Marie Claire UK
  • Fashion Fashion
      • Fashion
        • View all Fashion
        • Fashion Trends
        • Shopping
        • Watches and Jewellery
        • Fashion News
  • Beauty Beauty
      • Beauty
        • View all Beauty
        • Fragrance
        • Hair
        • Make Up
        • Skincare
        • Nails
        • Marie Claire Beauty Awards
  • Health Health
      • Health
        • View all Health
        • Fitness
        • Nutrition
        • Female Health
        • Wellbeing
  • Life Life
      • Life
        • View all Life
        • Opinions
        • Travel
        • Sustainability
        • Weddings
        • Money & Work
        • Competitions
  • Culture Culture
      • Culture
        • View all Culture
        • TV and Film
        • Celebrity News
        • Books
        • Royal News
  • Vouchers Vouchers
      • Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Mint Velvet
        • Karen Millen
        • H&M
        • nobody's child
        • ASOS
        • ARKET
        • MANGO
      • Designer Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Reiss
        • THE OUTNET
        • SSENSE
        • Mytheresa
        • Liberty London
        • Selfridges
        • Farfetch
      • Accessories
        • View all Vouchers
        • AllSaints
        • Aspinal of London
        • Charles & Keith
        • River Island
        • FitFlop
        • Kate Spade
        • Vagabond
      • Jewellery
        • View all Vouchers
        • Pandora
        • Abbott Lyon
        • Goldsmiths
        • Beaverbrooks
        • Astrid & Miyu
        • Swarovski
        • Angara Jewellery
      • Beauty
        • View all Vouchers
        • Sephora
        • Cult Beauty
        • Space NK
        • Dyson
        • Clarins
        • Look Fantastic
        • Clinique
      • Activewear
        • View all Vouchers
        • Lululemon
        • Gymshark
        • Sweaty Betty
        • Nike
        • adidas
        • New Balance
        • Helly Hansen
  • NEWSLETTER Signup to our newsletter
  • logoCreated with Sketch.
    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!


    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    You are now subscribed

    Your newsletter sign-up was successful


    An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
    Trending
    • Latest Issue
    • Marie Claire Masters
    • Autumn Winter 2026
    • Nail Trends 2026
    • Best Investment Bags
    • Best Perfumes
    1. Culture
    2. Celebrity News
    3. Royal News

    Apparently this was the final straw that convinced Harry and Meghan to step down as senior Royals

    Interesting.

    Ally Head's avatar
    By Ally Head
    Published 30 November 2021 In News

    When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

    Harry, Meghan and the Queen: Members Of The Royal Family Attend Events To Mark The Centenary Of The RAF
    (Image credit: Getty Images)
    • Facebook
    • X
    • Pinterest
    Share this article
    Join the conversation
    Follow us
    Add us as a preferred source on Google
    Subscribe to our newsletter

    Interesting.

    In Royal news this week, a new claim has surfaced about the final reason as to why Harry and Meghan decided to leave the Royal family and step down as senior Royal family members.

    In Brothers And Wives: Inside The Private Lives of William Kate, Harry and Meghan, a new book about the Royals, the author, Christopher Andersen, claims that it was in fact the Queen's actions that tipped them over the edge and finalised their decision to move to California.

    Apparently in 2019, prior to recording her annual festive broadcast, which airs every year on Christmas day, she instructed an assistant to move a photo of Harry and Meghan out of shot.

    Which exact photo it was is unknown, but it is claimed that only Meghan and Harry were in the image. It is believed the photo was on a desk alongside other framed photos of Royals including William and Kate, Prince Charles and Camilla, the Queen's father George VI, and the Duke of Edinburgh, too.

    You may like
    • Side view of a woman sitting in her bedroom - negative emotion - stock photo Their Children Were Taken Into Care. Who Was Looking After the Mothers?
    • Broken disco ball smashed to pieces on the floor. Black and white for a dramatic touch. Shiny backdrop is defocused. Why Do Men Ruin Your Birthday?
    • Emilia Clarke Emilia Clarke: “That's my goal for the next decade of my life: to take it lightly. But it requires strength.”

