set up their British home base, King Charles’s former butler, Grant Harrold, says that Princess Diana’s brother could have helped in the transition.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will be establishing a non-royal residence at an undisclosed location in the U.K., as confirmed by multiple media outlets, and will not be returning to full-time royal duties. King Charles was made aware of their move on Sunday—three days prior to the announcement—making it unlikely he assisted by offering up one of his private properties to the family.

However, it's possible that Diana's brother, Earl Spencer, could have helped Harry and Meghan secure a home. Speaking to CasinoHawks, Harrold—who served The King at Highgrove House—suggests a “strong option is the Spencer family, who Harry has always been very close to.”

“Even when things were at their worst with the royals, Harry was always supported by his late mother’s brother Earl Spencer,” Harrold continues. “We know Meghan and Harry stayed at the Spencer family home earlier in the summer, so maybe conversations happened then.”

Meghan shared a carousel of photos from her family's summer abroad on July 23, including an image of Princess Lilibet walking behind Prince Harry and Prince Archie, who are carrying bouquets of flowers, on Earl Spencer's Althorp estate, where Princess Diana is buried.

When they were working royals, Harry and Meghan lived at Kensington Palace, then briefly moved into an estate in the Cotswolds before they relocated to Windsor's Frogmore Cottage. As for their next home, it's anyone's guess right now, but Harrold says the move provides the Sussex family the opportunity to be closer to loved ones.

“I think Harry wants to focus on family,” he says. “I think he wants to be near his father and his mother’s family, the Spencers.”

After Prince Harry and Meghan Markle took their “freedom flight” out of London in 2020, it seemed like, by all accounts, they were leaving Britain permanently to raise their young children in California. But on August 19, it was announced that Harry and Meghan were moving back to the U.K. for an extended period and had enrolled Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet in a local school. It’s a decision that has raised a number of questions, but as the Telegraph’s royal editor, Hannah Furness, wrote in the publication’s latest newsletter, the move hints that Harry “may have finally got what he wanted all along.”

In late 2019, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex spent roughly six weeks living on Vancouver Island, Canada, before returning to London in January 2020. As Furness noted, Prince Harry wrote in his memoir, Spare, “Brief as it was, that taste of freedom had got us thinking. What if like could be like that...all the time? What if we could spend at least part of each year somewhere far away, still doing work for the Queen, but beyond the reach of the press?”

After Queen Elizabeth denied the plan, stating that Harry and Meghan had to be in or out, they left for California. But now that six years have passed, much has changed for the Royal Family. Queen Elizabeth has died, and with King Charles living with cancer at age 77, perhaps the Duke of Sussex has realized that it’s time to be closer to his family while he still can.

Harry and Meghan's royal status is not changing, and they'll be establishing a non-royal residence at an undisclosed location in the U.K. while carrying out private charitable endeavors and commercial work. But as Furness pointed out, their working situation isn't quite straightforward, especially as Meghan continues to build her lifestyle brand, As Ever.

“Prince Harry and his family will, if they choose, be photographed with the King, placing them visually back at the heart of the Royal family in the public eye,” Furness wrote. “And they will continue their commercial activities, the strawberry jam in yesterday’s As Ever marketing email perhaps replaced with a seasonal British blackberry.”

They won't technically be half-in like their original plan, since the couple's charitable work will be carried out on their own and not on behalf of the monarch. But the optics could be confusing.

“The Sussexes will look, to those who don’t know or care about the nuances of working royal life, exactly half-in, half-out,” Furness added. “The King’s reign is their only chance to be so and establish that foothold.”

Now that Archie, 7, and Lilibet, 5, will be living closer to their grandfather, it would come as no surprise to see the Sussexes at Sandringham for Christmas or visiting Balmoral in the summer. But when it comes to Prince William and his younger brother, a thaw seems unlikely—at least right now.

As Furness wrote, “To use Meghan’s favourite word, they are not back in the Royal family fold... ‘yet.”

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are moving back to the United Kingdom for “an extended period,” six years after stepping down as senior members of the Royal Family and relocating to California.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s return was confirmed by People magazine on August 19, with the outlet reporting that King Charles was informed of the couple’s plans just three days prior on Sunday, August 16. 

The duke and duchess's children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, will attend a local school in Britain, but the location of their home and school will be kept under wraps. Harry and Meghan will remain non-working members of the Royal Family. 

The surprise decision comes shortly after the Sussexes reunited with King Charles and Queen Camilla at Highgrove House during their visit to the U.K. this summer. The meeting was seen as an important step in improving relations between Prince Harry and his father, and it was the first time Archie and Lilibet have seen their grandfather since 2022. 

However, the Sun reported that the Sussex family’s move was not discussed during the private meeting. 

Harry and Meghan moved to Montecito, California, in 2020 after stepping back from royal duties and have since built independent lives and careers in the United States. People reported that the couple will continue to maintain their Montecito home as well as their vacation house in Portugal. 

Security is likely to remain a key issue. Prince Harry no longer receives taxpayer-funded security, a long-running point of contention for the duke, and it remains unclear what arrangements will be in place for the family at their new U.K. home. 

Both Princess Kate and Meghan Markle have faced unduly negative press as members of the British Royal Family. In fact, racist tabloid coverage is one of the reasons the Duchess of Sussex left the U.K. and moved back to the U.S. with husband Prince Harry. And according to one royal author, all women lose when royal women are unfairly vilified by the media.

