Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are set to carry out their first joint engagements in the UK since their return to the country. The Sussexes will head to Nottingham this morning for a run of three quasi-royal appearances.
In August, the Sussex family moved back to England, six years after leaving the working monarchy for a new life in the US. Today's visit marks their first joint appearance in the UK since then, with stops at the city's Community Recording Studio (CRS), food poverty community action group Himmah Hub, and Epic Partners, which supports young people through sports programmes and mentoring.
Quasi-Royal Appearances
Although the high-profile events are not official royal engagements – with a letter to Government stakeholders authorised by the King last month clarifying the Sussexes remain "private citizens" – they are likely to bear all the hallmarks of such. The duke and duchess are said to consider themselves "public figures" and were caught off-guard by the letter outlining their position.
While Harry has been attending events since his return, today marks the first time in four years that Meghan has appeared publicly at events in the UK – the last time being the late Queen's funeral in 2022. In 2020, Harry and Meghan carried out their final official public royal engagement together, when they joined the royal family at the Commonwealth Day service in Westminster Abbey.
Meghan's Focus on Family and Business
Quasi-royal visits will, however, be "relatively rare" for Meghan, with the duchess focusing on her children, her As Ever lifestyle brand and rebooting her acting career. "She's reading a lot of scripts at the moment," a source told The Telegraph.
The source added that Harry and Meghan had "different professional priorities", saying: "Prince Harry's is his philanthropic work and public service. Her focus is on her family and children, followed by her business, followed by rebooting her acting career. Her public appearances will be relatively rare. She is reading a lot of scripts at the moment."
They added that if Meghan had any time left, she would do "some charity work", adding "she's not a working royal" but a full-time mother and entrepreneur. Rumours had abounded as to how former Suits star Meghan would spend her time in the UK, with speculation she was in talks for a role in the hit Netflix show The Gentlemen.
Meanwhile, a friend of Meghan's told Hello! magazine the duchess was ready to "stick her head above the parapet" on the visit to Nottingham, adding "She's up for it. There are still causes and there are still issues that Meghan is really passionate about supporting, and Nottingham is one of those."
Visit Details and Security Concerns
Throughout the visit, Harry and Meghan will gather at youth and community charity CRS, with the duke meeting musician and poet Jah Digga, who attended CRS as a child, while the duchess will join young girls for a confidence-building and bracelet-making workshop. The duke last visited the studio in St Ann's in September last year, when he personally donated £1.1 million to BBC Children In Need to support young people affected by violence.
The visit to Himmah Hub will involve a cooking class and the packing of food parcel donations, with the event reconnecting Meghan with women from the Hubb Community Kitchen. The duchess's first solo project as a member of the royal family in 2018 was supporting a Hubb Community Kitchen cookbook by the cooks, who helped families affected by the Grenfell fire in London.
Epic Partners supports children, young people and families in the St Ann's and Sneinton areas of the city through youth work, sport, mentoring and education. The Sussexes are waiting to hear whether they will be granted taxpayer-funded security, with Harry said to fear a delay after Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced a review of security measures for the royal family and public figures in the wake of the death of Reform UK's justice spokeswoman Ann Widdecombe.
