On Monday, Tower Bridge Studio’s Instagram posted a couple of photos of Prince Harry. Harry visited the studio, signed the wall and looked mischievous. I can’t seem to find this Instagram post – was it deleted? Interesting. According to People Mag, Harry went to this studio last Friday, and he was accompanied by a few men. He spent most of Friday working on a “mystery project” and he was reportedly “very, very pleasant to everyone. And he was very pleased to sign our celebrity wall. It was all very relaxed.”
You know who is NOT relaxed? Every royal reporter, every courtier, and every single royal. On Monday, Buckingham Palace issued a clarifying statement about the Sussexes’ “private” status in the UK, basically emphasizing that Harry and Meghan will never be considered working royals in any way. Well, the Daily Mail’s Becky English claims that the clarifying statement came as a huge surprise to the Sussexes.
Harry and Meghan were ‘surprised’ by the King’s bombshell letter making it crystal clear they will be treated as ‘private citizens’ rather than working royals, it emerged today. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex claim they were given no advance warning that Charles would issue the diktat confirming they will not undertake any royal duties in the UK.
The couple, who returned to Britain a fortnight ago, are also understood to be concerned that the timing of the announcement may be linked to a crucial meeting over their security arrangements. Harry and Meghan are still pushing for 24/7 armed police protection now they are back in the UK with their children, Archie and Lilibet, with the couple reportedly worried about safety on the school run.
The Royal and VIP Executive Committee (Ravec), the Home Office committee responsible for making decisions about royal security, is reportedly meeting as early as today to discuss arrangements for the Sussexes. But last night the King ruled out any role for Harry and Meghan with the Royal Family on the eve of the crunch security meeting.
A spokesman for the Duke and Duchess said: ‘We were a little surprised not to have been told about this in advance.’
The couple’s spokesman apparently admitted the letter’s publication had taken them off guard. It is understood that while Harry and Meghan were told about the letter, they were not consulted on its contents.
A Buckingham Palace source told The Daily Telegraph that the release had nothing to do with the security issue or any meeting.
King Charles’s letter told more than 100 ‘senior stakeholders’ across the country that his son and daughter-in-law are not working royals with a reminder that their HRH titles remain on ice.
It comes after sources close to the couple repeatedly briefed select media about plans for their new life back in Britain. They include a resumption of public engagements with the media invited to attend. Some of the couple’s friends have even boasted that Harry has finally secured the ‘half-in, half-out’ deal he always wanted – with the freedom to mine lucrative commercial opportunities while undertaking limited official duties by the ‘back door’.That model was firmly rejected as unworkable by his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, at the so-called ‘Sandringham Summit’ of January 2020, which led to the Sussexes’ acrimoniously quitting, not only royal life, but also Britain while embarking on a series of very public attacks on the institution. Now the King has moved decisively to quash speculation over their return, and publicly re-enforce the boundaries laid down by his late mother. And he makes clear that Harry and Meghan’s public appearances should not be treated as royal engagements and no public money should be spent on them.
Publication of the letter came as Prince Harry conducted his first official outing on Monday since arriving back in Britain – and will be seen by many as particularly timely. He was pictured smiling at the Tower Bridge Studios in London and signing a mural on a wall during a pseudo-royal engagement.
This is the relevant part: “He was pictured smiling at the Tower Bridge Studios in London and signing a mural on a wall during a pseudo-royal engagement.” That’s how royal reporters frame everything Harry and Meghan do, even if they’re making a charity visit privately, even if they’re invited to visit a country via Invictus or what have you. It’s always “pseudo-royal” or “quasi-royal” or “they’re trying to do ROYAL WORK and that’s not allowed!” For Prince William in particular, anything Harry does is “royal work” and William is just furious about it. This is also how royal reporters justify covering Harry and Meghan to this day – they’re still royal, they’re still taking on “pseudo-royal engagements,” therefore we can talk about them, right? Anyway, I can’t believe the Sussex spox went on the record about their “surprise” over the clarification statement.
Photos courtesy of Tower Bridge Studios’ Instagram, social media.
She says the spokesperson said something but never clarifies or states what they said. It’s a lie. She only added that for validity because the DM has been called out as liars over and again
No, she directly quotes this from the spokesperson, BBC had the same quote:
‘We were a little surprised not to have been told about this in advance.’
Unless Charles had promised Harry something different, I can’t imagine the content would have been a surprise.
@Eurydice that’s my thought as well. They were probably taken aback by the letter itself, but not the contents unless something was said to them otherwise.
As I understand it the surprise was because they were not given advance warning the letter was going to go out and they question why the letter needed to be released at all (it is really stating the obvious), especially in the week when the home office is about to review their security. They were not surprised that the palace views them as private citizens. They are surprised the palace didn’t give them more warning about the letter or time to respond. Harry only found out a few minutes before the letter was about to be released publicly according to Sky News!
I see this letter as a HUGE blessing in disguise. I think the children will be given govt paid protection tomorrow. As soon as that happens there will be endless press stories “if taxpayers pay for security you need to be out where we can see & photograph you” (make money off you). This puts the kibbosh on all those types of demands. An official decree from the king that the Sussexes will not have to be paraded for the media at royal events to qualify for security. They stay private.
From my understanding Sussexes were “surprised” that a letter was released saying what they’ve already said.
It’s been two weeks and I am still gobsmacked that they returned.
To stay on topic- idek if that letter was necessary? It seems to be a strong shot across the bows, as it were.
Me too!! I think the only reason why Harry would bring his family into this never-ending circus is that his “secret project “is that he is making a film about Diana.
I wonder if the letter was cover for W&K? Harry is about to do his main big charity events that he continued doing even while in California, which are basically scheduled over a week or two. I wonder if they’re just saying this because everyone’s about to see Harry, and maybe Meghan, at more events than the Wales have done since…ever and they’re trying to nip the stories in the bud. It also shows the palace can in fact go on the offensive with the press when they want to.
Well I hope Charles is proud of himself. He knocked his grandson’s arrival of Eton off the top of the front pages to take a whack at Harry and Meghan again.
I’m sure after William threw some kind of a tantrum. Congrats to all involved!
no matter what I read about it, I can not understand why Harry willingly brought his family into this mess
“The trauma blender” as noted in the other post.
I’m the same. I’m still standing over here shaking my head slowly back and forth. Their coming back still has me feeling punked.
I think this will end in tears. She will have had enough of this mess by Christmas.
While I’m sure that Meghan has had the best legal advice money can but, it doesn’t change the fact that she (apparently willingly) brought her children under the protection of the Crown, and this is going to make any future custody arrangement extremely difficult and painful for her. I wonder how long she will tolerate this.
