Royal Editor Emily Nash answers your burning questions

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The Palace’s definitive statement & Sussex security battles

Q: The King this week issued a statement via the Lord Chamberlain regarding Harry and Meghan’s engagements in the UK. Why was this statement released publicly now?

Emily Nash: “Meghan and Harry are preparing to make charity visits and other engagements around the UK. And normally with a member of the Royal Family, people would approach the palace and ask how they manage the engagement. And so this is the King very clearly stating, they’re not members of the Royal Family. If you have questions about their engagements, you speak to their office. And then crucially, if you have questions about their security, you speak to the relevant police authorities. And this is very much saying, this has nothing to do with us anymore.

“The point is there’s nothing in that statement that should have surprised them. There’s been no material change to their status. And this is really the King just saying that. And I think it’s important for public perception. So there are two reasons I think they’ve done it publicly. One is that it sets things straight. It makes everything clear to the public. And there is confusion about the fact that they’re coming back and they’re going to be doing more engagements. There’s a lot of briefing in the Sunday papers about the fact that Meghan’s going to renew ties with some of her UK charities.”

“We spoke to Smart Works, one of her charities, last week, and they said they’re very excited to welcome her back. We know Harry, a source close to him was quoted as saying he’s prepared to do whatever he can for the Invictus Games, for example. And I think the difficulty is that in the public’s mind, this is just very, it’s too royal adjacent, and so they’re effectively all lumped in together. So that’s one thing. The other thing is that I think the Palace knew that if they were sending these responses to various official bodies, and of course, informing the Sussexes about this, there was a strong chance it would be leaked.”

Q: How are Harry and Meghan reportedly reacting to being referred to as private citizens, and why re-emphasise their HRH titles are in abeyance?

Emily Nash: “Sources close to them have told a newspaper that they were not very happy about being called private citizens. They would have preferred to have been called public figures. And they also were a bit sensitive to the fact that there was no reference to them remaining members of the Royal Family, regardless of what their status is in terms of public duties or none. So, the fascinating thing about this is we appear to be lurching into another tit-for-tat situation whereby somebody always has to have the last word. And it’s just been non-stop.

“Speaking of other things he made very clear, it was the HRH titles. And he talked again about those, that styling, the royal styling being in abeyance, which is a very formal word, and it’s a very, almost legalistic way of saying, ‘You cannot use those honorifics.’ It’s all about the clarity and setting out boundaries right now.”

Q: With the RAVEC executive committee meeting to review Harry’s security, what can we expect regarding his protection while in the UK?

Emily Nash: “This is something that should have happened a long, long time ago. Now Harry’s camps have always argued that he should have had this risk assessment. We know that was only made in the last few weeks, and I think of course the fact that he’s now back on UK soil makes it more pressing. Now there has been a delay in general for these assessments for VIP people because of various things going on in government. And this has now become more pressing because he’s in the UK, but there’s no guarantee that it will work in his favour. I expect, if I was guessing, I’d say that he may get some kind of protection. It may not be to the level that he’s hoping for.”

“You know what his team have been saying for a long time is that he just has the phone number for a liaison officer in the Metropolitan Police, you know, someone to call if there’s an issue. But he’s used to, and he’s grown up with armed protection 24/7, and that’s something he’s been without now for six years.

Q: Do you think then that the answer he gets might not be the one he’s hoping for with regards to his security?

Emily Nash: “We’ll find out. I would have thought we’d find out fairly soon, because again, there’s a need for clarity, isn’t there? You know, because this has been something he’s been banging on about for years now, and he’s gone through the courts, he’s gone through the Court of Appeal and been unsuccessful. But being back in the country does put a slightly different slant on things. And of course, no one in the the country, least of all the King, wants any risk to lay across his grandchildren, in particular, and his son and his wife.

“But again, this was about reminding people that actually the King is not responsible for this. It’s not down to him who gets security and who doesn’t. And in fact, he really needs to take a step back. This is a Home Office, a government issue, and it’s one for them to resolve alone.”

International fallout & the Invictus Games

Q: Uganda’s military commander announced on social media that the country is withdrawing from the Invictus Games to show loyalty to King Charles. What is behind this decision?

