LONDON: Prince Harry and his wife Meghan’s bombshell resignation from front-line royal duties rocked the British monarchy on Thursday, with reports they defied Queen Elizabeth II by going public.

The couple said they would now “balance” their time between Britain and North America and rip up long-established relations with the press, in a surprise announcement on Wednesday that appeared to blindside Buckingham Palace.

In a short, terse response a little while later, a palace statement said discussions with Harry and Meghan were “at an early stage”.

“We understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through,” the palace said.

Media reports said the couple made their shock statement — released on their own website, Instagram account and through Buckingham Palace’s email communications system — without notifying either Harry’s grandmother, the monarch, or father, the heir to the throne Prince Charles.

London’s Evening Standard newspaper said they had “defied clear instructions from the queen” not to go public about any future plans at this time.

It added senior courtiers had warned the couple “will be punished for this”.

The mood in the palace was understood to be one of disappointment and even “hurt”, according to the BBC, while Thursday’s newspapers were full of reports of a family “split” and the queen’s “dismay”.

Meanwhile, Madame Tussauds London said it was moving its waxworks of the pair away from other top family figures “to reflect the upcoming change in the royal line up”.

Going rogue

Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams said Harry and Meghan announcing this step without the queen’s blessing was “extraordinary”.

“This is symptomatic, clearly, of the fact that they are unhappy with royal roles and feel deeply pressurised,” he told AFP.

“They’ve chosen to... go rogue. The result, therefore, could have very serious consequences.” The couple’s decision follows a turbulent year, in which they admitted to struggling in the spotlight and growing apart from Harry’s brother Prince William.

They have also complained of negative news coverage and taken several papers to court — another unusual move.

“We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the royal family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen,” they said.

“We have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution.”

Published in Dawn, January 10th, 2020