No protection of the crown. They’re not part of the crown. As private citizens, the crown has no say on their marriage or divorce and there’s not going to be one. Anything to distract from the fact the Wales are separated and married on paper only.
sadly, I agree. I’m not sure why they are doing this and if they both do it for the same reasons. But IF Harry is really pushing for this half in half out thing (seems so from where we are sitting) it makes no sense to upend everything they’ve built for this. As the Wales kids grow they will command more attention, which will direct more attention on Archie and Lilli. Once G and Charlotte have kids, and Louis can be branded as the hard partying princeling, the Sussexes will be even further down the food chain. While Meghan built a fantastic network around them to thrive and prosper in Cali.
*Lots* of people with dual citizenship are moving; things may become very bad here in the US. Our Department of Education has effectively been dismantled. I believe she’s simply trying to move her children to the safest place they can legally go, with the best opportunities available to them, before movement in and out of the US becomes difficult or impossible. Moving closer to her in-laws is a disaster waiting to happen, but she already knows this. Her focus is on her children; I think that much is evident.
They did say “extended stay”, and never clarified how long.
I don’t see the statement as altogether bad. They were private citizens involved in projects before and will continue being the same. It was social media speculating the half in- half out; this never came out if their mouth.
The only ones who can spend public money and live in luxury are the grifting royals!
Work probably brought them. As Ever going international, not known yet projects. But also the principle that the UK is his country of birth and he shouldn’t feel that him and his family don’t belong.
This is not a last minute decision, this have been planed for a long time. I would like them to get protection, but they prepared their stay without counting on it.
I agree. No matter how I game it out, nothing really justifies what his family is going to endure because of this situation.
And the folks saying they’re leaving the US because it’s gotten bad here: the Sussex family owns a home in Portugal. If they wanted safety from fascism, that would be a much better choice.
Their comms continues not to be great. They don’t need to justify or rebut every single thing, it just adds legs to the story and gives the media an excuse to write more articles.
There’s a reason why the royals have (at least notionally) adhered to the ‘never complain, never explain’ mantra.
The issue for many of us is that they DON’T justify or rebut every single thing. They seem to pick and choose and I can’t figure out their strategy for how they choose.
Yeah, some of the more ridiculous stories that have recently been put out there since their return (ex: money issues and marriage problems, etc) have no official statement but this one does. Their PR is…..bad.
@Ginger I agree, just what I was thinking. Why is this issue important enough to elicit an official statement? It makes them look like “pseudo royal” is exactly what they were going for and they are sour about being called out. It might not be the case, but this comms strategy makes it seem that way.
Agree. What a bad statement.
I find this statement from their comms to be bizarre. There is NOTHING new in this Palace communication, it literally restates what Harry and Meghan have already agreed to and said that THEY want (private citizens, not working royals, able to carry out their own charitable and business endeavors, won’t use HRH, though they keep them, to not cause confusion). All the comms person had to say was that with Harry and Meghan returning to the UK, the Palace was simply restating the status quo and that H&M are pleased to be able to continue their charitable and business endeavors while living in the UK. If it were me, I’d throw in some shady comment about “in light of the media’s continued attempts to cause confusion about H&M’s status”, but that’s just me.
This whole thing is a nothing burger and I don’t even really think it was wrong for Charles to send it as an official communication. It’s literally what was agreed and is just being communicated to the media and government officials. It’s the usual media bad actors trying to make this into a “slam” or “put down” by Charles. It’s not. But, the comms statement makes it sound like there was something shady, when they should have just shrugged it off.
Yeah why did they even say anything? I didn’t think the letter was bad? What did I miss?
Cue Harry being surprised that his family took unilateral action to put him in his place. The Sussex spox said they couldn’t reach Harry and they weren’t given the opportunity to clarify one or two points in Charles’s letter. Complaining in the media and getting his family all worked up for no reason when this was very predictable. The Sussex pr should have just said this letter confirms what we have been saying, it’s nothing new, and kept their heads down. (I don’t care if the family gets all worked up in general but just that we know this means they will get the Daily Fails to go on more character assassination missions, which will make the Sussex’s lives harder and their kids’ lives harder.
Yes, I would have given them a bland “this communication from the king merely reiterates a 6 year old agreement between the family members.”
It feels like Harry is not allowed to do anything, aside from maybe go on a ramble in the country or take his kids to the market, without it being considered encroaching on his family’s territory. He goes to Tower Bridge Studios and it’s “pseudo royal?” How? It’s a studio. It’s privately owned, isn’t it?
Is any place of business or worship, any arts organization or theater, any place where veterans or members of the royal family are buried, ALL Windsor territory? Is that why they need to “clarify” that he’s off their leash?
The thing is, Harry is royal. He’s Charles’ son. There’s nothing they can do about that. Which is why despite Charles’ statement, this is still just a weird situation. Because he is inextricably tied to his birth family, and they are completely enmeshed in the whole damned country. Their tentacles are everywhere.
But of course, it needs to be said. If William were out there doing engagements all the time the way the older generations were? It wouldn’t be a problem. There would be a clear distinction between the sort of work he was doing and how he was doing it, and what Harry is doing. Because all Harry is doing is showing up. That’s it.
If half in half out is officially available as an option, more people will try it and the royals lose their leverage over everyone in their orbit. Who would willingly be a full time royal and live in fancy penury otherwise? The royals would be giving up power over their gilded cage mates. Never going to happen.
As an aside – I saw a picture of Elizabeth dressed as a mechanic during WWII the other day and spent some time wondering “Did she actually do anything or just dressed up as a mechanic a few times for pictures?”
The royals’ close ties with gossip rags is not doing themselves any favors.
QE2 was born in 1926 so still quite young when WWII broke out in 1939 in Europe. She wanted to be involved in the war effort but it wasn’t until 1945 that her parents permitted her to join one of the women’s auxilliary services, and she trained as a mechanic and driver. Apparently she really did the work and enjoyed it, but the war ended not long after.
But was she actually allowed to repair dirty vehicles?
The Sussex spox needs to go on the record about Harry being a private citizen and charity work performed by private citizens does not qualify as “[pseudo-]royal work.” Putting it on the record means that the tabloids would have to publish it, at least once, and it could raise the issue of any charity work being perceived or promoted as a royal engagement.
Imagine a statement along the lines of “As confirmed by Buckingham Palace, Harry and Meghan are private citizens. As private citizens, they have extensive public records indicating both quality engagement with, and measurable impact on, the many causes to which they’ve lent support. The Sussexes, along with many other private citizens in the U.K., believe charitable work and support is not limited to the monarchy and encourage all U.K. citizens to locate and support the causes closes to their hearts and affecting their communities.”
