King Charles' Statement on Prince Harry & Meghan Markle's Royal Status

King Charles III finally broke his silence on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's return to the United Kingdom and about their status as former working members of the royal family. A letter submitted on the king's behalf quickly made headlines on September 7, as it indicated that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's 'position is akin to private citizens.' Below, read what Charles wrote in his letter about his son and daughter-in-law's return to the UK. It's unclear why exactly Harry and Meghan returned to UK soil six years after they stepped down as working members of the royal family and after they made shocking allegations against the royals during an interview with Oprah Winfrey. However, reports circulated in August 2026 about a potential acting role for Meghan, which would be her first in years since getting engaged to Harry. Just a day after her rumored acting comeback made headlines, Tina Brown, the former editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair and The New Yorker, wrote in her Substack column that Meghan's casting in season 3 of The Gentlemen had been withdrawn. 'The backlash in the UK was so intense, it became untenable to go forward,' Brown wrote. In the letter sent on behalf of the king signed by Lord Chamberlain, Charles wrote, 'It is well known that in January 2020 the Duke and Duchess stepped down from undertaking representative duties on behalf of The Sovereign, and are no longer working Members of The Royal Family,' per NBC News. 'This position, distinct from the State and Royal duties undertaken by the working Royal Family, and with the personal latitude it brings the couple in respect of financial independence and protection of their privacy as they would wish, will continue to be fully respected,' the letter went on. The statement from Lord Chamberlain went on to note that 'their styles as His and Her Royal Highness remain in abeyance and are not used' and that Meghan and Harry's charitable work was 'a personal matter for them both and undertaken in their private capacity' and 'in short, their position is akin to private citizens with commercial and charitable interests.' The letter was publicly disclosed to 'help avoid doubt or confusion,' after 'a number of requests for guidance.'