In an exclusive interview with Marie Claire, royal author Catherine Mayer—who recently released her book, Divide and Rule: Royal Women and Their Battles—discussed the persecution Duchess Meghan dealt with as a senior royal.

"My fear is that the world has learned very little indeed from Meghan's experience and that's another reason I wrote the book," Mayer shares. "As I say in it, you don't have to like her or watch her shows, but what on earth has she done to earn the hatred meted out to her?"

Elaborating on why it's important to discuss this difficult topic, Mayer says, "Telling these negative stories about royal women, whipping up hostility towards them, has a long pedigree as my book shows, and it always goes badly not only for the women in question but for all women."

The author continues, "It's a way of promoting reductive views of women as scheming seductresses or witches. In that respect, some stories about Meghan resemble those circulated about Anne Boleyn."

Divide and Rule: Royal Women and Their Battles by Catherine Mayer is available now.

Shop Royal Family Books

As the daughter-in-law of the late Princess Diana, Meghan Markle regularly wears special pieces of jewelry from the royal's collection. To attend a gala in honor of the 40th anniversary of the David Foster Foundation, Duchess Meghan paired a long black dress with a rarely-seen pair of Princess Diana's earrings.

On August 7, Meghan walked the red carpet with husband Prince Harry, and also posed alongside close friend Katharine McPhee. For the occasion, the Duchess of Sussex wore Canadian designer Greta Constantine's Fabrizio Gown, which features a caped gown draped from one shoulder. The dramatic little black dress was the perfect choice for the star-studded gala.

Notably, Meghan accessorized the stunning gown with Princess Diana's butterfly earrings.

The iconic earrings are reportedly constructed from "gold, diamonds, and dark blue gemstones," per The Court Jeweler. The late Princess of Wales wore the jewels during a visit to British Columbia in Canada in May 1986, and they've since been given to Prince Harry's wife, who has worn them on a handful of occasions.

Meghan's decision to pair Diana's butterfly earrings with a sleek little black dress was most definitely the perfect choice for a night out with Harry.

Shop Outfits Inspired by Duchess Meghan and Princess Diana

Princess Diana set a standard for modern royalty that few could be expected to match. However, Meghan Markle was once expected to step into the late Princess of Wales’ shoes.

Royal author Simon Vigar compared the two figures in his new book The Four Wives of Windsor, describing the Duchess of Sussex as having “huge Princess Diana potential.” He pointed out that, like Diana, Meghan is “brilliant with the crowd” and “a doer.”

He added: “It is such a shame that it’s gone to waste.”

Two years after Prince Harry and Meghan’s royal wedding in May 2018, they dropped their royal titles and moved to Montecito, California. In the years since, their relationship with the rest of the royal family has been deeply affected by security battles and high-profile confessions.

The author noted that Meghan came into the picture with “different expectations” than the late princess, hinting that her time as an actress came with more protection. He claims she “expected total PR control, which was not possible in the royal family."

“She should have been, could have been, fantastic for the royal family but egos on both sides got in the way,” he wrote. Simon also noted that her husband shared similar potential, writing that Harry and Meghan's union “should have been transformative" for the monarchy.

The royal author isn’t the first to compare the Duchess of Sussex to the late princess. Prince Harry has also highlighted similarities between his mother and wife.

In the Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan, the Duke of Sussex said, “So much of what Meghan is, and how she is, is so similar to my mum. She has the same compassion, the same empathy, she has the same confidence, she has this warmth about her."

Although the royal family continues to face tensions over roles and titles, King Charles and Meghan Markle have remained on the same page about one thing: their love of gardening. The Duchess of Sussex was the latest to share her passion with the world in a new video for her lifestyle brand As Ever.

On the brand’s Instagram, Meghan hinted at her next launch with a teaser that saw her walking through raspberry fields. Dressed in a straw hat and collarless, light blue button-down shirt, she picked through the bushes to find the ripe fruit.

“A taste of late summer is almost here," the caption read. "Something sweet is arriving soon.”

The video was released just weeks after her reunion with The King. After four years, Charles and Queen Camilla met with Meghan, Prince Harry and their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet at Highgrove House in the countryside of England, where The King’s affinity for gardening began.

After purchasing the estate in 1980, Charles began to develop the now world-renowned organic gardens and farms that surround the residence. He is known to have championed organic and sustainable living long before it became mainstream. The King even founded his own product line, titled Highgrove, featuring jams, preserves, and other items directly tied to the property.

As for the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan has been gardening for decades, dating back to her childhood in Southern California. She currently maintains a large garden at her Montecito home.

Meghan officially launched her lifestyle brand in February 2025, coinciding with the release of her Netflix show, With Love, Meghan. Since its inaugural spring collection, the company has created a vast product line that includes jams, teas, and dessert mixes.

Members of the Royal Family live their lives in the spotlight, often becoming recognizable the world over. But according to one royal biographer, there was only one person who married into the Royal Family who had true "star power."

In an interview with People, royal expert and biographer Simon Vigar explained, "[Princess] Diana had a sense of destiny about her. The only aristocrat of the four women [Princess Diana, Queen Camilla, Princess Kate, and Meghan Markle], she knew a lot about it. She grew up [at Park House] on the Sandringham estate and knew the royals, and her big sister [dated] Charles."

Vigar also said of Diana, "But she is the biggest changemaker." Referencing particular moments in the princess's life that made a huge impact, the biographer said, "Even simply going to Tower Records on Kensington High Street was something you couldn't imagine the previous generation doing."

