Could Harry and Meghan end up in Australia after the UK? Unpacking the latest claims

Almost a week on from the first headlines, Prince Harry and Meghan’s UK return still has the world talking – and now, the question is how permanent the move will be.

According to a new report from The Times, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s relocation from the US back to Harry’s homeland likely won’t be “forever”, with suggestions they could even move further abroad afterwards.

“It’ll be an extended period of time – it could be six months, it could be a year, it could be more – I don’t think even they know yet,” an unnamed source told the publication.

“They might suddenly go, ‘Why don’t we try Canada for a while? Why don’t we try Australia?’”

Harry and Meghan have certainly appeared to enjoy their visits Down Under, most recently this year – but is a move to Aussie shores really a possibility?

Nine.com.au’s royal reporter Natalie Oliveri believes it’s unlikely, but notes “anything is possible” when it comes to the Sussexes’ future moves.

Read more

Why now? The sad reality behind Harry and Meghan’s return to Britain

“Meghan has spoken about her love of Australia, so I wouldn’t say no to them spending more time here,” Oliveri told Today Extra on Monday.

“But as for a permanent move, I would say that’s unlikely at this point. They’ve gotta do the UK, again, first before coming Down Under.”

It’s not the first time the suggestion of Harry and Meghan moving to another country besides the US or UK has been floated.

When the couple initially announced their plans to step back as working royals in 2020, they said they intended to split their time between the UK and North America.

“That’s exactly what they’re doing now,” Oliveri said.

“But at the time, there were also reports they were going to be moving to New Zealand, possibly Canada, but also Australia because they wanted to keep that connection with the Commonwealth.

“So I guess this is just an extension of that.”

According to The Times, the pair had been “privately discussing returning to the UK” for a couple of years.

Read more

‘Conflict of interest’: Royal expert sounds the alarm for William and Kate ahead of Sussexes’ return to Britain

“Harry has often spoken about how much he loves it here, and he wants his family to love it as much as him,” a source told the newspaper.

Oliveri said the duke and duchess’ reported intentions to be an ‘international couple’ is complicated by their children being school-aged.

“Apparently, the reason we’re only hearing about Harry and Meghan’s move so late in the game is because they were waiting for the school to confirm Archie and Lilibet’s places,” she said.

“That’s what they only told King Charles about it a week ago, days before it was made public.”