The Harry and Meghan UK future is in fresh doubt after a former Buckingham Palace aide predicted the couple could leave Britain again within a year, months after their return. Dickie Arbiter, who served as press secretary to Queen Elizabeth II, told The Sun’s Royal Exclusive show he could not see the Sussexes staying “for any length of time”, according to EuropeSays on 8 November.
Harry and Meghan relocated to Britain in August after more than six years in California, but Arbiter believes their homecoming has a short shelf life. “I can’t see them staying for any length of time,” he said, predicting the couple could remain until just after 31 August 2027.
The Diana anniversary date
Arbiter tied his prediction to a date heavy with meaning for Harry: 31 August 2027 will mark 30 years since Diana, Princess of Wales, died in Paris. “I see them staying until after August 31 next year for the 30th anniversary of the death of Diana, the Princess of Wales,” he explained.
The Invictus Games are scheduled for Birmingham in July 2027, giving Harry reason to stay through the summer, while the children finishing their first full year at British schools could provide another natural moment to reassess, Arbiter said.
Christmas plans still undecided
Reports differ sharply on where the family will spend Christmas, the first big test of the prediction. BritBrief reported on 8 November that the couple could spend their first UK Christmas since 2018 in the Cotswolds, with Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland possibly travelling over. But it was previously reported that the couple were set to return to California for the festive period, and Arbiter himself suggested in September that they might head back to California for Christmas, citing Meghan’s family ties there.
A Daily Express poll of 2,921 readers found 93 per cent opposed to the couple staying in the UK for Christmas, while a source told Heatworld the couple faced “difficult decisions” because “they are not on the same page.”
Money and a family scandal add pressure
Arbiter also questioned whether Britain could sustain the couple’s lifestyle — “They have got to make money somewhere, and they are not going to make money in the United Kingdom,” he said — while Page Six reported in August that the couple faced substantial ongoing expenses.
Fresh pressure has also arrived from Meghan’s family. Her estranged father, Thomas Markle Sr., 82, was arrested in Florida on 6 November and charged by federal authorities with one count of possessing child sexual abuse material, according to the US Department of Justice, as reported by The Blast. Investigators seized around 78 items; Thomas Sr. denies the allegations and was released under strict conditions including electronic monitoring. An OK! Magazine source claimed Harry was “in despair over this” and faced an “impossible position” between his wife and his father and brother.
Buckingham Palace confirmed in September that Harry and Meghan remain non-working royals. Arbiter’s prediction has put a clock on the homecoming.