The author—who is set to release his new book, The Four Wives of Windsor: Rivalries, Influence, and the Real Power Behind the Crown, on July 30—also suggested that Diana "made the Royal Family more relatable and more touchy-feely."

Per Vigar, "Subjectively, [Diana] brought star power." Unfortunately, the Royal Family "didn't really know what they had," according to the author, but she "outshone them in the end."

Vigar also praised Princess Kate and Duchess Meghan, elaborating on the incredible attributes they brought to the family.

"[Meghan] was obviously a massive asset," the author said. "She was brilliant with the crowd, with the people. She would have been a major player in the Royal Family, and it is a crying shame that she's not."

Regarding Princess Kate, Vigar shared, "Catherine is no wallflower. She has her own ideas. Behind the scenes, she asks really good questions. The Royal Family doesn’t think of themselves as a brand, but they are, and a source told me she got that straight away."

But when it comes to the person with the strongest "star power," Vigar believes Princess Diana reigns supreme.

As a member of the Royal Family and a former actress, Meghan Markle has carved out a style aesthetic all of her own. After moving back to California with husband Prince Harry to raise their children—Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet—Meghan has been able to incorporate elements of her relaxed American style into her closet, after following a more formal royal dress code. And in her latest Montecito snap, the Duchess of Sussex showed her diverse style influences, seemingly including Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy and Gossip Girl icon Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester).

Shared to her Instagram Stories, Duchess Meghan was seen shopping for plants and flowers, pulling along a huge cart filled with both. Notably, Meghan's chic California style was on full display, with the royal pairing classic jeans and loafers with a J. Crew favorite. Paired with Anine Bing Kate Jeans in a classic silhouette, Veronica Beard Suede Penny Loafers, Ariel Gordon Royal Signet Stud Earrings, and a wide headband, it's easy to see a Bessette-Kennedy influence in Meghan's outfit.

Notably, the Duchess of Sussex opted to wear one of Blair Waldorf's staple accessories: a wide headband. The Gossip Girl character regularly wore statement headpieces in a wide variety of colors, and was likely inspired by New York royalty, Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, to do so.

Of course, Bessette-Kennedy regularly wore wide headbands, which paired perfectly with her laidback Manhattan style. Unsurprisingly, the '90s trend saw a resurgence following the release of the TV series Love Story.

Following the release of FX's Love Story, which documents the romance between Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy and John F. Kennedy Jr., one item was instantly in demand.

In one particular scene, actress Sarah Pidgeon was seen wearing a cream rollneck sweater from J.Crew—an iconic '90s piece, which was rereleased by the brand in 2025 and remains extremely popular.

Notably, Meghan's Montecito rollneck sweater also comes from J.Crew.

Since Love Story dropped, Bessette-Kennedy's timeless style has influenced yet another generation of people. Duchess Meghan's outfit shows that the late American's fashion never goes out of style.

Shop Similar Outfits

Whether it’s Princess Kate’s slim diamond tiara or Princess Eugenie’s colorful emerald-trimmed style, every royal watcher has a favorite royal wedding tiara. But when it comes to cost, the most expensive pieces in the Royal Family’s collection aren’t necessarily the ones you might expect.

Princess Kate’s Cartier Halo tiara is worth more than a million dollars less than the headpieces worn by Meghan Markle or Zara Tindall on their wedding days, and the Spencer Tiara—worn by Princess Diana for her 1981 wedding to Prince Charles—doesn’t even rank in the top five of the most expensive diadems.

Justin Daughters, managing director and antique jewelry expert at Berganza, tells Marie Claire that the process of evaluating tiaras is a complicated one, but at the end of the day, “the primary factors determining the gem's value are not limited to the diamonds and precious stones composing the tiara.”

“Beyond these factors, several others must be considered during evaluation, including the gem itself, rarity, workmanship, and its connection to the royal occasion for which it was used,” the jewelry expert explains.

And while there are certain tiaras that will forever hold a fascination for the public, like Diana’s, the headpieces that are worth the most might surprise some fans. Below, Daughters ranks the five most valuable wedding tiaras in the Royal Family’s collection.

The Greville Emerald Kokoshnik Tiara

You might not expect Princess Eugenie to take the crown for the priciest wedding tiara, but the Greville Emerald Kokoshnik “is widely regarded as one of the most valuable modern royal wedding tiaras,” Daughters says.

Princess Eugenie married Jack Brooksbank on October 12, 2018 at St George's Chapel in Windsor, and while her tiara bore some similarities to Meghan Markle's with its headband-like style, its stunning emeralds take the diadem's valuation through the roof.

“Created by Boucheron in 1919 for society hostess Dame Margaret Greville, it is an extraordinary example of early 20th-century jewelry design,” Daughters says. Greville passed her extraordinary jewelry collection down to the Queen Mother, with the pieces becoming part of royal history.

“While the tiara features exceptional diamonds, its true rarity lies in its remarkable emeralds, including the spectacular 93.7-carat cabochon-cut Colombian emerald at its center,” Daughters says. He explains that its valuation is due to these remarkable stones, noting, “Natural emeralds of this size, color and quality are exceptionally rare, particularly when untreated or minimally treated.”

“The combination of exceptional gemstones, an iconic Art Deco silhouette and an extraordinary royal connection makes this a truly museum-quality jewel that would be almost impossible to recreate today.”

