Bombshell royal reunion: Six burning questions as Harry and Meghan’s UK return is declared
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are in the process of moving back to Britain with their two children, six years after quitting their places as senior working royals and relocating to the US.
In a shock backtrack, Prince Harry and Meghan will return to the UK to live and have enrolled Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet in a British school, where they will begin next month.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will move back to the UK in September, six years after leaving their places as senior working royals. AP
The news from the Sussexes has sparked a number of questions, many of which remain unanswered as the couple is yet to issue a statement outlining their intentions.
Here are the biggest issues, and mysteries, surrounding Harry and Meghan’s unexpected bombshell.
1. Will Harry and Meghan return as working royals?
On January 7, 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex carried out an engagement at Canada House in London, and hours later, news broke that they were intending to step down as ‘senior royals’ to pursue a more private life away from Britain.
On January 8, UK time, Prince Harry and Meghan confirmed the rumours with a bombshell announcement on their now-defunct Instagram page, Sussex Royal, that they intended to leave their place as senior royals to pursue a financially independent life and split their time between the UK and North America.
Part of the couple’s exit deal negotiated with the royal family at the so-called Sandringham Summit on January 13, 2020, included the agreement they would not be able to use their titles for financial gain, something the couple has been accused of breaking in the six years since.
They could not, the late Queen Elizabeth II insisted, earn money and represent the Crown at the same time. So, Harry and Meghan left and the exit was finalised a year later.
Prince Harry and Meghan carried out a so-called farewell tour of the UK in March 2020, before relocating to the US for a life of financial freedom. Getty
They are currently regarded as private citizens able to earn their own way, with no financial benefit from the taxpayer.
Even though the Sussexes are moving back to the UK, there are no plans for Harry and Meghan to reprise their roles as working royals, according to The Telegraph UK, which first broke the story.
However, this is something that could happen in the future, depending on King Charles’ wishes for his son and daughter-in-law.
Prince Harry and Meghan, who famously asked the late queen for a half-in half-out approach to duty, may have finally got what they wanted.
Their quasi-royal tour of Australia in April, which blended commercial events with charity, proved the couple could be half-in, half-out royals − on their own terms. The tour was a success and while the inclusion of both commercial and charitable engagements angered some, Harry and Meghan showed they could use their high-profiles for both.
But whether the British public would accept this half-in, half-out model is another issue entirely.
The couple began their Australia tour with a visit to a hospital in Melbourne before carrying out commercial engagements later in the week. AP
King Charles is said to be firm that Prince Harry and Meghan’s status as non-working royals and private individual will not change.
As for the Prince of Wales, who remains estranged from his brother, it’s highly unlikely he will want to see Prince Harry back on official duty representing the monarchy he has heavily criticised in recent years.
2 Has Harry and Meghan’s American dream failed?
In the six years since their move to the US, Prince Harry and Meghan have made a lucrative career off their tumultuous few years with the royal family by speaking to Oprah Winfrey, telling their story in a six-part Netflix documentary and the duke’s tell-all memoir, Spare, which was published in 2023.
But Prince Harry and Meghan’s decision to leave the US to go back to the UK, now, suggests they may have run out of money or be in need of a financial lifeline.
Meghan starred on two series of a cooking show for Netflix, but the couple’s plans for financial success in the US may have come to an end. Jake Rosenberg/Netflix
Meghan has reinvented herself as an influencer and launched a lifestyle brand, As ever which, according to reports, will continue in the UK. Currently, the brand’s products, which include fruit spreads and flower sprinkles, are only available to US-based customers but could be expanded internationally once Harry and Meghan’s move across the pond happens.
The duchess’ short-lived stint as a hostess of the Netflix show With Love, Meghan was cancelled after just two seasons while her two podcasts have also ended.
Last year, Prince Harry and Meghan’s multi-million contract with Netflix was renewed but in what many called a “watered-down” deal after their previous projects with the streaming giant were hit-and-miss, bringing in mixed reactions.
The Sussexes angered many by criticising the royal family in their 2022 docu-series on Netflix. Netflix
Their most successful project so far was their first, the six-part Harry & Meghan docu-series from late 2022. It generated 23.4 million views in its first four days, but the series was widely criticised and viewing quickly dropped off in later episodes.
Prince Harry and Meghan have also publicly clashed with US president Donald Trump, with their views on politics differing widely.
The US President was also dragged into Harry’s US visa issues but declined to deport the prince, telling media: “I don’t want to do that. I’ll leave him alone. He’s got enough problems with his wife. She’s terrible.”
