Harry and Meghan will look to become ‘private royals-plus’ while back in the UK and may only stay one year before moving to Canada or Australia, says source
Prince Harry and Meghan will attempt to negotiate a hybrid "private royals-plus" status as they return to live in the UK, a royal source has told the Sunday Times, though they may stay for as little as six months to a year before potentially relocating to Canada or Australia. The arrangement would see the couple treated as more private than working royals while still appearing at family events such as Christmas at Sandringham, but it would require buy-in from the King, Prince William and Princess Catherine, which the source described as far from guaranteed given the couple's rift with the family.
The source cautioned that Harry and Meghan will be closely scrutinised for any attempt to commercially exploit their royal status in the way they have in Montecito, California, warning that deals struck in the Cotswolds "would not go down well". William and Harry have not spoken since the late Queen's funeral in September 2022, though Harry has said he wants to reconcile, and biographer Andrew Morton suggested the move could still prove beneficial by allowing children Lilibet and Archie to bond with their grandfather. The source admitted the couple themselves have not settled on firm plans, with Canada or Australia mentioned as possible future destinations after an "extended" UK stay.
- Harry and Meghan seek hybrid "private royals-plus" status in the UK.
- Stay could last just six months to a year.
- Couple may later move to Canada or Australia.
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Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, stepped back from royal duties in 2020 and moved to the United States, settling in Montecito, California. Since then they have built a business and media career largely separate from the monarchy, while their relationship with other senior royals, particularly Prince William, has remained strained. The couple have not spoken publicly to William since the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022.
Reports now suggest Harry and Meghan are considering a return to living in the UK, seeking a kind of middle-ground status sometimes described as "private royals-plus" — more low-key than a full working royal, but still involved in family occasions. Any such arrangement would need the agreement of King Charles, Prince William and Princess Catherine, none of which is guaranteed given the family rift.
This matters because it touches on unresolved tensions within the Royal Family, questions about how the Sussexes might combine royal status with their commercial ventures, and the possibility that a UK move could bring their children, Archie and Lilibet, closer to their grandfather and wider family.