Estimated value: £10 million to £13 million ($13.4 million to $17.4 million)

Queen Mary’s Fringe Tiara

The second most valuable tiara, unsurprisingly, is Queen Mary's Fringe Tiara, the design worn by Queen Elizabeth for her November 20, 1947 wedding to Prince Philip.

“Created by Garrard in 1919, it was made using diamonds from a necklace gifted to Queen Mary by Queen Victoria in 1893,” Daughters says.

Featuring 47 graduated diamond bars laid out in a "fringe" design, the delicate tiara actually snapped ahead of the then-Princess Elizabeth's wedding and had to be repaired just hours before the ceremony at Westminster Abbey.

Queen Elizabeth went on to lend the tiara to Princess Beatrice for her secret July 17, 2020 wedding, held at the Royal Chapel of All Saints at Prince Andrew's former home, Royal Lodge.

“Although it is entirely diamond-set, its importance comes from the exceptional quality of its antique diamonds, its craftsmanship and, above all, its remarkable provenance,” Daughters adds of the tiara.

Estimated value: £5 million to £9 million ($6.7 million to $12 million)

Queen Mary’s Diamond Bandeau Tiara

“Recollections may vary” when it comes to the royal arguments over Meghan Markle’s wedding tiara, but everyone can agree that the diamond bandeau she wore for her May 21, 2018 wedding to Prince Harry was a stunning choice.

Per Daughters, Queen Mary’s Diamond Bandeau Tiara dates back to 1932, and the platinum design “features a series of geometric sections set with diamonds and incorporates a detachable central brooch originally given to Queen Mary as a wedding gift in 1893.”

“What makes this piece particularly fascinating is its versatility,” he adds, explaining that since the center stone can be removed and worn as a brooch, “it allows the jewel to function both as a ceremonial tiara and as an independent piece of jewelry, showcasing the practical ingenuity often found in royal jewels.”

"Its significance comes from the combination of historic diamonds, Art Deco craftsmanship and its royal provenance,” Daughters says of Queen Mary’s Diamond Bandeau, adding that Meghan created “a new chapter in its long history.”

Estimated value: £2 million–£5 million ($2.6 to $6.7 million)

The Meander Tiara

Coming in at number four is the tiara Zara Tindall wore for her July 30, 2011 wedding to Mike Tindall, and Daughters says not to underestimate the simplicity of this style.

“The Meander Tiara is a beautiful example of understated elegance,” the jewelry expert says. “Featuring a classical Greek key, or ‘meander’ design alongside laurel wreath and honeysuckle motifs,” Daughters says that Zara’s tiara “has a refined architectural quality that feels both timeless and distinctive.”

The diadem has a touching royal history, as Zara's mother, Princess Anne, was given the tiara by Queen Elizabeth—who had received it from Prince Philip's mother, Princess Alice of Greece and Denmark. Anne has continued to wear the Meander Tiara to this day, making it an extra-special design for her daughter to wear on her wedding day.

“Unlike some of the larger royal tiaras, its appeal is not based solely on gemstone size,” Daughters says. “Its value lies in its exceptional provenance, elegant proportions and the rarity of its design.”

Estimated value: £2 million–£4 million ($2.6 to $5.3 million)

The Cartier Halo Tiara

Last but certainly not least is the Cartier Halo Tiara, famously worn by Princess Kate on her April 29, 2011 wedding day to Prince William. Daughters notes that even though it “may be one of the more delicate royal wedding tiaras,” the Cartier Halo “has become one of the most recognizable” pieces of jewelry in the world.

The tiara was created by Cartier in 1936, featuring “739 brilliant-cut diamonds and 149 baguette-cut diamonds arranged in elegant scrolling motifs,” per Daughters. It was originally purchased by King George VI for the Queen Mother back when they were still the Duke and Duchess of York, and it was part of the Queen Mother’s small collection of tiaras at the time.

The Cartier design was then passed down to Queen Elizabeth as an 18th birthday gift, but she was never seen wearing it in public. Princess Margaret, however, frequently wore the petite tiara, including to her sister’s coronation.

"Although it does not feature the colored gemstones that make the Greville Emerald Kokoshnik so exceptional, its value lies in Cartier’s craftsmanship, its historical importance and its extraordinary cultural significance,” Daughters says of the Cartier Halo. “Catherine’s wedding introduced the jewel to a global audience and transformed it into one of the defining royal jewels of the modern era.”

Estimated value: £1 million–£2.5 million ($1.3 million to $3.3 million)

As a royal news editor and style expert, I’m always keeping an eye on the brands that Princess Kate, Meghan Markle, Duchess Sophie and Princess Charlotte are wearing. And while I own my fair share of royally-approved coats, shoes, earrings and handbags, many of the monarchy’s favorite styles are somewhat out of reach.

That’s where the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale comes in. Running from now until August 9, the sale is one of my favorite times of the year to shop royal brands for less. You’ll find everything from Kate and Meghan’s favorite jeans to perfume, jewelry and shoes beloved by the likes of Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth.

Below, find some of my personal picks from this year's Anniversary Sale—while the deals last.

Logan Hollowell’s exquisite gold and gemstone designs have been seen on everyone from Hollywood royalty to members of the Royal Family, and the jewelry designer, who idolized Princess Diana as a young girl, is opening up on the surreal feeling of seeing Meghan Markle wear her pieces.