The spox should have just said they agree with the BP statement. What they actually said sounds like the opposite.
They don’t need to issue a statement, they never said they were half in working royals. The press are the ones spouting that nonsense. They are private citizens going about their business. Do you feel the need to clarify everything that someone says about you.
I said it in the other article but there isn’t anything surprising in the letter. It’s very much a business as usual letter. To me at least.
So I’d be interested to know what exactly are H&M wanted to know in advance? Did they expect or want a change in status? Did they just want to know a letter would be going out?
I do agree with others that their comms is weak here. Either give a full statement or ignore requests for one.
I think they were just surprised that the letter was sent at all and that they were given very little notice about it. I dont think the contents of the letter were surprising to them or anything they would push back on. There’s a BBC article (or People maybe?) about the Sussex response that makes it clearer that they were surprised at the timing and how fast the letter went out after they were told about it. But not that they were surprised to find that they are not working royals now.
That’s what I thought to. They were surprised about a letter being sent out and how much notice they got.
So more of a “oh we’re surprised this information needed to be said and how quickly it was sent.”
If there’s a clearer statement elsewhere I’ll retract my comments on their comms a little. Still think their comms need work though.
I think if they didn’t issue some kind of statement then the narrative would have been “sussexes humiliated” nonsense. This way there is something semi neutral, ambiguous and non aggressive out there from them.
If there were going to be a letter published about me I absolutely would want to know ahead of time. And I would assume it would be common courtesy to let someone know ahead of time, but the BRF aren’t exactly known for the common courtesy.
Doesn’t Harry retain royal patronages? It’s possible that the palace plans to remove those from him. As I keep saying, the royals regard any charity visits or appearances at events as “royal work”, especially in the UK. This is the only work they do. Now Harry, and possibly Meghan, is encroaching on that.
No, he doesn’t. I find it weird but he has patronages that he had while he was a working royal, and he has kept those, but he doesn’t have his royal patronages, which are the ones assigned by the queen, I think? For example the late queen gave meghan one or two royal patronages (maybe more?) and she doesnt have those anymore but she’s still involved with other charities that she was involved with when she lived there before.
Then the palace has no control over Harry’s charity events. That’s what has their underwear in a twist.
@Brassy Rebel, @Becks1
Upon his departure, Harry was stripped of all his royal patronages. The ones he retains—such as Sentebale, Invictus, and Travalyst—are organizations he founded himself and registered solely in his own name rather than under the Royal Foundation; this stands in contrast to *Heads Together*, which remained with the Crown—specifically with William and Kate, who initially claimed credit for creating it but subsequently allowed it to falter. There are also organizations that Harry became involved with personally and privately, and which invited him to collaborate—such as African Parks, or WellChild.
Meghan also lost all her royal patronages, yet she retained ties to the organizations she had worked with prior to her relationship with Harry; indeed, even after losing the official patronage status, she continued to collaborate with and support the majority of them. Harry followed the same course of action.
Two things:
I think we’d all agree that Harry is having the experience he needed to have.
Second:
The anger and boundary enforcement that we are seeing is going to devolve into something else. It’s too exhausting. In this aspect, I think Harry coming back home was a wise thing to do — estrangements like this morph (not saying for better or worse, they just do), especially with a new generation coming up.
I agree with you on both points. The return to the U.K. apparently needed to happen so Harry could witness, for himself at close range, the way his family treats him and his family. What he does or takes away from this experience is TBD.
Their move back was done IMO to get their kids acquainted with the royal system and people with whom Harry’s familiar (his father, extended family, various admins and courtiers, government officials) while Charles is alive. All of that will be tedious if not impossible when William is king and therefore the Sussex kids need to be seen and believed in England before Charles dies. This type of reasoning can also be extended to enrolling their kids in British schools, it is a means to get them acquainted with their peers and U.K. culture.
One does not have to agree with their decision to move in order to understand the timing and rationale behind the Sussex’s move. I think it’s ridiculous but if their goal is to maintain ties, with the royal system or with individual family members, then it makes sense to do it while Charles is alive.
I agree with you both Frida & Hope …. At the end of the day Harry is a Prince of the United Kingdom. Theres a video if him (And Megan in red) getting a standing ovation from veterans in some opera hall). The Royal family is like the eagle or the Statue of Liberty. Very interwoven and I think he loves his country and especially the military. If they didn’t go back now there was the risk of permanent exile. I think the Sussexes are winning – they managed to catch enemy (press & deranged royalIsts) by surprise.
Chris Ship on ITV news is reporting Harry was only given an hour’s notice of this letter being made public.
https://www.itv.com/news/2026-09-08/harrys-fury-as-palace-letter-comes-in-week-of-security-review
Feminegra states The King can circulate letters clarifying status. He can brief against his son’s security demands. But he cannot claim to care about family while leaving his son and grandchildren to fight for basic protection alone, all while publicly funding his disgraced brother, Andrew.
Andrew really is the sticking point for Charles – as long as he is funding him, including his security, it weakens any defense against the Sussexes not having security.
It’s clear to anyone with eyes and a functioning brain that Charles could not give a shit about Harry and his family or he won’t have taken away the security and house in the first place. I mean look he pays for Andy security, he pays Andy daughter’s rent . This is why I can’t wrap my head around why Harry took those children and Meghan to meet with Charles and cams over the summer . That man would never see my children because their lives don’t matter to him . When someone shows you who they are , believe them the first time.And I will say something in Charles defense, lord help me , he didn’t need to give Harry and Meghan a heads up about the contents of the letter because like he stated , they don’t work for him and like I said , he doesn’t give a flying f about them so i think it’s best he doesn’t pretend otherwise. Maybe now Harry will get the message loud and clear that his father will never care about what happens to him or his family and then Harry can close the door finally on his dog shit father and go live his life with his wife and children and only look forward to the future and not back on the past
Andrew has security but he doesn’t do anything. He doesn’t make public appearances in support of charities or organizations and he never does anything even remotely on behalf of the Crown. Charles can pay for Andrew’s security because he also controls where he goes and what he does. Establishing that Harry and Meghan are private citizens means that Charles is not responsible for where they go and what they do. If Harry wants to have weekly functions in preparation for Invictus, he shouldn’t expect BP to provide security. This is my take.
Thank you @Over it for an honest response to everything not just this statement reiterating the status quo. I was finished with Charles as a man and father and grandfather over the removal of security and accommodation for them whilst shielding his brother. July ‘s antics were sufficient to tell me that KC was only shamed into a 46 minute tepid tea with Harry and co by the backlash. I have been rocking on my heels since the news of their return broke because it seemed so fraught with actual danger. Disappointment doesn’t kill but UK given decade long press hostility is unsafe for them. I still had a little hope that KC was funding proper security for them and that Will ‘s clear unsuitability to be heir would pave the way for Harry to become regent . Yesterday ‘s statement removed that slim hope.
