Meghan Markle stepped back into public engagements this week, joining Prince Harry in Nottingham for stops at Community Recording Studio and the Himmah Hub food bank. The day before, she was spotted getting lunch in London with George Northwood, the hairstylist who did her hair for her wedding reception.
Doing well, but not without missing California
A source close to Meghan and Harry told People this week that she is adjusting well to life in the U.K., even though California, and the people she left there, are still very much on her mind. She and Harry had lived in Montecito for roughly six years before relocating temporarily to Britain in late August.
'She's keeping busy, as she always does, and staying in close contact with her friends in Montecito,' the source said. 'She does miss home, and her mom. They're planning to come back for the holidays. Meghan's looking forward to seeing her friends and making plans with them already.'
Why public appearances will stay rare
A separate source told The Telegraph that Meghan and Harry are approaching this chapter with very different priorities. Harry's focus remains his philanthropic and public service work, while Meghan is centering her time on her family, then her business, then an eventual return to acting. That source described her as currently reading through a lot of scripts, and said any charity work would come only after everything else is covered, since she is not a working royal with a schedule built by a private secretary.
A Christmas without the royal family
Meghan, Harry, and their children, Archie and Lilibet, will not be joining the royal family for Christmas this year. Instead, the family plans to spend the holiday with Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland. A source told The Times the decision was not really in question. 'They won't be having Christmas with the royal family,' the source said. 'How could that even work? They know it would be too awkward and too difficult. They also know they're not going to be invited, and they're not waiting for an invitation.'
When Harry and Meghan's team first confirmed the move back to Britain, a spokesperson described it as temporary and noted the couple were keeping their Montecito house. 'On the heels of a wonderful trip with family and friends this summer, Harry and Meghan have decided to spend an extended period in the U.K. this autumn,' the spokesperson told The New York Times, adding that the couple wanted their children to spend more time somewhere so central to their family's story. A source close to the family later described it as a decision made together, one that lets Archie and Lilibet experience both sides of their parents' world.