Los Angeles-based Hollowell tells Marie Claire that “as an artist, we always want to feel that our beauty is being seen,” adding that it feels “validating and exciting” to have people like the Duchess of Sussex, Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber wearing her brand.

The Duchess of Sussex has worn Logan Hollowell pieces nearly a dozen times over the years, and Hollowell says she’s seen an uptick in sales whenever Meghan wears one of her designs. “Meghan is such a style maven and it’s a huge compliment,” the jewelry designer says, describing the duchess as “someone that people look to for style.”

Adding that “there are so many people who are obsessed with her style,” Hollowell says that shoppers “trust her as a guide.”

When asked what about her jewelry resonates with Meghan, Hollowell says that the duchess prefers to choose pieces with a special meaning. “I think Meghan is very intentional about her style,” the jewelry designer says. “She’s a spiritual person, and the brand is very spiritual and metaphysical, with a lot of symbolism. The jewelry is like a talisman.”

With designs inspired by metaphysics, nature, the cosmos and sacred symbols, Hollowell’s brand focuses on jewelry that gives the wearer a reminder of their purpose and strength. One such design is the "Call on Your Angels" necklace, a gold pendant featuring a diamond angel eye that Meghan has engraved with her children's names.

“I think that’s something that’s important to her—she really wants to be intentional with the pieces she wears,” Hollowell continues of Meghan. “I think she and I see eye to eye on a lot of things in that regard.”

Princess Diana also shared a strong interest in spirituality, and Hollowell says that she idolized the late royal when she was growing up. “One thing that’s really full circle for me is that I grew up in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and every school report I ever did was about Princess Diana,” she shares.

“I was obsessed with her. I would read about her, cry over her passing, and just felt like I knew her spirit somehow, so having this experience with Meghan Markle now feels incredibly full circle,” Hollowell says.

Princess Kate and Queen Camilla have both worn jewelry featuring initials, birthstones or the names of their children and grandchildren, and reflecting on members of the Royal Family wearing more personalized pieces, Hollowell says it’s an inspiring trend.

“I think women are becoming more and more free in their style, especially women like them,” she says. “They feel like they can choose for themselves. I think Meghan definitely broke out of that idea that she needed to be a particular way just because of the family. I think it’s a beautiful thing.”

Hollowell says if she had to choose three pieces to create a capsule collection for a member of the Royal Family, she’d select the necklace and the ring from her aptly-named Queen Collection with emeralds, “because Colombian emeralds are among the finest in the world.”

“Then I’d choose the Fortuna Diamond Tennis Necklace, because it’s a modern twist on something iconic,” Hollowell says. The sparkling necklace, worn on numerous occasions by Meghan, holds a special meaning.

“The different stone shapes represent different aspects of yourself,” Hollowell shares. “As a member of the royal family, you have to balance so much because you’re constantly being scrutinized by the public. The necklace represents emotion, logic, intuition, love, creativity, and fertility.”

Hollowell, who says she wears the pieces from her Queen collection the most, along with her hand chain and half stud, half huggie “stuggie” earrings, recently opened the doors to her brand’s Beverly Hills flagship store. “There are all these hidden details—shells embedded in the floor that transition into carpet like a shoreline, and constellations in the ceiling. It’s a really beautiful experience,” she says.

When it comes to dream collaborations, Hollowell points to Oura and its smart rings. Her brand carries its own diamond-studded gold cases to wear over the health tech devices, and she says, “It would be amazing to do an official collaboration with them because so many customers said they finally bought an Oura Ring because of our case.”

“As far as people I’d love to dress, Hailey Bieber,” Hollowell says. “She’s so relevant, I love what she’s done with Rhode, and she has incredible style.”

Prince Harry is set to return to the U.K. this week, one year ahead of the launch of the Invictus Games in Birmingham in July 2027. During the trip, he will allegedly meet with members of the Royal Family, and it was previously thought that Meghan Markle and their children—Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet—would be joining him. Apparently, that's no longer the case.

According to a new report in Hello! magazine, "The Duke of Sussex will make his highly-anticipated return to the U.K. next week, but his wife and children will not join him in London." While Prince Harry will visit London from July 7 until July 11, Meghan, Archie, and Lilibet allegedly won't be present.

However, Harry's decision to travel to London solo doesn't necessarily preclude Meghan, Archie, and Lilibet from joining him in the U.K. outside of the city. Hello! reported that "no decision has been made as to the rest of the week yet and whether Meghan, Archie, and Lilibet will join Harry for other parts of the trip."

Still, royal fans will likely be disappointed that Archie and Lilibet won't be attending any public engagements alongside their dad.

Prince Harry underwent a long legal battle regarding the removal of his state-funded police protection.

Just days ago, the British government refused to provide police protection for Harry and his family in the U.K., unless they're inside one of the Royal Family's properties. As a source told the Guardian, "[Harry's] looking at every option to try and get the family here safely and keep them safe when they're on the ground. If he can find a way to do that he will."

The source continued, "The hope is they can meet their grandfather, but there is no way that can happen if they are chased by paparazzi wherever they go from the moment they step off the plane. He won't put his children through that."

Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet were set to meet their grandpa King Charles for the first time since 2022 next month, but according to the Guardian, a source close to Prince Harry said the Sussex family’s “plans to see family, friends and visit various charitable causes close to the duke’s heart” have been “pulled out from under their feet at the 11th hour.”

