Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have returned to the UK with their children Archie and Lilibet after six years living in California. The family arrived on a private jet at Birmingham International Airport on Wednesday (August 26) and are now based at a private, non-royal property widely rumoured to be in the Cotswolds.
They will live in the UK as non-working royals, while their children will start at a British school next month. Although the return was announced earlier this month and came as a shock to some, one member of the Royal Family reportedly predicted the move long ago.
Princess Anne's 'coded message'
According to royal biographer Katie Nicholl, Princess Anne "predicted all of this" and had previously warned Harry and Meghan about "reinventing the wheel" years before their return. Nicholl told Hello! magazine: "Harry has always had a very good relationship with his aunt Princess Anne. 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."
The Princess Royal said at the time: "I don't think this younger generation probably understands what I was doing in the past, and it's often true, isn't it? You don't necessarily look at the previous generation and say, 'Oh, you did that?' Or, 'You went there?'"
She added: "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.'"
A 'cautionary word' to the Sussexes
Nicholl said she understood Anne's words to be "a cautionary word to Meghan and Harry that yes, of course there needs to be changes, but, but not to do anything too drastically." The expert continued: "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."
Harry and Meghan initially stepped back from their roles as working royals in January 2020 before moving to California two months later. The move, dubbed "Megxit" by the British press, was highly controversial and created a rift within the Royal Family.
King Charles's response
King Charles has reportedly welcomed their return to the UK in a private and personal family capacity. He is said to be pleased to have more time to see his son and grandchildren, seven-year-old Prince Archie and five-year-old Princess Lilibet, but maintains that the move will not change the official status of Harry and Meghan.
The King has made it clear they will not be resuming duties on behalf of the monarchy and will not receive public funding. The Sussexes will live in a secured private residence rather than a royal estate.