It is better, however, painful to accept the truth of the situation and for Harry to only have modest and reasonable expectations of his father. Meghan and their children are his life and priority and their happiness and security is all that counts.
I’m no fan of Charles (I’m anti royal generally and think he’s a shit person specifically) but it was his mother who took away Harry’s UK home, refused the 1/2 in plan, protected Andrew. There is no evidence that those actions weren’t 100% what she wanted, except that people like to think of her as kindly (despite all evidence to the contrary).
Charles took away frogmore after Spare was released, not the late queen. But she did refuse the half in plan and she did protect andrew, no argument there.
“The Royal and VIP Executive Committee (RAVEC), the Home Office committee responsible for making decisions about royal security, is reportedly meeting as early as today to discuss arrangements for the Sussexes.”
Wow. I wonder if this is true. If so, the Sussexes could know their fate within the next few days.
I will be absolutely enraged if RAVEC denies them intelligence-based, armed security. And Harry will be devastated that his own father is willing to accept the possibility that something could happen to his young grandchildren. I don’t think the British public will react favorably either.
If I were Harry, I’d hope for the best but prepare for the worst.
@India agreed 💯. Sussex security assessment should be based on threat not whether they are “working” members of RF. BBC are now reporting committee is expected to meet this week NOT today. I think Harry can expect nothing from his father other than the occasional tepid 45 minute formal tea. Charles continues to be a disappointment and a disgrace as a leader, King, Head of CE father, father in law and grandfather. I wish the Sussexes well. However painful the truth of this is for Harry it really better to have no illusions. The Firm are a cult and it is all in or all out.
My concern with basing security on ‘threats’ is that RAVEC can say 1. there was insufficient evidence, 2. the threat level was minimal, or 3. there are verified threats but they’re specific to the Sussexes and not the Crown. Ofc they’ll never admit the third point but it doesn’t matter. Harry, Meghan and their children have entered the country at their own risk and all we can hope is that they made a good decision.
I agree.. I am leaning towards this entire move being about security and when security was denied for the family over the summer for the one year to go ceremony for IG they decided to relocate for an indefinite period of time to force RAVEC to do a current threat assessment, I also don’t believe they will remain in England long if the security is not given.
That’s where I’ve been leaning to.
It’s possible RAVEC or whatever said “well you guys don’t even live in the UK full time so we’re not going to bother”. So H&M said “okay we will move back then and put our kids in schools here so we’re being residents. Now is that reason enough?”
I don’t know if that’s what happened. And if it did, I do hope H&M have a plan in place for when security inevitably, in my opinion, gets denied.
Y’all know how this is going to go. Charles just reiterates that Harry & Meghan and their kids are private individuals–not even HRHs!!–therefore they do not deserve protection. That’s it.
WHY is RAVEC telling the media when it is meeting to discuss the Sussexes’ security arrangements, when they don’t do this for the hundreds (thousands?) of people who are NOT royal and for whom they make such arrangements on a regular basis?
Man, they need a new team. How is this the response instead of we are happy to have it clarified, once again, we are private citizens and will continue to do our private citizen work and pay our own way. Instead they create more headlines, Harry is furious! Sussex’s blindsided! Complete shock ! Take the stupid letter and use it to your advantage.
I agree. They knew the terms. We all knew they would be private citizens. So should not express surprise. This letter was clearly pushed by insecure William.
Perhaps the surprise was about the lies in the letter (HRHs in abeyance) and the implication that BP has a say in their private affairs by demanding to be consulted in order to provide “guidance” to public bodies re the Sussexes’ interactions with their charities and other organisations?
100% agree. This should have been their response. It comes accross like this (what you just suugested) is not what they actually think.
Agreed. I don’t get their response at all about surprise. They are not working royals, period. They should never have given this air, and now it’s another thing with them.
Their reply statement simply said they were surprised. 🤷♀️🤷♀️🤷♀️ That is a fairly neutral and ambiguous response. There was nothing what-so-ever to suggest harry was “furious”. If you’ve read that somewhere… it’s 100% the tabloid media. And nothing they could say (even if it was perfect) can stop that rabid press. Think of those freaks…. Dan Wootton Angela Levin that Nannnoo lady with the crazy wig and the (??) Collin campbell. The british press is INSANE!!
Since when does anyone from Team Sussex ring up Becky, “I destroyed NOTW & I committed crimes against people that should have landed me in prison” English?
They literally named her in a lawsuit.
Becky lies about them like breathing, and the BBC loves to ‘filter up’ and legitimize lies told by bottom feeder media.
Sounds like absolute 🐴💩 to me.
Sky News are doing live updates on this story and reported the following
When were Harry and Meghan told about King’s letter?
We’re getting more details about what is said to have happened behind the scenes yesterday, when a Buckingham Palace letter about Harry and Meghan’s royal status came to light.
The couple’s “surprise” about the reiterated guidance from the King has already been noted.
More details from their side have revealed the apparent timeline of events on Monday, though…
It’s understood the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s representatives received the letter at 13:59 on Monday.
Harry and Meghan’s camp then apparently responded to the Palace 20 minutes later, asking whether the guidance had already been publicly released.
The Duke of Sussex himself was notified at 15:09, it’s understood.
Two minutes after that, sources say, the Sussexes were told the King’s guidance had already been distributed to the media.
We haven’t yet heard from Buckingham Palace sources with their side of the story.
But royal commentators are noting that the King appears to have “taken charge” of the issue – as we reported earlier…
Sorry here is link to Sky News live update page on this developing story.
Looks like Harry had all of two minutes notice!
https://news.sky.com/story/harry-and-meghan-security-latest-king-letter-surprised-duke-and-duchess-of-sussex-royal-family-schools-ravec-13574885#12396941
I don’t know why the Sussexes would expect that they would be “half-in, half-out” unless it had been discussed with Charles earlier. I can see that the timing of the statement would be a surprise, but not the content. Unless, “private citizen” means something specific with regard to security.
Why did Harry need advance notice for this? It’s confirmation of everything everyone here has said – they’re not moving back to be working royals. The fact the Sussexes are “surprised” by this is frankly silly. I do not understand what they are trying to do here.
@Crystal says Exactly. I agree. I thought their response was silly also. They came here as private individuals. That’s been stated. Stop playing the victim, like not receiving enough notice about Prince Charles clarifying this. He is the King. He can do what he wants. He’s only clarifying what is the truth.