Security in the U.K. has long been an issue for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, and on Monday, June 29, the couple’s spokesperson issued a statement addressing their concerns for the trip. While accommodation at a royal residence has reportedly been offered to the duke and duchess, the spokesperson stated, “Safe accommodation is only one element of an effective protective security plan because risk follows the person, not the place.”

The rep added, “The issue has never been accommodation. The issue is whether appropriate and proportionate protective security is being provided throughout the entirety of the visit.”

Prince Harry's taxpayer-funded police protection was removed once he stepped down as a senior working royal, and he's been fighting the decision in court ever since.

While the Duke of Sussex awaits a final review of his security status ordered by the U.K.'s royal and VIP executive committee (Ravec), his representative stated, “The independent Risk Management Board that Ravec itself decided was necessary last November has still not taken place. It is therefore difficult to understand how the proportionality of the current arrangements can credibly be maintained without that independent assessment.”

“The duke continues to explore every available option to enable the visit to proceed safely and to give his children the opportunity to enjoy the UK,” the statement ended.

A source close to Prince Harry told the Guardian that the duke was concerned about his children being followed by photographers without a full security detail in place.

“The hope is they can meet their grandfather, but there is no way that can happen if they are chased by paparazzi wherever they go from the moment they step off the plane,” the source said. “He won’t put his children through that.”

While the Sussexes continues to assess their plans to travel for the Invictus Games One Year to Go Event in Birmingham, the family is currently vacationing in Europe, according to People.

Queen Camilla doesn’t appear to be making room in her calendar for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s upcoming visit to the U.K. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are crossing the pond next month to begin the one-year countdown until the 2027 Invictus Games. King Charles might be meeting with his son but it’s unlikely he’ll be accompanied by The Queen.

Camilla is “steering well clear” of the couple during the visit. According to the Daily Express, she is “not going to be around when they arrive.”

The Queen and Harry were never believed to be close. However, they remained civil when she married into the Royal Family in 2005. The tone publicly shifted after Prince Harry bared his true feelings on paper. In his 2023 memoir Spare, he opened about their complicated relationship, even revealing he and Prince William initially begged their father not to marry her.

According to The Times, Camilla still holds animosity for his public revelations. The Queen is “deliberately avoiding them” and has reportedly made plans to stay at her Ray Mill house in Gloucestershire during their time in the country. She is “unlikely to get involved” in any meetings with the couple, according to a source.

Queen Camilla doesn’t appear to be the only one keeping a distance from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex during their return to the U.K. Prince William and Princess Kate are also “incredibly unlikely” to meet with Harry.

King Charles seems to be the only working royal open to the idea of a reunion. Dan Wakeford, the founder of Celebrity Intelligence, told Fox News, "The King is the door that might open.”

Prince Harry has expressed a desire for reconciliation. The expert said, “Harry reportedly wants Charles to spend time with Archie and Lilibet, and he's been pushing for that. And I think that will likely happen from talking to folks in and around this."

Prince Harry’s return to the U.K. is unlikely to be marked with a brotherly reunion. The Duke of Sussex will be making a trip across the pond next month to mark the one-year countdown until the 2027 Invictus Games. He is expected to be accompanied by Meghan Markle and their children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. Although the occasion will be a family affair, there seems to be no set plans for a reunion with his extended loved ones.

According to Dan Wakeford, the founder of Celebrity Intelligence, royal sources believe Harry shouldn’t expect "a complete reconciliation with the family” this time around. He told Fox News, “It's a slight thaw and a good beginning.”

Compared to other members of the Royal Family, Prince William and Princess Kate seem to have not budged. He said, "A William and Catherine meeting is incredibly unlikely…[Harry] is not going to be meeting William. I cannot see that happening at all.”

There have been speculations of a rift between the brothers since 2018. Tensions have seemed to intensify since Harry and Meghan stepped down as senior royals and moved to Montecito, California. It is believed the last time the two spoke to each other was briefly at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth in September 2022.

“The Wales household is completely bolted shut right now,” Wakeford continued. “[William's] stance has not changed, and they would not arrange to see Harry and Meghan outside an official public engagement. And I don't even think that is going to happen.”

While hopes for a William and Harry reunion are low, there seems to be a more of a chance for a meeting between the Duke of Sussex and his father King Charles.

"The King is the door that might open,” the expert shared. Prince Harry seems to be focused on that prospect, especially since he will be accompanied by his children. He said, “Harry reportedly wants Charles to spend time with Archie and Lilibet, and he's been pushing for that. And I think that will likely happen from talking to folks in and around this."

Princess Diana still remains the first royal Prince Harry and Meghan Markle look to for guidance.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are set to return to the U.K. next month with their children Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, marking the first time the entire family has returned since 2022. During their trip across the pond for Harry’s Invictus Games, there seems to be plans to stay in familial quarters.

Althorp House, Princess Diana's childhood home and where she is buried, is closed to visitors on July 10 and 11, leaving many to believe Harry, his wife and kids will be making time to visit his late mother.

Harry and Meghan last visited Diana's burial site on the 25th anniversary of her death. In his memoir Spare, he recalled rowing out on a boat to the island. After mentioning “no visit to this place was ever easy,” he emphasized the significance of that occasion. The Duke of Sussex wrote, “At long last, I was bringing the girl of my dreams home to meet mum."

“We hesitated, hugging, and then I went first. I placed flowers on the grave,” he continued. “Meg gave me a moment, and I spoke to my mother in my head, told her I missed her, asked her for guidance and clarity.”