Emily Nash: “Uganda became the latest country to joing the Invictus games. The 7th of July was the day I was in the room when Harry got up on stage with Ugandan officials to announce that they were joining the movement. It happened about an hour after he found out the outcome of his case against Associated Newspapers. It was quite an extraordinary moment. 

“Just two months on, the Commander of Uganda’s armed forces, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who happens to be the son of the president, has come out and said Uganda is withdrawing. They don’t want anything to do with it, and the reason is they’re worried about doing anything that doesn’t have King Charles’s approval. Now, there’s so much to unpack here. There’s no suggestion that the King doesn’t approve of the Invictus Games. Of course he does, he attended the inaugural one, he’s a Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces in this country. But what is being picked up on in other countries is this obvious tension between the King and his son. And it puts people in a difficult diplomatic position.”

“This particular general – and I fully reccomend his feed on X he’s got quite a lot of forthright opinions – has come out very strongly and said, and I just want to quote, ‘I have factions in the Ministry of Defence that support the Harry-Meghan nonsense. I had to squash it straight away. I support the monarch. Period.’ It’s quite extraordinary for someone in such a senior position to come out and say that. 

“And I think there’s certainly no suggestion he’s doing this at anyone’s behest in the UK. But it is interesting, isn’t it, that there are signs of difficulties behind the scenes at some of Harry’s flagship organisations because of all the connotations of the difficulties around their return and the relationship with the Palace.

Q Do you think that is a consequence of the statement that was sent by Buckingham Palace?

Emily Nash: “No, I don’t think so. I think, certainly, and at the time that we’re sitting down to chat, the Invictus Games Foundation are clearly looking into this. I think it was news to them. It was announced on X, was followed up in The Times newspaper, who got this quote clarifying the situation from the General. But it’s obviously something that would be hugely concerning to Harry, what he’s done with Invictus is remarkable, it is a brilliant, brilliant organisation, and it’s brought together veterans from all over the world.

“It’s a loss, a huge loss for the Invictus Games if, in fact, that is what has happened. But it is embarrassing as well, because it suggests that they’re not really able to move past all these difficulties with the family.”

Q: Harry has been spotted working in a UK studio. Is there any truth to reports that he’s approaching contacts for a project about Princess Diana?

Emily Nash: “Interestingly, this story was picked up by Richard Kay of the Daily Mail – Richard is a very long-standing royal correspondent who was actually very close to Diana, Princess of Wales… He has it on good authority that Harry has been approaching former friends of hers, people in her circle, with a view to making a film about her. So I think that’s a very, very strong indicator of what he might be doing.”

Donald Trump’s viral video & diplomatic challenges for the King

Q: President Donald Trump recently posted an edited video involving King Charles on Truth Social. What was actually going on in that clip?

Emily Nash: “Well, I’m still trying to unpick this. It’s really quite extraordinary given the esteem that President Trump holds the King in. You know, I was there in April at the State Visit when he couldn’t say enough to flatter the King. And we know Charles actually played a blinder in diplomatic terms during that visit.

“This week, Donald Trump has posted on Truth Social some extraordinary video of other heads of state appearing to be unkind and uncaring… There’s footage of Charles when he was Prince of Wales at an Asda distribution centre in Bristol, but basically, it shows him talking to a guy and the guy falling backwards, he actually fainted. And the next scene you see is Charles walking away and looking flustered. But actually, that’s not what happened at all. What happened was Charles reached out to grab the guy and stop him falling, and then stayed with him, or next to him, while his security team made sure that he was okay. And eventually, the guy recovered and got up and they carried on their conversation.”

“So, it was a really nice, kind gesture from Charles at the time. But for some reason, the President has edited this alongside footage of President Macron, Joe Biden, President Obama, to make it look like, by comparison, that he is a very compassionate, caring person.”

Q: What else has the King been dealing with this week? 

Emily Nash: “It’s been a tricky week for the King. He’s also had the Jamaican government wanting to lodge a petition with the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council about slavery reparations. We know this is a topic that’s going to come up this autumn when he’s in the Caribbean for the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting. I think it’s one that he’ll handle well. He’s always talked about wanting to understand the issues more and find creative ways to give something back, to make things better, to write injustices for the people who are alive today. But it’s not been a delightful week for him on many counts.”

