Harry and Meghan hope to make a fortune by setting up a film and TV company, sources said last night.
After the dramatic weekend announcement that they have effectively been ‘shelved’ by the Royal Family, it emerged the couple plan to make a living by providing voiceovers and producing documentaries on ‘worthy’ issues. This could include mental health and climate change.
Yesterday, they received an early boost after a senior Netflix executive said the streaming giant would like to work with them.
Harry and Meghan hope to make a fortune by setting up a film and TV company, sources said last night
The couple plan to continue ‘marketing’ themselves under the Sussex Royal brand for the time being, even though they have agreed not to use their HRH titles in the future, it is understood.
The Prince of Wales has agreed to fund them from his private investments for now, but it is likely his offer of financial help will be reviewed in a year after they have had time to get on their feet.
It can also be revealed:
- Friends say the couple will be ‘forever grateful’ to the Queen for thinking ‘outside the box’ and have promised they will not bring the Royal Family into disrepute through any ‘dodgy deals’;
- The Queen said she wanted Harry and Meghan to keep Frogmore Cottage as she feared they could leave the UK forever otherwise. They agreed to pay back the £2.4million of taxpayers’ money spent on it;
- Royal officials agreed to let the couple keep their HRH titles, fearing if they were stripped of them they would have to curtsey to Beatrice and Eugenie;
- Harry was said to be ‘deeply upset’ at losing his role as a Commonwealth Youth Ambassador, but was persuaded he could still work with the ‘family of nations’;
- Negotiations over the ‘exit have brought Harry and William, closer than they have been ‘for more than a year’, sources claim;
- Prince Charles is said to be saddened by what has happened but believes if his son is going to be happier abroad, it is a price he will have to pay;
- A host of further details have yet to be ironed out, such as the cost of security and who is paying for it – and whether Meghan will be allowed to call herself a ‘royal patron’ of institutions such as the National Theatre.
The duke and duchess want to follow in the footsteps of former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle, as well as setting up a Clinton Foundation-style charity, the Daily Mail has been told
Harry showed last night he is keen to carry on working for good causes as he was seen stepping out for an event in aid of his African charity Sentebale at the Ivy Chelsea Garden restaurant, on the King’s Road in London.
The new deal announced by Buckingham Palace on Saturday – dubbed a ‘hard Megxit’ – sees Harry and Meghan banned from using their HRH titles and ends their official royal duties. It is a humiliating climbdown for the couple, who had announced via a new personal website that they intended to step back as senior royals but continue to undertake duties on behalf of the Queen as part of a ‘one foot in, one foot out’ approach to the monarchy.
Harry has also had to relinquish his military duties as well as all official funding.
The duke and duchess have been allowed to keep Frogmore Cottage, their Windsor home, but agreed to pay back public funds used to refurbish it. The couple will, however, continue with their personal patronages, such as The Queen’s Commonwealth Trust and WellChild.
Since leaving the White House the Obamas have begun to earn a small fortune by selling rights to their autobiographies and setting up their own production company, which has bagged a lucrative deal with Netflix
Sources close to Harry and Meghan insisted last night they were happy with the settlement, which will come into force in the spring and be reviewed in a year.
‘It was a brave decision for them to admit to themselves and the family that they were unhappy and things just weren’t working for them,’ one said. ‘It feels a little scary but their attitude has been “let’s just go for it and see what happens”.’
Sources insist their decision to leave was not driven by money or wanting to make their own millions.
One said: ‘It’s about having a private life. And they realised that in order to get that they would have to give up public funding, which they were constantly being beaten up about, and make their own way in the world.’
The duke and duchess want to follow in the footsteps of former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle, as well as setting up a Clinton Foundation-style charity, the Daily Mail has been told. Since leaving the White House the Obamas have begun to earn a small fortune by selling rights to their autobiographies and setting up their own production company, which has bagged a lucrative deal with Netflix.
Netflix’s chief content officer said yesterday that the streaming giant would like to work with Harry and Meghan. Speaking in LA, Ted Sarandos said: ‘Who wouldn’t be interested? Yes, sure.’
Netflix’s chief content officer said yesterday that the streaming giant would like to work with Harry and Meghan
Meghan has already signed a voiceover deal with Disney in return for a donation to an elephant charity.
Last week video emerged of Harry highlighting his wife’s talents to Disney chief executive Robert Iger during the European premiere of The Lion King in July. The duke has already collaborated on an Apple TV series on mental health with US talk show host Oprah Winfrey, who is also a friend.
A source told the Mail: ‘The sorts of deals they will do will be more along the lines of the documentary series the duke is executive producing on mental health for Apple TV. It’s a new model, admittedly, but they are determined to prove to the family that this can work.
Buckingham Palace and the Queen released statements last night announcing that Harry and Meghan would be stepping down as royals
‘Given the duchess’s work [as an actress] before she married and the duke’s interests, it is likely that this is the route they want to go down.’
But insiders insist the couple will not rush to seal any commercial contracts, adding: ‘There will be no dodgy deals.’
It is understood that Charles will continue to fund his son for the first year at least, either via the Duchy of Cornwall, the estate which provides him with private funding, or more likely from his own personal investments from income such as his bequest from the late Queen Mother. No public funds will be used.
One of the biggest issues is how Harry and Meghan will be able to market themselves by their chosen brand name of Sussex Royal when they are no longer senior working royals.
Meanwhile, Meghan’s father Thomas Markle said his daughter’s decision to split from the Royal Family was ‘disappointing’ and ‘embarrassing’.