King Charles is understood to have been caught off guard by news that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are preparing to return to the UK.
According to reports, the monarch was only told on Sunday that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are due back on British soil later this month.
Harry, 41, and Meghan, 45, are said to be planning an “extended period” in Britain, with their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, expected to be enrolled at a school in the UK.
The Sussex family will reportedly live in a private, non-royal residence and will not resume duties as working members of the Royal Family.
Sources suggest the King “welcomes” the opportunity to spend time with his youngest son and his family in a personal capacity.
But Buckingham Palace’s position is said to remain firm: there will be “no alteration” to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s role or status, with insiders emphasising that there is “no half in, half out option”.
Harry and Meghan will continue as private individuals and non-working members of the Royal Family, in line with what sources described as their “clearly expressed wishes and agreement over past years”.
Even so, questions remain unanswered over whether the couple could ever return to royal life on a full-time basis if they were prepared to step away from their commercial ventures.
Meanwhile, sources have insisted it is not within the couple’s ‘plan’ to return to the royal fold.
The recent announcement comes just a month after the Duke saw his father in July following his High Court loss against Associated Newspapers.
King Charles has seemingly been blindsided by the announcement that Prince Harry and Meghan are returning to the UK
King Charles III meets members of the public after carrying out an inspection of the Balaklava Company, 5th Battalion on August 16, 2026
He is understood to have visited his father at his Highgrove House residence in Gloucestershire, following an Invictus one-year-to-go event in nearby Birmingham.
Harry was joined by his wife and two children, in an occasion that would have been the first time Lilibet and Archie had seen the monarch since Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June 2022.
And just mere weeks ago, sources close to Harry said he wanted to visit Britain ‘every few months’ over the next year after his reunion with King Charles last month.
Before opting for a more long-term return, the Duke of Sussex, 41, said his most recent visit with his father and to the UK left him feeling ‘buoyed’, ‘very happy’ and ‘really energised’.
Harry was set to return to Britain in September for around a week, for a series of engagements including Invictus Games, which will be held in Birmingham next summer, as well as WellChild, the charity supporting seriously ill children
A source previously told The Sunday Times: ‘He wants more of a foothold here, more trips back, less courtroom drama. And he always loves seeing his family.’
Meanwhile, just weeks ago it was believed the Duke wanted his father to stand alongside him at next Summer’s Invictus Games.
A source told the Mirror: ‘Next year is a big deal for Harry. He is determined the Birmingham Games will be the best ever. It would mean the world to him to have his father there.’
Harry and Meghan, who quit as senior royals in 2020 and moved to California, have also recently spoken about their wish to introduce their children to their British roots.
During a visit to Warwickshire, Harry said: ‘I love being here, this is the highlight of my month.
‘Actually probably the last few months. It’s very easy to sit in your grief, to sit in your stress but, guys, if you are feeling it, share it.’
As it stands, the Duke and Duchess no longer require accommodation for their patronages, with the whole family believed to be returning within the next two weeks.
Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, are thought to have already enrolled at a British school – and the family are reportedly planning to stay for an ‘extended period’ until the children finish education.
It is not yet know, however, whether the move will be a permanent one. The location of Harry and Meghan’s new home has remained unknown for privacy reasons.
Harry and Meghan are set to retain their £11million home in Montecito, California, which they have lived in since moving across the pond in 2020. They also still own a residence in Portugal.