    All of theirs remained in the frame but Harry's and Meghan's did not.

    Apparently, the Queen instructed an assistant to remove the image by saying: "That one, I suppose we don’t need that one.”

    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    It's thought that HM decided to remove the image from the frame as the pair had snubbed her previously, choosing to spend the festive period with Meghan's mum, Doria Ragland, instead.

    Shortly after this, Harry and Meghan made their final decision to step down as senior Royal family members.

    This comes at the same time as a two-part documentary titled Princes and the Press has gone into detail about the supposedly strained relationship between brothers Prince William and Prince Harry.

    It's thought that the Royal family aren't happy to not have been given right to review the show, even issuing a rare joint statement saying as much and threatening not to work with the BBC in future.

    The second episode of the documentary has made claims that certain members of the Royal family, including Prince William, "planted" stories in the press about Harry struggling with his mental health.

    Ally Head
    Ally Head
    Social Links Navigation
    Senior Health and Sustainability Editor

    Ally is Marie Claire UK's Senior Health and Sustainability Editor, a well-regarded wellness expert, ten-time marathoner, and Boston Qualifying runner.

    Utilising her impressive skillset and exceptional quality of writing, she pens investigative, review and first-person pieces that consistently demonstrate flair and originality.

    Ally manages a team of freelancers, oversees all commissioning and strategy for her pillars, and spearheads the brand's annual Women in Sport covers, interviewing and shooting the likes of Mary Earps, Millie Bright, and Ilona Maher. Shortlisted for three BSMEs and winning one in 2022, Ally lives and breathes her verticals: her eye for a story and connections within the wellness sphere are unrivalled. Follow Ally on Instagram for more.

    Read more
    Side view of a woman sitting in her bedroom - negative emotion - stock photo
    Life Their Children Were Taken Into Care. Who Was Looking After the Mothers?
    Broken disco ball smashed to pieces on the floor. Black and white for a dramatic touch. Shiny backdrop is defocused.
    Relationships Why Do Men Ruin Your Birthday?
     
     
    Emilia Clarke
    Culture Emilia Clarke: “That's my goal for the next decade of my life: to take it lightly. But it requires strength.”
    Woman organizing documents in cluttered office workspace
    Money and Work Why Are Successful Women Staying in Jobs That Make Us Miserable?
     
     
    Latest in Royal News
    The Prince and Princess of Wales visit the Isles of Mull and Iona
    Royal News Royal Experts Predict a Major Milestone From Princess Kate This Autumn
    The Duke and Duchess of Sussex in Colombia
    Royal News Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Had a Secret UK Home in the First Year of Their Marriage
     
     
    The Prince and Princess of Wales visit Southport
    Royal News Prince William Has Given an Emotional Update on Princess Kate
    The Prince and Princess of Wales attend a state visit by the President of the French Republic in 2025
    Royal News Why Prince William and Princess Kate ‘Won’t Change" Their Minds on the Buckingham Palace Situation
     
     
    Latest in News
    New Beauty Launches: Amouage, Haus Labs, XERF
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: Is XERF Worth the Hype? Plus, Amouage’s New Body Collection & The Beauty Beat Returns
    Jeans And Jackets
    Shopping Celine Dion, Daisy Edgar-Jones and Sarah Pidgeon Swear by This Trophy Jacket-and-Jeans Formula for Instant Fashion Confidence
     
     
    Vogue World Robots
    Fashion AI Is Shaping the Future of Fashion—Can Creative Thought Survive?
    New Beauty Launches Romilly Wilde / Cécred / Bobbi Brown
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: Cécred Comes to the UK, Romilly Wilde Returns & £22 Skincare Gets Serious
     
     
    logoCreated with Sketch.
    • Site Archive
    • Contact Future's experts
    • Contact us
    • Terms and conditions
    • Advertise with us
    • Privacy policy
    • Cookies policy
    • About us
    Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google

    Marie Claire UK is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

    © Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.