Afterwards, Harry gave his wife a moment alone with his mother. After taking a walk, he noticed the actress in the midst of a prayer. He remembered, “When I came back, Meg was kneeling, eyes shut, palms against the stone."

Once they departed, Prince Harry couldn’t help but wonder how Meghan's first time speaking with Diana went. He then learned his wife had a similar conversation with his mother.

"I asked, as we walked back to the boat, what she’d prayed for,” Harry added. “Clarity, she said. And guidance."

If you’re looking for the secret to palace-perfect lashes or an updo that stays all night, look no further than Princess Kate and Meghan Markle’s favorite beauty products. As a royal editor, I’m always looking for the latest and greatest royally-approved products, and Amazon Prime Day is the ideal time to stock up.

The royals' go-to sunglasses and Superga sneakers are some of the finds that you'll save big on this year, but Prime Day also includes major discounts on skincare, haircare and makeup beloved by the Princess of Wales, Duchess of Sussex and even the late Queen Elizabeth.

Read on for Prime Day deals that are both royal and editor approved.

June 23 marked an important milestone for Princess Eleonore of Belgium as she donned a tiara for the first time. Eleonore, 18, wore a diamond headpiece that was gifted to her by her parents, King Philippe and Queen Mathilde, as she attended a state banquet at Laeken Castle in Brussels. Along with her sparkling tiara, the princess also made a statement in a blush-colored gown—and if the design looks familiar, it’s because Meghan Markle wore the same gown six years ago.

The $1,995 caped style by Safiyaa is crafted from a heavy crepe fabric and features a raised collar with a long train sweeping behind the gown. While Princess Eleonore chose a soft pink version of the dress, the Duchess of Sussex wore a scarlet red iteration while attending the Mountbatten Festival of Music in March 2020.

As for Princess Eleonore’s tiara, X user Benjamin Vaesen noted that it was sold at auction in 2019 and created by Belgian jeweler Coosemans.

Along with Princess Eleonore, the king and queen's other three children also attended the banquet to honor Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako of Japan's visit to Beligum. Prince Gabriel, 22, was dapper in a military uniform, while brother Prince Emmanuel, 20, wore white tie.

Heir to the throne Princess Elisabeth recently celebrated her graduation from Harvard University, and she looked stunning in a navy gown paired with the royal family's Brabant Laurel Wreath Tiara.

Meanwhile, Queen Mathilde paid tribute to her Japanese guests with a new bespoke Armani Prive Gown. The blush-hued dress featured an intricate embroidered design in the shape of Japanese fans, and she paired the gown with the dazzling Nine Provinces Tiara.

Shop Similar

As a royal editor, one of the perks (or financial downsides) of my job is discovering brands thanks to Princess Kate, Meghan Markle, Duchess Sophie and the like. Even better? When the royals step out in styles that don’t require a trust fund to get the same look. Amazon Prime Day is live now through June 26, and two of the Royal Family’s favorite sunglasses brands are offering major discounts this summer.

When the Duchess of Sussex wore a pair of black Le Specs sunglasses to her baby shower in 2019, I immediately snagged a pair, and since then, I’ve picked up a few other versions of their affordable, celeb-approved sunnies. Meghan's exact Air Heart style is marked down from $90 to $63 for Prime Day, along with a number of other Le Specs designs, including the round Bandwagon sunglasses she once wore to Wimbledon.

The Royal Family is also big on Ray-Bans, with everyone from King Charles to Prince William and Princess Kate wearing the brand's shades over the years.

This Prime Day, Kate's "Chris" sunglasses are on sale for $120, along with plenty of other Ray-Ban styles. The Princess of Wales has worn the square sunnies with metal arms on a number of occasions since 2018, including trips to Belize and Wimbledon.

And if you're all set on sunglasses, royally-approved shoes are also included in the Prime Day deals. Princess Kate's favorite Superga sneakers are on major sale, with the black version discounted from $75 to under $25. Or if you're in the market for some new flats, Meghan's black Rothy's flats are more than 20 percent off—perfect to slip on with your favorite dress this summer.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have closely guarded their children’s privacy for many years. From clever crops, back-of-the-head shots, and creative posing, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have managed to share some photos of their children without ever really showing the world what Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet look like.

While some argue that any photos of their children are still a privacy concern, the truth remains that no one outside of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s inner circle really knows what Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet look like. After over six years of limiting their public exposure, all of that is about to change as Prince Harry is reportedly returning to the United Kingdom with Meghan Markle, Prince Archie, and Princess Lilibet in tow.

Prince Harry confirmed his plans to return to the U.K. with his family in July, to mark the 1-year countdown to the Invictus Games in Birmingham. The pre-tournament events have been a driving force in creating excitement and publicity for the big games, which take place July 10-17, 2027. While there is no word if Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet will spend any time with grandfather King Charles, or Uncle Prince William and Aunt Princess Kate—much less their only three cousins, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis—any Royal Family reunions are likely to be private and closely guarded.

Despite years of protecting Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet’s privacy, and ensuring they are safe and protected, a return to the U.K. creates an unprecedented public experience for the two young American royals. Given the high publicity of the pre-tournament Invictus Games events, and the excitement of seeing Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet back in the United Kingdom, it seems inevitable that photos of their little faces will emerge—whether Prince Harry and Meghan Markle want them to, or not.

