EXCLUSIVE: Palace Wary as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle 'Want Return to Royal Duties'

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's recent reunion with King Charles has prompted fresh fears inside royal circles the couple could seek a more prominent role within the monarchy in the future, with palace figures said to be wary of any move toward a return to official duties.

As RadarOnline.com readers know, the Duke of Sussex, 41, and his ex-actress wife Markle, 45, visited Charles, 77, at Highgrove earlier this month, where the monarch was reunited with his grandchildren, Archie, seven, and Lilibet, 5, for the first time since Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee celebrations in 2022.

The meeting has been widely viewed as evidence of improving relations between the king and his estranged younger son following years of public tensions after Harry and Markle stepped back as working royals in 2020.

A royal source claimed to Radar: "There is understandable caution within palace circles because any improvement in family relations inevitably fuels speculation about what the future might look like. The priority is maintaining clear expectations about everyone's role."

Another palace insider said: "No one is suggesting immediate changes, but there is an awareness that renewed family contact will lead to questions about whether the Sussexes could seek a greater role over time.

"But the looming possibility of Harry and Meghan being welcomed back as working royals is causing huge tension behind palace walls, but this is what Harry and Meghan now want, and it is looking like they may be able to strike a deal with Charles. This is something Prince William definitely does not want."

The speculation intensified after comments made by the Daily Mail's royal editor, Rebecca English, on the newspaper's Palace Confidential podcast, on which she suggested Buckingham Palace should remain alert to how King Charles' meeting with the Sussexes could be interpreted.

English said: "I think the Palace do need to be alive to the fact there is a lot of concern that meeting will be used as a way to inveigle themselves back in to this half in and half out role – not maybe in the short term, but in the long term – and I think that is something people in the UK and around the world are deeply concerned about."

She added palace officials had approached the reunion with the "best of intentions" but questioned whether the same assumptions could be made elsewhere.

English said: "That's where they need to watch their back a bit."

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have lived in California since stepping back from royal duties more than six years ago.

Since then, they have pursued commercial ventures while maintaining that their decision was driven by a desire for greater independence and privacy for their family.

The Highgrove meeting nevertheless marked a significant family milestone, allowing Charles to spend time with Archie and Lilibet for the first time in more than four years.

The reunion has been interpreted by some royal commentators as a sign that personal relationships within the family may be improving, despite the continuing distance between the Sussexes and the wider institution.

Neither Buckingham Palace nor representatives for Harry and Markle have publicly suggested that the couple intend to resume official royal duties, and no announcement has been made indicating any change to the arrangements established when they ceased to be working members of the royal family in 2020.