‘Divisive’ Meghan Markle’s next move to help Prince Harry’s ‘healing’ with royal family

In recent weeks, Prince Harry has been more open about his desire to reconcile with his father, King Charles, but PR experts believe that the Duke’s wife, Meghan Markle, doesn’t need the reconciliation for her own success.

Before she started dating Harry, Meghan was a successful actress with roles in General Hospital, CSI: NY and most famously Suits, playing Rachel Zane in seven seasons of the hit legal drama.

While Meghan hasn’t acted professionally since becoming a member of the royal family, she has been busy creating her own television career, appearing in several Netflix documentaries and lifestyle shows, including With Love, Meghan.

Speaking to HELLO!, brand and culture expert Nick Ede highlighted that while the 45-year-old is “divisive”, she still “has an undeniable ability to attract attention”.

Nick also opined that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex should follow in the footsteps of David and Victoria Beckham in keeping their respective brands separate. “It enables each of them to develop an individual identity,” he explained.

“That said, there is huge value in Brand Sussex when they come together around shared values and purpose. The Beckhams work because David and Victoria have distinct careers but unite around family, loyalty and entrepreneurship. Authenticity is what makes a couple’s brand endure.”

Nick continued: “If Meghan consistently delivers engaging content and develops a clear identity independent of the royal story, she doesn’t need reconciliation to succeed. It would certainly remove a major distraction, but the strength of her future brand will be built on trust, consistency and giving people a reason to stay interested beyond the headlines.”

However, PR expert Mark Borkowski added that one way Team Sussex will succeed is by reconciling with the royal family. “The important thing is some level of rapprochement to try to create some healing with the royal family,” he said.

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“Meghan needs a critical friend who will advise her to eat humble pie and look at a gradual return to Britain. She could be a powerful celebrity Duchess, but not a working royal, if she could find purpose and help Harry have a more dignified relationship with Britain.”

Meghan and Harry’s recent UK popularity

According to recent polls from YouGov, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex remain some of the UK’s most unpopular royals, with a third of people having a positive opinion of Harry, while just over a fifth of people feel positively about Meghan.

However, there has been good news for the pair, as their popularity has been increasing since the start of the year. Meghan has seen her numbers increase from 19% up to 22%, although 65% of people still hold a negative opinion of her.

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HELLO!’s royal contributor Tracy Schaverien speculated that this increase could have come from their recent efforts to reconnect with King Charles. “The fact that we have seen a small uptick in his ratings could well be connected to the fact he has been making an effort to build bridges with his father,” she said. Taking Meghan and the children to visit the King and Queen at Highgrove proved that Harry is serious about reconciling with his family.

“Meanwhile, Meghan’s Instagram posts showing Harry playing with Archie and Lilibet on the beach and in the pool while the family were on holiday in Portugal are also likely to have warmed hearts and helped people view him as a loving father, rather than someone at war with his family.”