Why throw out some public response about being “surprised”? I don’t get what Meghan and Harry’s endgame is. I really don’t.
Harry needed advance notice because there were things in the letter which were not correct. BP rushed the letter out because Harry and his legal team would have had time to rebut certain points. I suspect that they still will.
‘It is understood’. Bullpucky.
Well he wanted to come back, him being surprised says a lot of things doesn’t it?
Sigh , look I know this is none of my business but I have opinions 😀. I would say like I have said before, I would never have moved my family back to that country without that security in place that they are still fighting for. Not like I would trust any of these people to actually protect me so I guess I won’t have returned. I mean I can’t imagine being relaxed and at peace with my children in school and me going anywhere without that police protection. I can’t understand why Harry and Meghan decided this was the right thing to do for their family. Yes I know it’s their family but I would never have made this decision. I can only say what I would not have done
Hearty co-sign on all of this!
I thought their position was perfectly clear until I read this. Now I am confused, Charles seems to have downgraded their position that was given to them by his mother ambiguously. His mother only talked about commercial activities. “On ice” is not the same as commercial activities.
‘On ice’ sounds like a tabloid phrase rather than a Charles phrase. That’s why I’d like to see the actual letter, in its entirety, on letterhead.
If RAVEC refuses security for Harry and his family again, he has to know it’s because that’s what Charles wants. Or at least, what William wants and is able to coerce Charles to demand. It’s ludicrous to make the decision based on their “role” and not the security risk, which is not Harry’s to control at this point. And let’s not forget that the RF’s own lies and public smear campaign is what has made the risk for them so severe. In fact, I’m shocked if Harry brought his family here with no assurance of their safety from KC. This wasn’t just Harry’s idea, coming back to England, I’m convinced Charles was involved.
If god forbid anything happens to them, the royals are finished because people are much wiser than they were in 1997.
I don’t believe Charles was involved beyond Harry mentioning he would like to bring his children here. I think Charles would have preferred them just to come on holidays to a country house they rent.
I think Harry is very nervous about what William will do when Charles passes, whenever that will be. He might also be worried about his inheritance because of his estrangement with his father and now by being so disconnected from Charles by living in California. I think he is finding reconnecting with his dad harder with the distance.
He wants his children to live in England at least for a bit, go to school there, experience the culture. And Harry wants to stay connected to the UK and to whatever relatives he is close to. He also wants to get back on some better footing with Charles since he’s ill.
Once William becomes King, God knows what will happen. William will try to strip them and their children of everything. And they seem to care a great deal about titles.
Team Sussex is still naive if they believe that the Palace is going to treat them with respect. However the response to the letter should have been Harry and Meghan are private citizens. But I suspect that Harry doesn’t see it that way. Maybe he will start accepting that the Royal Family will never accept him as part of the working family. Perhaps he will stop deferring to the Palace.
Will also probably stop any chat about them showing up at Royal events too and Christmas. What a mess.
Besides very little contact with his father, he has no relationship with the rest of that family, so he shouldn’t care about them.
I think it’s all about the security, which the message clearly hands over to the appropriate authorities–meaning Ravec. I think they should definitely get security. They could be targeted not just by someone who hates them but also by a foreign power that wants to throw the government into chaos. I also think Harry has a responsibility to cool it for awhile. He doesn’t have to be in the news every day.
Trouble is BM determination to write inflammatory and derogatory BS about Sussexes on a daily basis to make everyone heartily sick of them. If they only reported approximately and fairly there wouldn’t be a problem. However look at the volume and the excessive nasty coverage covering every aspect their lives. Royal Rota, royal biographers, royal expects with blogs, podcasts, regular TV and print interviews use them as content. They compare them to Edward and Wallis. Obsession with old videos, lipreading, made up stories about Meg from the past, interviews with the trashy half siblings and horrible sell out TMarkle. Channel 5 do two RF documentaries every Saturday: Will and Kate portrayed as saints, Harry and Meghan sinners. They interview eachother about what Meghan is thinking WTF? It’s endless and nothing to do with Meghan and Harry.
Harry doesn’t want to be in the news every day but BM are selling inflammatory commentary on him so they are insisting on churning out opinion, gossip, speculation, projection, twisted fantasy.
Ummm, tell the BM that? Harry hasn’t said anything in weeks so why does he have a responsibility to cool it? What exactly should he cool?
If the Sussexes’ spokesperson actually said what Becky reported, that spokesperson should be shown the door today.
FFS, you don’t admit to your adversary that they took you by surprise. And Charles, whether Harry wants to admit it or not, is the Sussexes’ adversary.
He took away their English home, has denied them security, continues to be easily manipulated by William’s tantrums (or the prospect thereof) and throws Harry only the occasional crumb, like an hourlong tea. Maybe Harry needed to be reminded of what his father’s really like, but the cliche “fool me once” springs to mind.
💯 agreed @QuiteContrary the decision to brief on a timeline when they actually got the letter and when it was forwarded to Harry was a bad decision and will be gleefully reported by his enemies. The Comms strategy needs a rethink and that comes from the top. Was Harry really blindsided by the decision to reiterate the status quo as viewed by the Firm? Did he think something else was on offer or is it the concern about security and RAVEC? All he can reasonably expect from dad is a tepid tea maybe once a year nothing real or substantial because the letter reflects the situation as Charles sees it. He’s 78 and, ahem, set on his years and obsessed with being king. He’s never really committed to fatherhood or being a devoted grandfather. Nothing important has changed for KC he’ll always be booked and took busy for his sons and their families.
I think this is Harry looking at the letter through solely through the lens of how if may affect the RAVEC review. Score one for staying in Montecito.
1. The Sussex team said they received the letter an hour before it was released. They were notified, just not consulted.
2. This is the same info we have all known since 2020. My vibe on this is that BP or whatever office is getting questions about whether these visits are patronages or how to address them, who is funding, etc so there is clarification.
By BP releasing this, they are also significantly taking the temperature down on potential security threats to them making it clear they are private citizens and doing things in a private capacity.
Lord, do we really need live updates about the letter?
Really, the only people who could have been surprised by this are the press. They’re the ones who’ve been harping on the possibility of Harry coming back into the fold.
That is my thought. Why did the Sussex team freak out like this?
No! So preposterous!
Kaiser,
I feel like since British media reported that Harry and Meghan “blindsided” the King with their news of moving back to UK, this is his way of “putting them in their place” as royal reporters are saying.
Question for anyone:
In an agreement/contract if someone breaks the terms of said agreement/contract doesn’t it make that thing null and void.?
