After their 12th publicist in two years has quit from the Sussex camp, many have been left wondering what internal struggles are contributing to their extremely high staff turnover rate
Within the span of just a few days, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have lost two of their key aides: chief communications officer Meredith Maines and James Holt, who served as head of their organisation, Archewell.
Holt had been the couple’s PR boss from 2019 to 2021, before moving to work more closely with the Sussexes on their charitable and philanthropic endeavours when they quit their royal duties in 2020. Meanwhile, Maines quit her role after just 10 months working with Harry and Meghan. Maines’ sudden departure marks the Sussexes bidding goodbye to their eleventh publicist in just five years.
After the announcement of Holt’s resignation, sources claim that Mr Holt wants to spend more time in London with his family, but it had been a “great privilege” to work alongside the Duke and Duchess over the years.
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In a statement shared with the media, he said: “Working with Prince Harry and Meghan has been one of the great privileges of my career. From my first project with Prince Harry eight years ago to improve mental health support for soldiers in the British military, to our recent work helping injured children in Gaza, he has consistently challenged me to think bigger about how we can make a difference.”
His resignation came just days after Maines also announced her departure from the Sussex team, as she released a statement, saying: “After a year of inspiring work with Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Archewell, I will be pursuing a new opportunity in 2026. I have the utmost gratitude and respect for the couple and the team, and the good they are doing in the world.”
Other communications staff have also left in recent years. Emily Robinson, who was hired in June as Harry and Meghan’s director of communications, stepped down three months later. A year ago, the Sussexes’ global press secretary, Ashley Hansen, left after two years to launch her own consultancy. Earlier that summer, UK-based staffer Charlie Gipson and California-based staffer Kyle Boulia also departed.
With the turnover rate of their key staff being so high, many have been left wondering why aides within the Sussex camp never seem to last more than a few years working alongside Harry and Meghan.
Rumours have long been rife that working for the Sussexes in such a capacity has left past staff members seeking out “long-term therapy”, and friends of past aides claiming that the workplace was “toxic” and “draining”. The Sussexes have denied all claims of bullying against them.
However, many seem to believe that being a public relations officer for Harry and Meghan would be incredibly challenging given their seemingly endless pursuit of both privacy and publicity.
According to The Telegraph’s Guy Kelly: “Part of the issue is surely that Harry and Meghan do not actually know what they wish to communicate to the world. Is the message that they want privacy or publicity? Are they celebrities or dignitaries? For how long will they define themselves by what they chose to leave, rather than by what they would like to do next?”
Many have commented on Harry and Meghan’s lack of direction in recent years, with their ventures ranging widely from Netflix programmes, lifestyle brands, charity outings, and rubbing shoulders with the Hollywood elite.
In the same vein, Harry and Meghan’s popularity with the public has remained low over the years, given their public jabs at the Royal Family and puzzling career choices, which may also be a factor as to why they seemingly can’t hold down a long-term PR chief.
For now, while Harry and Meghan restart the hiring process for yet another public relations representative, it is understood that Liam Maguire, the couple’s UK and Europe director of communications, will step up to lead on all publicity-related work.
With the Sussexes plans for 2026 largely unconfirmed, it seems that they are in for a rocky start to the year as they bring on a new PR expert to help them forge their next year’s plan. And with their scattered endeavours continuing to puzzle many royal watchers, whoever steps up into the new role will certainly have their work cut out for them.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.mirror.co.uk ’
