Royal expert on Prince Harry and Meghan's 'very uncertain and unpredictable future'
EXCLUSIVE: It's been a busy year for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex with numerous public appearances both together and solo.
Only this week, the pair were scheduled to attend separate events: Prince Harry at the The New York Times DealBook Conference in Manhattan and Meghan in LA at 2024 Paley Honors Fall Gala with friend Tyler Perry.
While rumours of a breakdown in their marriage continue to swirl (mainly on US gossip sites), royal watchers believe Prince Harry and Meghan are trying a new approach following years of public relations blunders.
Watch the video above.
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Prince Harry on stage with Andrew Ross Sorkin at The New York Times Dealbook Summit 2024 in New York on Wednesday. Getty Images for The New York Ti
ITV's royal editor Chris Ship tells 9honey the approach of doing things separately is likely to "highlight the strengths that they both have".
"When it comes to Harry and Meghan, there's no grey area – you either love them, or you hate them," Ship tells 9honey.
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"You either think that they were the victims, and that's why they had to leave the UK and move to California, or you think they're the instigators and they were the problem and that's why everything all fell apart."
He points to Prince Harry's most recent visit to the UK, which saw him attend the WellChild Awards in his role as patron of the charity.
The Duchess of Sussex with Kadi Lee and Serge Normant at the launch of Highbrow Hippie Haircare & Wellness at Gjelina on November 14, 2024 in California. Getty Images for Highbrow Hippie
Days later, Meghan was walking the red carpet in LA at a children's hospital fundraiser.
"There's been a lot of attention recently on how Harry and Meghan have done things separately," Ship says.
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"But when you see them at work, when you see Harry as I did, just connect on a one to one level with the award winners from that WellChild charity that he is a patron of, you cannot do anything other than praise him for those kind of efforts.
"And perhaps this new strategy of doing things separately is to highlight the strengths that they both have.
"The last thing on a very big scale that they did together was the trip to Colombia."
Prince Harry and Meghan's visit to Colombia was seen by many as a royal tour. Archewell Foundation via Getty I
Ship, like many others, described the August Colombia visit, and Harry and Meghan's trip to Nigeria in May as being "a bit like a royal tour".
"It was a very interesting insight into what their plans will be," Ship says.
But Ship doesn't believe the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have much of a future in the UK, following the fallout from their royal exit in 2020 and the many interviews both Harry and Meghan have done since.
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Prince Harry's controversial memoir Spare is in the headlines again today, having been named Australia's most-streamed audiobook on Spotify for 2024.
"They have a very difficult job of rebuilding their public image in the UK and in other places," Ship says.
"But I think their focus isn't on the UK, it's on the US, their new home.
"To come back after all of that, I just think would be too difficult. Harry has more or less severed ties with his country of birth."
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, at the 2024 WellChild Awards in London. Twitter/WellChild
As for the ongoing feud between Prince Harry, his father King Charles and Prince William, Ship says two things need to happen for any significant thawing of relations.
"He's got to start talking to his brother again. He's got to be on better terms with his father."
They met, face to face, in February, when Prince Harry made a brief return to London immediately after King Charles announced he had been diagnosed with cancer.
The pair spent around 40 minutes together inside Clarence House.
While Harry has travelled to the UK three times this year, he has seen his father just once.
"That surprised a lot of people. Why wouldn't you see your father if you're in the same country and he's got cancer?
"There's a lot of relationship building needing to go on."
This week the Sussexes released a video highlighting the busy year they've had throughout 2024 while revealing a number of achievements within their charity, the Archewell Foundation.
The release of the one-minute video, on December 2, coincided with the Archewell Foundation's Impact Report for 2023-2024 which showcases Harry and Meghan's philanthropic efforts.
This week also saw the release of the Archewell Foundation's 2023 tax records, which shows the charity received $US5.3 million in grants (approx. $8.2 million) more than double the $US2 million (approx. $3 million) raised the previous year.
So, what does 2025 holds for the couple?
"There are so many things up in the air with the Sussexes," Ship says.
"There's the issue with Harry's family, what are they going to do with their contract with Netflix? What kind of things are they going to produce?
"No one really knows what Harry and Meghan's future plans are, where they're going to be. It's a very uncertain and unpredictable future, I think.
"Only Harry and Meghan know what their plans are… or maybe they don't either."
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