Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are on the brink of losing their eleventh publicist in a span of just five years. This development follows their recent split from a U.S.-based PR firm, amid ongoing claims that the couple is challenging to collaborate with.
Meredith Maines, who has served as their chief communications officer, has announced her decision to step down after merely a year on the job with Meghan and Harry.
Her departure coincides with the announcement from Method Communications, a U.S.-based PR agency, that it will also conclude its partnership with the Sussexes after only seven months of collaboration.
Maines’ exit closely follows Emily Robinson’s departure as the couple’s director of communications just two months ago. Insiders have hinted that Maines faced a ‘challenging’ period after Robinson left.
This seasoned PR expert found herself at the heart of a media frenzy over the summer when she was seen meeting with King Charles’ communications secretary, Tobyn Andreae, in London. The meeting reportedly aimed to facilitate a secret ‘peace summit’ between the two sides.
Both Harry, 40, and his father, 76, reportedly wish to mend their relationship, particularly after the King was diagnosed with cancer last year.
However, Harry and Meghan are said to have been frustrated that photographs of the extraordinary meeting – which took place in July at a private members club in Mayfair – were published in an exclusive for The Mail on Sunday.
Sources close to Prince Harry insisted the Sussexes were not responsible for passing details of the meeting on to the newspaper.
Meredith Maines, who was appointed as chief communications officer is parting ways with Harry and Meghan after a year in the role
Meghan Markleand Prince Harry are set to lose their eleventh publicist in just five years after their ‘cheerleader’ spin doctor announced she is stepping down
Of her now imminent departure, Ms Maines issued a statement speaking of her ‘gratitude and respect’ for the couple.
She said: ‘After a year of inspiring work with Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Archewell, I will be pursuing a new opportunity in 2026.
‘I have the utmost gratitude and respect for the couple and the team, and the good they are doing in the world.’
Meanwhile a spokesperson for the couple said: ‘Meredith Maines and Method Communications have concluded their work with Archewell.
‘The Duke and Duchess are grateful for their contributions and wish them well.’
It is understood that Liam Maguire, their UK and Europe director of communications, will now lead on all publicity-related work.
The departure of Ms Maines follows the departure of Ms Robinson, who joined Harry and Meghan’s team as director of communications in June, but had already jumped ship by October.
Ms Robinson was a controversial hire as she had worked on The Crown for years – a show which aired a number of damaging narratives about the Royal Family.
Her departure comes five months after Ms Maines met with King Charles’ communications secretary Tobyn Andreae in London as part of a secret ‘peace summit’ between the two camps
The final series included scenes in which the ‘ghost’ of Princess Diana appeared to speak to The Queen and Prince Charles, which many found insensitive.
One friend of LA-based Robinson, who built up a reputation as a ‘tough cookie’ at Netflix, said: ‘It was her decision. She left a few weeks ago. She’s not a quitter, so things must have been pretty horrible for her to go.’
The departure of Ms Robinson and now Ms Maines in a matter of months means the couple have lost 11 publicists since leaving the UK for California five years ago (although two former publicists, James Holt and Miranda Barbot, have been promoted into non-PR roles).
In the last year alone, the couple have suffered numerous PR disasters, most recently the duchess’s surprise trip to Paris Fashion Week in October.
She posted a video to Instagram which showed her being driven at night along the Seine – a similar route to that taken by Princess Diana on the night she died.
There was also criticism of her appearance that same month in Washington at Fortune magazine’s Most Powerful Women event.
Meanwhile the couple had to navigate an unflattering cover story in Vanity Fair in February which included the claim: ‘The person who worked in media projects read stories in the tabloids about Meghan ‘bullying’ palace aides and couldn’t imagine such behaviour actually happening.
‘After working with her, though, this person realized, ‘Oh, any given Tuesday this happened’.’
The departure of Emily Robinson (pictured) and now Ms Maines in a matter of months means the couple have lost 11 publicists in just five years
The Sussexes hit back with a feature in People magazine with a number of employees and associated attesting to their kindness.
One Netflix crew member said of the Prince while filming With Love, Meghan: ‘Whenever Harry visited set, he was always super polite and friendly.’
The director of the series added: ‘Everyone has this one version of [Meghan], but she’s just someone who is hustling and working and doing.’
There were however more PR obstacles ahead for the couple including a piece in The Hollywood Reporter last September. One source was quoted as saying: ‘Everyone’s terrified of Meghan. She belittles people, she doesn’t take advice.
‘Harry is a very, very charming person – no airs at all – but he’s very much an enabler. And she’s just terrible.’
A second source added: ‘She marches around like a dictator in high heels. I’ve watched her reduce grown men to tears.’
But an insider close to the couple denied the allegations, saying they had been ‘fabricated by someone with no knowledge of our company’.
Some sources claimed Ms Maines had been enduring a ‘difficult’ time as the couple’s chief communications officer prior to the announcement of her departure.
The Daily Mail has reached out to the couple’s representatives for comment.