3 How will Harry and Meghan be received by the public... and royal family?
The Sussexes are two of the least popular members of the royal family, with the duchess sitting just above the former prince, Andrew Mounbatten-Windsor.
Prince Harry and Meghan’s relationship with the Prince and Princess of Wales is non-existent and the brothers have not spoken since 2022. Getty
However, there has been a small upward trend in Prince Harry’s ratings over the last year. A third of Britons (33 per cent) now see him favourably, up six points since May 2025.
As for Meghan, just 22 per cent of Britons see the duchess in a positive light. A further 65 per cent have an unfavourable view of the duchess.
The Prince and Princess of Wales are consistently ranked the most popular royals.
However, Prince Harry and Meghan do have their fans. Prince Harry’s recent visit to the UK, in July, saw him draw crowds at his public events while the couple’s four-day visit to Australia in April attracted huge interest and large scrums of fans in Melbourne and Sydney.
Whether Prince Harry and Meghan will be warmly received by the other royals, in particular Prince William and Catherine, remains to be seen.
In 2020, the Sussexes carried out their final engagement with the royal family before moving to the US. Getty
The last time Harry was seen with his royal relatives was at the coronation of King Charles in May 2023, but the duke left immediately after the Westminster Abbey service.
He and Meghan are close with Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank, and recently holidayed with them in Portugal.
4 Where will they live, and what will their lives look like?
Prince Harry and Meghan will live in a private residence and not on a royal estate, it is understood.
Early reports indicate they might set up a home near the Cotswolds, a place of choice for many US celebrities and influencers.
The couple first lived on the grounds of Kensington Palace before and after their wedding in 2018. They were then gifted Frogmore Cottage in Windsor by the late Queen Elizabeth II for their wedding.
Prince Harry will focus his energy on supporting charities connected with children and veterans, as he did when he was last in the UK in July. Getty Images
Prince Harry and Meghan were was forced to hand back the keys to Frogmore Cottage in 2023, soon after the publication of Prince Harry’s controversial memoir Spare.
Prince Harry has a number of engagements scheduled for September, including the WellChild Awards, a charity he has been patron of since 2007. It is one of a few patronages he was able to retain after stepping back as a senior working royal in 2020.
He is likely to focus on his charitably connections, including supporting military veterans and their families. The Invictus Games will be held in Birmingham next year and Harry has reportedly extended an official invitation to King Charles to attend the tournament.
Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet will start at a UK school in September. Instagram/@meghan
Meghan is expected to continue with her brand As ever and may pursue more media opportunities in the UK along with charity.
However, a focus for the duchess early on is likely to be settling her children Archie and Lilibet into their new British schools.
5 Will the move finally reunite Harry and William?
William and Harry’s strained relationship has been the subject of countless articles and debates in the years since the Sussexes left the UK.
While Prince Harry has made moves to repair his relationship with his father, he and William are not believed to have spoken since 2022 when their grandmother died.
Relations between William and Harry are strained and the Prince of Wales is said to feel deeply betrayed by his brother’s recent actions. Getty
William is said to be furious at his brother’s decision to write a tell-all which included private details of their lives and criticisms directed at the Princess of Wales.
In May last year, Harry told the BBC he would “love” a reconciliation with his family.
“There’s no point in continuing to fight,” he said, adding “some members of the royal family” would never forgive him for writing a memoir, or for “lots of things”.
The Prince and Princess of Wales have been informed of Harry and Meghan’s return but there has been no comment from Kensington Palace, the matter likely to be deemed a private issue.
King Charles was reportedly only told of his son’s plans on Sunday. The issue was not discussed when Harry and Meghan had lunch with the monarch in July.
6 Is the King’s health a driver of Harry’s return?
The king’s cancer diagnosis may be one of the biggest factors in the duke’s decision to move back home.
King Charles was diagnosed with cancer in 2024 and Harry has previously said he doesn’t know “much longer my father has” left. Getty Images
Last year, Harry said: “I don’t know how much longer my father has,” referencing his cancer diagnosis.
He flew to the UK within hours of Charles’ health news being made public in early 2024 and saw the king again in September last year.
The duke then brought his wife and children to see the king at Highgrove House in July.
Hours before the news of Harry and Meghan’s UK return broke on Thursday, Queen Camilla was seen in a documentary speaking about how hard she found it to keep her husband’s diagnosis a secret during a visit to a cancer centre in 2024.
The monarch is still having treatment for the cancer but the frequently of his treatment has been scaled back.
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