I suspect that the media are all relying on one another for the claim that some H&M spox said they were surprised. Nobody gives the spokesperson’s name and typically when H&M make a statement, they say it themselves and unequivocally.
It’s clear is that Becky English is recycling some secondhand quote because she says “The couple’s spokesman APPARENTLY admitted the letter’s publication had taken them off guard” and “IT IS UNDERSTOOD that while Harry and Meghan were told about the letter, they were not consulted on its contents.” She’s just watching Sky News and the BBC and regurgitating what they say while further embellishing with her imagination about what “apparently” happened.
H&M are two exceptionally accomplished and fully grown adults. Whenever they’ve wanted to say something important, they’ve said it themselves. I think they will make a statement to clarify their motives and intentions on their own timetable and will let the guessing game go on until then. My own belief is that they are coordinating with BP in all of this and that they are fine with today’s letter, which I suspect helps lay the legal ground for the protection of their kids from having their photos published. But that’s just my own speculation and I will wait for them to speak while giving H&M the benefit of the doubt that they know what they want to do with their lives in the meantime.
100% agree with every word you said @HoneyDon’t
De acuerdo al 100%, además porqué deberíamos creer lo que dice Rebeca English, si los BMs siempre mienten sobre los Sussex, y porqué el portavoz de los Sussex hablaría con un tabloide?
As I wrote on another thread, this statement is a clear signal to individuals and organizations to not work with the Sussexes and not treat them as Royals.
Also, there IS something new in the letter. According to the palace, their stylings of HRHs are in abeyance. They are not. Under the Sandringham Summit, the Sussexes retain their stylings but they agreed to not to use them for professional purposes. It said nothing about their personal, charitable pursuits. This would surprise Harry.
Finally, like many of you, I don’t believe that the timing of the issuance of this letter just coincidentally happens to fall right before the security meeting. Charles really is a horrible person.
Oh that is interesting about the titles. Do we think that’s why Harry freaked out?
I don’t know if he freaked out but it certainly would have been a surprise to him. This is telling organizations to not refer to Harry as HRH Prince Harry, which they have every right to.
Is Charles also signaling that anyone that isn’t a full-time working Royal should have there HRH style removed? Or, is this just for Harry and Meghan.
Charles could issue a Letter of Patent removing these stylings. But he hasn’t. He thinks that he can make the Sussexes and UK organizations pretend Harry is no longer an HRH, just as they pretend that Andrew is no longer in Duke.
The Sussexes really should respond to that portion of the announcement.
For this situation “in abeyance” is not inappropriate. Since Harry and Meghan are going to be private citizens and not representing the BRF, no, they do not use their HRHs. But they can be revived should they return to that role.
Now, it’s true there are some in the family who can skirt that and still retain their HRH’s but that is a separate conversation. And I think if the confusion had been localized on the HRH issue there would have been mention of it.
Charles’s letter is reaffirming what their original 2020 arrangement. And no, if he’s not representing the Firm, he can’t really be called HRH by other organizations. I understand some of the family are treated differently in this respect but none of them have separated from the family as much as Harry and Meghan so this was an inevitable part of them returning to the UK as private citizens. I don’t have a high opinion of Charles in any case so this is not a defense.
They really did not lose the HRH. The Queen said they could not use it for business purposes.
“Abeyance” doesn’t mean they lost their HRHs.
Abeyance is a legal(istic?) formality of suspension of a style or title. That is only done in certain circumstances, for example, when there is a title to which there are currently no male heirs but the creation of the title allows for abeyance and reinstatement when there is, in the future, a male heir. The future male heir then has to apply for, essentially, the revival of the style or title (example: Dominic West’s oldest male child). It can also happen when the UK goes to war with the country in which a title holder resides. For example the abeyance of certain titles held by Germans during World War i. Those heirs (for example Princess Caroline’s ex-husband) can now reapply for reinstatement of those titles and styles, they just have not done so.
There is no such thing as an informal: hey, don’t use your HRH styles while you’re not working for us. It is only taken away by Letters Patent.
This is particularly egregious because all other male-line grandchildren of Queen Elizabeth hold both princely titles and HRH styles (even if they don’t use them). Whether they work for the firm or not.
@crystal, abeyance is the SUSPENSION of a style. For all intents and purposes, that means that they can’t use those styles anymore. Or, at least according to Charles they can’t. Which is bull.
The Sussexes should send out their Christmas cards signed: HRH Harry, HRH Meghan, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet!
If this the case (and remember that H only agreed that they would not use the HRH style for commercial purposes), then why are other NON-working royals allowed to use their HRHs for business and charity and everything in between? It is literally a part of their names. The palace itself called Eugenie HRH Princess Eugenie on its website when her daughter was born. Princess Michael of Kent has not stopped putting her HRH on her publications.
The fact is that the contents of the letter were incorrect, and the palaces knew it, and the point about the royal styles and encouraging the organisations that work with H+M to contact BP to check how to proceed – thus giving BP information to leak – was the sole objective of releasing the letter which many are assuming was simply to point out the obvious.
💯, @magdalena
In this case, abeyance is a unique phenomenon as we apply it to Harry because here it is not a formalized suspension of the styling. The baronies you mention require a legal mechanism of abeyance because of the situation of competing heirs as is common (rather than lack of heirs btw), but it is not the same with Harry. The example about WWI is incorrect because those titles were not in abeyance – they were removed outright by the Titles Deprivation Act of 1917. In this particular case the HRH being in abeyance is functionally not different from having the HRH and not using it. Abeyance is not a formalized suspension here but a dormancy of the styling itself. (The specific title also matters in a non-royal context because of the variation of the creation which is another reason why this situation is different). The Letters Patent are also unnecessary for every single differentiation of the styling and usage. Harry derives his right to the HRH from them, but “there is no such thing as an informal: hey, don’t use your HRH styles while you’re not working for us” is incorrect because this was what was in fact agreed upon in 2020.
As far as other working royals using them, as I acknowledged earlier, yes, it is inconsistent, but honestly it is less so this second time around for them in the UK. The reason they are being sticklers about this is quite frankly because Harry and Meghan are in a unique situation. There are royals who use their HRH’s for their non-royal activities, it is true, Princess Michael being one. But the fact is that there has not been a situation like the Sussexes where the child (and their family) of a monarch is essentially divorced from the overarching structure for all intents and purposes beyond family connections. And the family want to show the Sussexes are not in the fold. It’s the reason many of us here are skeptical as to the success of this second try.
@crystal, I stopped reading after “unique phenomenon. “. If anything, the supposed rules should be applied uniformly, otherwise they just appear erratic and applied in a vindictive way.
There is no way that making up a special type of “abeyance” for Harry and Meghan is either justifiable or not punitive.