Members of the British Royal Family attended Trooping the Colour 2026 at Buckingham Palace on June 13. For the occasion, Princess Kate wore a baby blue Catherine Walker coat dress, which drew comparisons to a very similar Princess Diana outfit. Meanwhile, Duchess Sophie styled a white dress—featuring a collar and short sleeves—from a brand beloved by both Meghan Markle and the Princess of Wales.

Arriving by carriage at the ceremony, which commemorates the monarch's unofficial birthday, Duchess Sophie could be seen dressed in a white dress and a matching hat. Prince Edward's wife opted for Roland Mouret's Short Sleeve Collar Heavy Cady Midi Dress in White. Sadly, the chic dress has already sold out, and it's easy to see why.

Duchess Sophie accessorized her dress with a feather-trimmed hat in the same shade from Jane Taylor London.

Princess Kate recently wore a similar dress from French designer Roland Mouret when she attended Harriet Sperling and Peter Phillips's royal wedding on June 6. Although the Princess of Wales's dress was made from a heavier bouclé material, both dresses feature sharp collars and tailoring.

As well as receiving Princess Kate's seal of approval, Roland Mouret has a longstanding friendship with Meghan Markle, which predates the duchess joining the Royal Family. Clearly, the designer is a firm favorite within royal circles.

SHOP OUTFITS INSPIRED BY DUCHESS SOPHIE

Meghan Markle shared a sweet glimpse into life lately at her Montecito home with Prince Harry, Prince Archie, and Princess Lilibet, captioning a carousel of photos on Instagram “Springing into summer.” Among the pictures of bird eggs, ‘Girl Dad’ t-shirts, and outfit selfies was a close-cropped photo of Princess Lilibet wearing an adorable Beyoncé t-shirt. While the image of Queen Bey on Lili’s shirt was iconic in itself, the unique brand story behind the design is even better.

Princess Lilibet’s t-shirt is the ‘B is for Beyoncé’ tee from Los Angeles-based brand Anchors-N-Asteroids. The brand designed t-shirt from 100% organic cotton, featuring exclusive sketches from an unexpected source: the brand’s now 15-year-old Creative Director, Pearl. Pearl and her mom, Gwynne, started designing clothes in 2020, when Pearl would sketch inspirational figures from music, politics, and history. Pearl was inspired by her tattoo artist father to start drawing, and her mom had the creative vision to turn those drawings into a clothing line.

Anchors-N-Asteroids designed a number of children’s clothing items that were sold at museums, boutiques, and independent shops. The brand doesn’t appear to have a social media presence and the website seems defunct, so Pearl and Gwynne’s designing days may be behind them. Nevertheless, the inspirational story of a 10-year-old girl who loved to sketch and her mom’s support turning into a brand that received global attention years later is seriously impressive.

Princess Lilibet looked like any other Beyoncé-loving girl in her ‘B is for Beyoncé’ tee and sweet strawberry print cotton leggings. Meghan Markle recently posted a sweet family snap to mark Princess Lilibet’s 5th birthday on June 4, also taken at their family home, with Meghan, Prince Harry, and Princess Lilibet sharing a hug. From birthday celebrations to watching eggs hatch, Princess Lilibet and Prince Archie are clearly having an idyllic childhood in Montecito.

Everyone from King Charles to Princess Beatrice turned out to witness Peter Phillips marry Harriet Sperling on Saturday, June 6, but two members of the Royal Family were conspicuously absent. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were reportedly not invited to Harry’s cousin’s wedding, and former royal butler Grant Harrold says the move “was the right decision.”

Although Prince William didn’t attend his cousin’s first wedding to Autumn Kelly, he joined Princess Kate and the rest of the Royal Family for Saturday’s wedding. But Harry, who was always close with Peter and was there to support Phillips at his 2008 nuptials, didn’t attend this time.

“I’m not surprised that we didn’t see Harry and Meghan there, but it’s still quite sad,” Harrold, said, speaking on behalf of CasinoHawks. “It really does highlight how much things have changed in the last five years.”

“Peter and Harry haven’t spoken for several years and have simply lost touch, so he hasn’t been invited,” a friend of Peter and Harriet's told Hello!

Harrold, who served King Charles at Highgrove for nearly a decade, was there to witness the interactions between Charles’s boys and their cousins over the years, and notes that “Peter and Harry were really close.”

Phillips does not hold a royal title and lives a relatively low-key life out of the spotlight, usually only joining the Royal Family at large events like weddings, funerals, Jubilees or The King’s coronation. And with Prince Harry living in California, there have been few opportunities for the two to interact.

Harrold continues, “Peter is such a diplomatic person that I think he would have called Harry to discuss it.” However, even if such a conversation didn’t take place, the fact remains that Prince Harry and Meghan would have become “the main story of the day” if they had been invited, as Harrold shares.

“It would have completely overshadowed the whole wedding, and everyone knows a wedding should be about the bride. Despite everything that’s happened, Harry really cares about Peter and he wouldn’t want to ruin his day,” the former royal butler says.

“While it’s still very sad and it shows there is a long way to go before Harry is welcomed back into the fold, I think it was the right decision,” he adds. “He’s considering their feelings, which is good.”

Royal Family members are gathering at All Saints Church in the village of Kemble, England, to watch Peter Phillips and Harriet Sperling tie the knot on June 6. While Princess Beatrice opted for a floral dress from a royally-approved brand for the nuptials, Princess Kate's outfit included a nod to Meghan Markle.