Q: The King also marked the fourth anniversary of his accession this week. How did he spend the day?

Emily Nash: “He spent the day privately, and I think this is really interesting to note, isn’t it? Because while all this is going on, he marked the fourth anniversary of his accession to the throne. There was a 21-gun salute in London, but the reason why the monarch usually does this quietly, solemnly, somewhere private, is it’s also the anniversary of his mother’s death. And it’s what she used to do as well. Every February 6th, she would take herself up to Sandringham, and she would spend quiet time there reflecting on the fact that her father had died and she had become Queen. And I think it’s lovely that he’s continued that tradition.”

Prince George’s milestone Eton arrival

Q: You were down at Eton College while Prince George arrived for his first day. How did his arrival compare to Prince William’s in 1995?

Emily Nash: “It was really quite a special day actually. I was down at Eton on the ground. It was pouring with rain. He looked fantastic. What I really liked about it is the footage shows him just appearing so confident and smiling so broadly and really looking ready to go there, and to quote someone else, not just survive but thrive. He really looks like he’s in his element and has been so well prepared for this, I think, by his parents.

“If you look at the footage from William’s first day, I mean, he looked happy enough as well, but he was coming from a really different background. William was coming from a broken marriage, a difficult childhood environment, and he was pretty shy. He was greeted by 300 members of the press. It was different for George. It was really tightly controlled. There were just two reporters, one photographer, one cameraman, and it was done in a way that ensured he felt comfortable. And I think that really speaks volumes about the way that William and Catherine have thought about their children taking priority, really, in these situations.”

Q: How have William and Catherine prepared George for his transition into senior boarding school?

Emily Nash: “What they do as parents is they discuss things with the children. They make sure they’re happy with things. There’s no telling them, ‘by the way, we’re going to school tomorrow and you’re going to smile for these cameras.’ That’s not how they operate at all. Everything is done in discussion with the children. It is about not overwhelming them and over-facing them with the outside world, but them also understanding that there is an interest because of the path that they’re on.

“It really does show that George is a smart kid because I don’t think you get into Eton anymore just off the back of who your parents are. Catherine is on it in terms of his education. I don’t think they would put him in a place where he wouldn’t be able to keep up. No parent would put their child in a position where they know that he will drown or that he’ll struggle, because that is only going to harm them.”

Q: So now for the first time, William and Catherine only have two kids at home for the next two weeks?

Emily Nash: “Well, he’ll go back for an afternoon probably, go and have Sunday lunch or maybe afternoon tea with the family. And that will be something he does periodically. But it is going to be a huge change for them at home. It’s changing the dynamic.”

Q: Obviously, Charlotte can’t follow George to Eton. Don’t you think that’s a shame? Could they not have chosen a secondary school that admits boys and girls too so they could both have the same education?

Emily Nash: “I think what they’ve done is they’ve chosen the school that is right for him, and they’ll choose the school that’s right for each individual child. This is not like a one size fits all, is it? They know better than anyone else what their personalities are like, what their interests are like, which sports are best provided for at which school. And we know they’ve done so much research on this.”

Q: Prince William has also had a very busy week representing the King abroad and launching new initiatives. How is he managing all these roles?

Emily Nash: “He’s waved his firstborn off to boarding school, he’s representing the King at the funeral of a head of state and a European royal, and then he has a very big moment coming up as well. On Thursday he launched a major new initiative on suicide prevention in sport called On Your Side. He’s enlisted the help of some really big names – he’s got Harry Kane, he’s got George Russell, he has got Alan Shearer involved.

“It’s a difficult subject, you know, even just saying that word, but the sad truth is that 7,000 people a year in this country do die by suicide, and a lot of people attempt it, and I think what William is trying to do is to make it something that people feel they can talk about before it’s too late.

“At the funeral in Norway, what’s interesting about it is that these European royals are people of his generation and people who he will know for many years to come. They’ve probably got some stories and advice they can swap about families, too.”

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