Well, that’s the problem with the idea of monarchy that Harry has said they both support. The rules are always made up nonsense more or less. And the Firm made up the idea that they couldn’t be half-in or half-out. But in this particular case as according to the rules of the stylings, the idea of his HRH being in abeyance isn’t made up. You can be sympathetic to the Sussexes and be able to see that. Either he’s representing them, or he isn’t. He clearly isn’t, and they agreed not to use the HRH, and they haven’t since, so I’m not understanding why people are insisting this is a huge problem. It’s a continuation of what was agreed on in 2020.
This was something that them moving back was always going to illuminate. When they were in California it didn’t matter. But it’s different if they’re in the UK because the other royals are there for comparison. And part of why it’s unique is that the other royals who do get to be half-in half-out still more or less depend on Charles. Harry doesn’t at all.
The Sussexes only (or rather Harry only) agreed to not use the HRH stylings in a PROFESSIONAL (read: business, money-earning) capacity.
They are free to use them, and have used them, under the Sandringham agreement, for other purposes, including charitable.
There was no abeyance. Merely an agreement to not use the stylings in their money making ventures.
No, the exact words were “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will no longer actively use their HRH titles as they will no longer be working members of the family as of Spring 2020.” This was on the Sussex Royal website. Most people did indeed run with the interpretation about them not using it because of commercial and public ventures, but the wording they used is pretty specific to me. And the styling not being used actively means…it’s in abeyance.
I agree the statement sucks but I don’t think they are surprised by the palace saying what was confirmed in January 2020, march 2020 and again in February 2021. Despite what Richard Eden etc claim there’s been no indication that the palace wanted them back doing duties or that Harry or Meghan wanted to be back doing duties which is only way they could be considered as half in half out. There’s plenty of royals who live in uk and don’t do duties- it’s very possible to want to spend time in uk & it not be about the monarchy.
According to itv news Sussexes are concerned that the timing of the briefing of this letter was to influence upcoming security meeting – which if true again belies idea that this relocation was about project thaw etc
https://www.itv.com/news/2026-09-08/harrys-fury-as-palace-letter-comes-in-week-of-security-review
So the Sussex surprise or upset is bc they possibly believe the letter is meant to sway RAVEC against security for them? Or to prepare the public for what RAVEC decides. I can see the Sussex kids maybe getting some security for school runs but that Harry and Megha will not get security for any charity works it’s private and not for the crown. Idk I hope that’s not what happens but we shall see.
I honestly think any of us here could do a better job advising them. I think that Harry did this full stop to force the issue with RAVEC which in my opinion was dumb AH. This was not done for Invictus (he’s never moved his family for that before) it certainly wasn’t for Charles (he only had an hour to spare him) so it really was about him getting back there to make sure his children are raised as royals. Which fine, but again they were never going to let them come back. And that shows maybe some of the he can’t come back until he apologizes (Harry) is somewhat true.
This is Charles flexing — or trying to — because he’s a tetchy thin-skinned egomaniac. Who always has something to prove, and his family members have always been pawns in his personal PR campaign. Call it narcissism. He uses people and throws them away. No, the information in the letter was nothing new, but there was no need to slap them down publicly since they haven’t done anything that breaches the agreement from six years ago. Ergo, this was just Charles trying to look like a tough guy, and actually looking spiteful and petty.
I am not surprised that people are still surprised or in disbelief that H and M are back in the UK. The only logical explanation is that Harry is forced to return to UK for whatever reason that is out of his control. If they go back to US, that means that reason has already been fixed.
All this talk of new school for the kids, a movie role, a documentary, king’s health, Invictus, charity, etc are good cover. Harry has been doing charities and Invictus before while in Cali.
If Harry keeps this up, his family might just wind up having their Meghanless dreams come true after all.
I think this is about sabotaging the upcoming security review. Also apparently a lot of organizations want to work with them and was going through the palace , which annoyed them. They really don’t want the Sussexes doing anything public facing, especially Meghan, but they already have some commitments. I think they should go about their plans as scheduled and jot silence themselves. They haven’t said they wanted any official royal role so where is this presumption coming from outside of royal circles? Anyway, Sussexes and their team need to be more proactive and try to get out of this royal churn cycle. They’re over in the UK for whatever reason, but they now know where things stand and should adjust accordingly. One very valid criticism of Harry I agreed with is he grew up in this world around these people, have seen them at their worst, but still think they can be reasoned with. This puts him at a disadvantage. He can’t seem to navigate it and Meghan is deferring to him because this is his world and his people. It’s tricky. It’s like the Democrats thinking the old rules of decorum and cronyism will work in this new ruthless reality. Pivot and protect your self interests.
It might seem obvious that he should know these people, given that he was born and raised among them; yet, upon meeting Meghan, Harry himself admitted that he had thought he knew his family, only to realize he didn’t know them at all—and was shocked by what he saw.
As a child, Harry was shielded by his mother; after her death, he spent years on the internet alongside older brother.—who told him to keep his distance and pretend they didn’t know each other. As a teenager, he spent more time in Africa than in England, followed by a decade in the military—years he described as the happiest of his adult life. While part of the Royal Family, he lived in isolation in a “dog kennel,” without money—forced to buy clothes on sale—and spent most of his time representing the Queen on official trips abroad (I doubt he ever told the Queen his father was withholding the money due to him; he managed on his own) and pursuing his passion for charity work, to which he was wholeheartedly committed.
He never engaged in palace games, and he may well have been largely unaware of many of the ugly things going on within the family itself. Elizabeth—with whom Harry remained close until the end—was, despite various missteps regarding the monarchy, always protective of the family in her own way, providing homes, financial support, and care even when they didn’t deserve it. She never lashed out at her family—not even at Charles, who had terrible things said about her and Philip in his authorized biography, or when he tried to push her into retirement. Harry has his 400 additional pages, because the older he gets, the made aware he becomes of the kind of people who fill those palaces and the deeds some of them are capable of; and—as we can see—he doesn’t bury his head in the sand: he fights in court and speaks out about some of them, yet he still leaves the door open for truth and redemption. It might seem a bit naive, but it is a deeply humane, principled, and empathetic stance.
Excelente comentario
The timing of the release is only overshadowing the whole performative photo op of Prince George’s arrival at Eton. All the UK press is going to want to talk about is the Sussex’s and George will quickly be an afterthought.
🤷♀️ Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
I think that Harry and Meghan have probably given up on the half-in half-out. For practical reasons, Harry wants to be able to support his remaining charities and to be able to come and go from the UK in order to do this. It’s the media that wants in half thing. The Sussexes do not seem to have said a word about wanting to do royal duties, but the media is dying for them to do so. However, I do wonder if this is an effort to further put the kibosh on armed security and intelligence sharing for Harry’s security.
