Meghan and Harry's eye-watering bills laid bare in new show as 'income dries up'

Daily Record

11 hours ago

Meghan and Harry: Where Did The Money Go? is set to delve into the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's finances since quitting The Firm.
Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle are set to see their incomes dwindle and costs soar as their multi-million pound deals dry up, experts have said.
After they decided to quit the Royal Family back in 2020, Harry's father, King Charles removed all financial support from them as they relocated to America. After this, Harry told Oprah Winfrey during that explosive interview that his dad "literally cut me off financially" .
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Now a new Channel 5 programme called Meghan and Harry: Where Did The Money Go? is set to shine a light on their finances revealing Harry's surprising inheritances, Meghan's millions and their staggering Montecito mortgage.
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The documentary also delves into the multi-million pound deals the couple have cut to sell their story since leaving The Firm - but it also details their huge outgoings, according to The Mirror.
Royal expert Norman Baker tells the show: 'There's no doubt in my mind that Meghan and Harry's income is going to decline in the future. It's declining now. They've done the big hits that they could do. They've done the big Spotify event, they've done the big book, there is nothing else to come, nothing else to sell apart from themselves.'
After they moved their lives over to the US, the couple bought a lavish family home costing $14.65 million (£11m). However, they also took out a mortgage of $9.5m (£7m), with repayments in the region of $50,000-100,000 (£73,000 - £37,000) a month. Until now, it's been unheard of for a senior Royal to require a mortgage.
Prince Harry has also been forced to fund his own security, and he rarely travels anywhere public without a four-car convoy.
Former royal protection officer Simon Morgan explains the costs of specialist protection, saying: 'It's always very difficult to identify the cost in relation to specialist protection, purely because there's a lot of other factors that go into it. You are looking at somewhere in the region of about £3 million a year to protect somebody who stays at home. As soon as they leave the residence, even if they go down to the shops, that could see that cost double or triple and go from £3m to £6m or £9m or £10m, conservatively. Security is not a fashion accessory, it's a need. You've got to address your needs versus your wants.'
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In order to fund it, Harry and Meghan famously signed a £100 million five year deal with Netflix in 2020 and a £15 million deal with Spotify. The Spotify deal has since come to an end with a top exec at the firm dubbing the pair 'grifters', while the Netflix deal is due to end this year, with no renewal planned.
Before they left their royal roles, which was famously branded 'Megxit', the Sussexes were earning £2.3m a year as working Royals, receiving money from the then Prince Charles's Duchy of Cornwall.
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But when they departed The Firm that all stopped, leaving Harry forced to live on the inheritance his mum Diana, Princess of Wales left him in her will.
When she sadly passed away in a car accident in 1997, Diana left £6.5m to each of her two sons, which had grown to around £10m when Harry received it upon turning 30.
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In his interview with Oprah, Harry said 'Without that, we wouldn't have been able to do this," referring to the family's move to California. Meghan, meanwhile, was thought to be worth around £5million when she met Harry - money built up from her time as an actress on Suits and from her lifestyle brand.
His tell all book Spare earned Harry a $20m (£15m) advance and sold an incredible 3.2 million copies in its first week. He's expected to have received a further £7m from the hardback sales.
Now PR expert Nick Ede is backing Meghan to become the family's breadwinner. He says, 'Meghan is the best way of making money for the two of them. She is the breadwinner.'
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Nick believes that having to build her own fortune before she met Harry means she's more savvy with deals than her Royal husband.
Nick continues: 'Megan from an early age knew it was very important to be secure. If you're a jobbing actress that means you don't know literally where the next pay cheque will come from and I think that will have added to her drive.'
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Indeed, Meghan might be more savvy with money but Harry has just come into another inheritance - this time from his great-grandmother, Elizabeth, Queen Mother.
In 1994 the Queen Mother set up a Trust Fund to benefit her great-grand children and this is expected to have paid out £8m to Harry.
It's a tidy sum but royal journalist Emily Andrews reckons Harry doesn't contribute much else to his household. She tells the documentary: 'Meghan gets up at half six, half an hour before the children, then the children gets up and she gets them dressed, gets their breakfast, and then she makes their packed lunch and takes them to kindy (nursery), then at 9 o'clock she sits down and is a girl boss… Where is Harry in all of this? He's not making money, he's not looking after the kids, what is Harry doing?'
Meghan & Harry: Where Did The Money Go? Airs on Saturday 14th June at 8.30pm on Channel 5.