Prince Harry and Meghan Markle 'want to be called public figures and not private citizens'

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle 'want to be called public figures and not private citizens' The pair, who recently returned to Britain after six years in Montecito, California, were taken aback by a letter issued by the King clarifying their titles after they stopped being working Royals in 2020 Harry and Meghan have named the titles they would prefer to use after the King referred to them as "private citizens", according to reports. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex made a spectacular return to life in the UK last month, and are said to be settling down in Oxfordshire with their children Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, enrolled in local schools. Harry's homecoming has led to King Charles clarifying the Sussexes’ position and titles. In the letter, sent to senior government and military officials, Charles said Harry and Meghan would continue to refrain from using the formal royal titles, such as his royal highness and her royal highness, as they have done since stepping back from official royal duties in 2020. It added any charity work carried out by the couple will be carried out in a “private capacity”. The letter, released to media on Monday (September 7) allegedly took the Duke and Duchess aback. Reports from multiple UK news outlets have emerged claiming Harry and Meghan want to be known as “public figures” instead. The Sussexes would prefer “public figures” as they feel it would “acknowledge that, on a personal level, they remained members of the Royal Family, despite no longer receiving public funding”, a briefing note from the couple said, according to the Daily Mail. They also "were a little surprised not to have been told about” the King’s letter “in advance", a spokesperson for the pair said. Insiders said the Sussexes’ team was only given an hour’s notice to digest its contents before it was made public. They also said Harry only had two minutes to read the letter before it was published, as he was in a meeting in London and could not be reached sooner. Meghan has still not been seen in public yet, but has reportedly had coffee at Soho Farmhouse, an ultra-luxurious private members club frequented by the Beckhams and Paul McCartney in Oxfordshire, where the duo are said to be staying.