I’ve asked this question before and I’ll say again what does Meghan get out of this. Why would she destroy her peace to move back to this? Constant harassment from the press through countless articles. I remember her saying before it’s like experiencing death through a thousands cuts. I know that she doesn’t owe any of us a explanation but when you saw what happened to her before you have to wonder why would she do this to herself again. There are a lot us who genuinely like her and Harry and wish them well but any sane person is going to wonder why. His father in my eyes has shown no appearances as wanting to have anything to do with them and a 1 hour visit for PR purposes doesn’t count so why put yourself and your children through this. Everything he has put out in the press and done to them has shown that he could care less. I don’t get that I love my son and grand children vibe from him. I bet those kids hardly know or see him. I bet he shows more love and affection to Camilla kids and grand children. Was Harry promised something to move back there now they’re reneging. Why else would you uproot your family for this clown show. Those people will nver accept your family no matter how prescious your kids are. You committed the ultimate sin. You showed the world what awful people they really are and they will never forgive you for it. In my view you have 2 options. After the school term pack up and leave and admit this wasn’t working out. Or if you decide o stay protect your family and hire the best PR you can buy and never ever say you are suprised by anything that awful family say or do. You and Meghan should know by now they are capable of anything and will try to humilate you and your family just like they did to your mother. Never ever trust them. P.S. My 2 bits.
The only logical explanation is that Harry is forced to return to UK for whatever reason that is out of his control. If they go back to US, that means that reason has already been fixed.
All this talk of new school for the kids, a movie role, a documentary, king’s health, Invictus, charity, etc are good cover. Harry has been doing charities and Invictus before while in Cali.
Has anybody seen the actual statement from Charles? All I see is the purported quotes–and I don’t trust these people to quote accurately.
Yes, it was printed in full in a Daily Mail article yesterday. You might want to follow the link to see if it is posted in that article. I would think that most articles about the announcement, in the legitimate press, would have reprinted the announcement in full.
Nope. Went to a number of sources, where I see lots of articles about the letter with purported quotes (I don’t trust them), but not the letter itself. Per the linked DM article: ‘The letter released on Monday was written on His Majesty’s instruction by his Lord Chamberlain, Lord Benyon, head of the Royal Household, following ‘a number of requests for guidance’.’ They did not publish the letter itself, nor did they even say to whom it was addressed.
Fake news!!!
I’ll tell you why they were “surprised”: Charles gave Harry assurances and Harry was foolish enough to believe him.
Charles is a master at this shady 💩 and this statement has effectively altered the status of the HRH understanding, warning the government, military and charities to be under no illusion that Harry is not to be treated as royal adjacent and have privileged access (which he was getting). This shouldn’t have any impact on RAVEC’s decision but it will. I think it’s also an indication that Charles will not be appearing at Invictus next year too. Harry’s on his own.
100!
BP has a problem. They keep making up fake rules to single out H & M for inferior treatment. The world can see the RF discriminating against the Sussexes unlike any other royal or family member. The British people must conclude that the King endorses racism, xenophobia and other aspects of right-wing politics.
So is he to be called Harry Sussex now? Is this the palace trying to make fetch happen?
I doubt Duke title will be removed and Meghan won’t lose Duchess title. Harry was born a Prince and that would not be taken. And Meghan would be Princess Henry.
I’m beginning to believe that Charles made certain assurances, which Harry believed, and he’s now rowed back and achieved the aim of basically rewriting part of the Sandringham Agreement regarding the HRH status; undermining Harry’s privileged access to government ministers, military chiefs etc., and putting any Sussex friendly media on notice that there’s been no softening of the institution’s stance towards the couple (in other words: stop hedging your bets and get back onside) and Invictus, even though military veteran focused, is a private charity and Charles is under no obligation as Head of the Armed Forces to support and, as such, will not be attending next year’s Games on UK soil.
The sabotage of the RAVEC process speaks for itself.
I now believe this is the first step in severing the family officially from the monarchy and Charles will issue Letters Patent to remove Harry, Archie and Lilibet’s entitlement to be known as Princes and Princess, although he’s probably not going to do anything with the dukedom.
The man is a master manipulator, giving Harry a false sense of rethinking everything and wanting to be a more loving father and grandfather because of his health scare. He’s played Harry like a fiddle.
🎯. I believe he fell into a trap. Too late for him and Meghan. He put faith into the wrong people. Should have stayed in California were they had some protection from the insanity. They are getting pillored by the entertainment media here every day since they returned to the UK. Katie Nichols is interviewed every night and she is always negative about them . There is no pushback from their PR. People forget that people get a lot of celebrity news from these kinds of entertainment media. People are wondering if it was so bad why did you return. They really need their PR people to pushback on some of the falsehoods and lies these people are spewing daily on American tv.
What struck me is what Jayna said above, seemingly in defense of Charles. “He is the King. He can do what he wants.”
Yup. That’s what it boils down to for Charles and this whole system that calls itself a family. “I can do what I want neener neener.” That is his justification to himself for choosing to blindside his son with this statement. And plenty of people buy that justification. It’s all about “protecting the monarchy.” Protect The Heir, at all costs. Even if it might make your own grandchildren vulnerable to people who would do them harm.
I do think Harry should have seen this coming. He shouldn’t have put his family in this situation. But it definitely seems like where he most went wrong was having any faith in his father. Because Charles is not acting as a father, and never really has. He wasn’t born missing a chip, but it has been bred out of him by this twisted cult.
I am not even anti monarchist really. I’m American. I never cared how the Brits ran their own country. But boy, this is all so very, deeply toxic.
Okay, at the old Sussexeoyal website:
https://sussexroyal.com/spring-2020-transition/
The exact (and complete) language is:
“As agreed and set out in January, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will retain their “HRH” prefix, thereby formally remaining known as His Royal Highness The Duke of Sussex and Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Sussex. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will no longer actively use their HRH titles as they will no longer be working members of the family as of Spring 2020”
Clearly this is badly worded because they are formally retaining their styles, they are NOT in abeyance, and they are to be referred to as HRHs. That is inconsistent with the second paragraph, which I believe is badly worded. Everyone understands that they were not to use them in a business capacity. That is what I believe the second paragraph of that statement means. Otherwise, it makes no sense. And, yes, the Sussexes have continued to use their styles.
Anyway, this statement makes it very clear that Harry and Meghan understood that the HRH styling were very much active.
Edit: this is a response to a poster above who indicated that Harry and Meghan had previously agreed that their stylings would be in “abeyance.” .