Former Buckingham Palace press secretary Dickie Arbiter has said the Palace should “get on” with focusing on working royals and ignore Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Speaking on The Daily Express royal podcast Royals Unscripted, Arbiter addressed the couple's return to Britain.
Harry and Meghan, who relocated back to Britain this year after quitting royal life in 2020 and living in the US for six years, are “desperate for recognition”, Arbiter told Daily Express Royal Editor Emily Fergison. He also said they want to be public figures, when they are, in fact, private citizens.
Arbiter on the couple's motives
Speaking on the podcast, Arbiter said: “They're determined to be somebody - public figures, is what they call them. They are private citizens, but they want to be public figures.”
“They're desperate for recognition. They failed in the States, which is why they've come back here,” he added.
He continued: “It's quite interesting after six years, with their tails between their legs, coming back to the UK expecting everyone to fall over backwards. The crowds weren't terrific up there in Nottingham; it must have surprised them. Good luck to them.”
Palace approach
When asked about how the Palace should respond to the couple, Arbiter said: “Well, the old saying is 'if you ignore them, they go away'. But I don't think they're going to go away.”
“The best thing the palace can do is get on with the job of functioning with the working royals, they've got enough to do without worrying about two - as a Spotify executive called them - grifters,” he said.
When it was confirmed in August that Harry and Meghan had moved back to the UK, King Charles made it clear that this did not mean they were working royals again. Instead, he said they are private citizens who do not carry out work on behalf of the monarchy.
Couple's view on 'non-working royals' label
While this is true, it has been reported in recent weeks that Harry and Meghan dislike being referred to as non-working royals, because they disagree with the wording. A friend of the couple said that Harry and Meghan think the term is misleading, as they are members of the Royal Family who do work.
The friend told The Sunday Times: “Working members of the Royal Family' is a really lazy phrase. He hates it; she hates it. They are not 'working' for the institution, but they are members of the Royal Family, and they work. Their days are built around their family life and their work. She's running a business seven days a week.”
