With Meghan And Harry Now Planning To Earn An Income, What Can We Expect For Their Future Careers?

Last night, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their intention to step back as ‘senior’ royals, split their time between the UK and US and most interestingly, work towards being 'financially independent'. Meaning, they’re going to need to dust off their CVs if they want to maintain their current lifestyle.

Naturally, we now have a TON of questions. What does this mean for Meghan’s acting career? Could Prince Harry go back into the army? Will (and Lord please say the answer is yes) we get a return of The Tig?!

It seems Meghan has a much higher earning potential than her husband. According to The Knowledge Academy, Meghan’s projected income as a non-royal is £350k per year given her acting experience. Could her new-found financial independence revive Suits and her role as Rachel Zane? Or birth a spin-off perhaps, in a similar vein to since-cancelled Suits follow-on Pearson? We would buy a whole new streaming platform to see Meghan back on screen.

Returning to acting would certainly make her the highest earner in the Royal Family, as would jumping into the influencing world. Because, that £350k figure doesn’t even account for her former talents as a lifestyle blogger – creating The Tig - which were top of the range even before Instagram birthed the age of the influencer.

In fact, in September last year Meghan’s business manager Andrew Meyer trademarked The Tig for another two years – also trademarking Tigtots and sparking speculation she was creating a parenting arm of the blog. At the time, a royal spokesperson said the trademarks were ‘to prevent false branding’ and ‘avoid others purporting to be the Duchess or affiliated with her’ but given the recent developments, we can’t help but think…were the signs there all along?

Likelihood is, were Meghan never to have married Harry, she would be influencing royalty herself earning thousands per sponsored post with lucrative brand partnerships. And now, as actual royalty and the Meghan Effect a proven revenue driver, she could have a hugely successful career as an influencer should she wish.

How does that translate financially? Well, one of the current top influencers, Love Island’s Molly-Mae Hague is projected to earn £399,000 a year according to Think Money, so do with that information what you will.

Of course, with Meghan so passionate about charity work – even prior to becoming a royal – perhaps acting and influencing will be her side-hustle as she focuses on activism. Who knows, with a brand like hers, she could well be on the way to becoming the new Oprah Winfrey. We’re talking TV shows, book deals and her own charitable foundations, on that Nobel Peace Prize career trajectory.

In fact, we don’t doubt Meghan’s already had offers for her own TV show. With Harry working alongside Oprah on a mental health series for Apple’s new streaming service, Meghan getting involved in TV around her charity work would be the perfect combination of her skillset. So, are we in for a new TV darling couple? A royal Mr and Mrs presenting dream-team?

It’s not out of the realms of possibility. While Harry’s CV is very much tied up in military work – he spent 10 years as an army officer before establishing his royal office - it’s unlikely he would go back to that with a family at home. In November last year, he told military personnel at the Windsor’s Broom Farm Community Centre he couldn’t imagine how hard it would be to leave his son for so much time.

‘It's unbelievably hard. I have so much respect and admiration for anyone who has to deal with that,’ he said. ‘I can't imagine what it's like to miss so much as they change so quickly.’

So, if a military career isn’t on the books, perhaps he too will embark on the Oprah path. Having shown passion for highlighting mental health issues previously, and with his new TV show on the way, perhaps he has a future in hosting documentaries. Or, if his last decade of work are anything to go by, more fundraising for charities.

Technically, Meghan and Harry will only have to earn 5% of their overall Office expenditure to maintain their current standard of living – enough to cover the grant they receive from the government that they’ve chosen to give up. The rest of their Office spending is funded by the Prince of Wales via the Duchy of Cornwall and will continue to be so despite their stepping back, according to reports.

Of course, they also do have their own money in the bank from Meghan’s previous career and Harry’s inheritance from his mother. Previously, they’ve used their own private money to fund certain expenses, for example part of the renovations at Frogmore Cottage.

Despite this, the couple do seem set on earning their own money – including it as a core reason they chose to step back as royals. ‘The Duke and Duchess of Sussex take great pride in their work and are committed to continuing their charitable endeavours as well as establishing new ones,’ reads one statement on their website. ‘In addition, they value the ability to earn a professional income, which in the current structure they are prohibited from doing. For this reason they have made the choice to become members of the Royal Family with financial independence.

‘Their Royal Highnesses feel this new approach will enable them to continue to carry out their duties for Her Majesty The Queen, while having the future financial autonomy to work externally,’ the statement added.

Well, we can’t wait to see exactly what that external work will be. Rachel Zane, we’ve missed you.

Read More: Prince Harry and Meghan's relationship timeline...