The monarch is said to be concerned about potential financial demands from Harry and his wife Meghan Markle amid reports that their work over in the US has started to ‘dry up’

King Charles has had much to contend with following Prince Harry’s exit from royal life.

The Sussexes have given their opinion on the royal family on a number of occasions – from their interview with Oprah, to damning chats and Harry’s tell-all book, Spare. And now the monarch is facing a new headache regarding the couple. Charles is said to be becoming increasingly concerned about financial demands from the Sussexes should their television deals dry up next year, the Mail on Sunday reports.

And according to royal expert Robert Jobson, Harry and Meghan’s “biggest paydays” are likely now behind them, with their Spotify deal brought to an end prematurely in 2023. The author further believes the couple are “trying to find an income stream (jam, anyone?) that doesn’t involve dishing dirt on the Royal Family” after the public have grown weary of their whinging.

Mr Jobson added: “The ‘Harry problem’, as it’s known among Palace staff, continues to plague the King. ‘What worries His Majesty, and his top team,’ says a Palace official, ‘is what is going to happen when all the money runs out.'” The Sussexes stepped down in 2020 and have been funding their new lifestyle in California through various projects and a number of big media deals – including their controversial Oprah interview, Netflix deal and Spare.

Harry told Oprah in 2021 that the media deals were not part of their plan but were necessary to provide his family with financial security after his father “literally cut me off financially”. However, according to the royal expenditure reports, in the fiscal year beginning of April 2020, Charles provided both Harry and Prince William ’s families with £4.5 million.

The report does not break down how much money went to each prince, but a spokesman for Charles at Clarence House clarified that the then-Prince of Wales had allotted “a substantial sum” to support Harry and Meghan as they transitioned out of their royal roles. “That funding ceased in the summer of last year,” the spokesperson continued. “The couple are now financially independent.”

The money Charles allotted for both of his sons came from the Duchy of Cornwall, which also funded the Sussexes when they were working royals. Harry and Meghan announced they were standing down as working royals in January 2020 and officially ceased being working members of the royal family at the end of March 2020, just before the new financial year began. In his interview with Winfrey, Harry said they were cut off financially when they decided to leave the royal family to become financially independent.

“My family literally cut me off financially, and I had to afford security for us,” he said, adding “I’ve got what my mum left me, and without that, we would not have been able to do this.” Upon Charles becoming King, the Duchy of Cornwall passed to Prince William, who now benefits from its full annual sum, which was nearly £23 million in the 2023-24 tax year, according to Newsweek.