Prince Harry and Meghan to return to Britain amid renewed media scrutiny

London, United Kingdom. Prince Harry and Meghan will return to Britain this month to send their children to school, six years after their move to the United States following their decision to step down from royal duties.

Decision to leave royal duties

A year after he and Meghan announced they were stepping down from royal duties, Harry said the decision had been driven in part by what he described as a “toxic” British press that was damaging his mental health.

“I did what any father or husband would do and thought, how do I get my family out of here,” he said in a 2021 interview on “The Late Late Show with James Corden”.

The move to the United States sent shockwaves through the monarchy, but the couple’s return will bring them back under the media scrutiny they had sought to leave behind.

Legal battles with publishers

Royal commentator Afua Hagan told Reuters that British media outlets would seek to follow the couple’s movements.

“Look, there’s no doubt that the British press and the British media are going to try and follow their every move,” Hagan said. “Perhaps they are walking back into the lion’s den, but they’re walking back into a lion’s den prepared. They’re not bringing a knife to a gunfight.”

Since leaving Britain, Harry has brought legal cases against British newspaper groups and successfully sued two major publishers, including Rupert Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers.

He lost what was possibly his biggest legal battle against the Daily Mail last month. Many people accused by his lawyers of complicity in unlawful behaviour remain in senior roles or have moved into editorial positions, while most of the claims were not upheld by the courts.

During evidence at the Daily Mail trial, Harry held back tears while saying the tabloid had made Meghan’s life “an absolute misery”.