Public cool on Prince Harry return

Public Sector

New polling from Ipsos explores attitudes to the Royals and the possibility of Prince Harry returning to Royal duties on a temporary or permanent basis.

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  • Keiran Pedley Public Affairs
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  • Half think the Royal Family divided. Duke and Duchess of Sussex are held most responsible
  • 4 in 10 oppose Prince Harry returning to Royal duties – even temporarily

New polling from Ipsos explores attitudes to the Royals and the possibility of Prince Harry returning to Royal duties on a temporary or permanent basis. Fieldwork was carried out 29th February to 3rd March, before recent stories about Kate’s Mother’s Day photograph. 

Divisions in the Royal Family

Almost half of Britons (48%) consider the Royals to be very or fairly divided.  25% say they are very or fairly united. 18% say they are neither.

When the 48% who think the Royal Family is divided are asked who they think is ‘most’ responsible for the divisions the Duchess of Sussex (Meghan Markle) and Duke of Sussex (Prince Harry) are joint most blamed on 41% with Prince Andrew in third place on 28%.

Ipsos Chart: Among those who think the Royal Family is divided, two in five think the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are most responsible for this, followed by just over a quarter saying Prince Andrew - March 2024 The Duchess of Sussex (Meghan Markle) 41% The Duke of Sussex (Prince Harry) 41% The Duke of York (Prince Andrew) 28% The media 20% King Charles III 17% The Queen Consort (Camilla Parker Bowles) 14% The Prince of Wales (Prince William) 14% The Princess of Wales (Kate Middleton) 9% Staff or officials within the Royal Household 6% The Duke of Edinburgh (Prince Edward) 2% The Princess Royal (Princess Anne) 1% Princess Beatrice 1% Princess Eugenie * Other 1% All equally responsible 11% None of the above 2% Don't know 8%


Should Prince Harry return?

In the above context, it is perhaps unsurprising that the public are lukewarm on the prospect of a Harry return. Around 4 in 10 oppose Prince Harry returning to complete royal duties on both a temporary (40%) and permanent basis (39%). Around one in four support the idea in both instances (26% and 25% respectively).

Ipsos Chart: Two in five say they would oppose Prince Harry returning to complete royal duties on either a temporary or permanent basis - March 2024 Temporary basis oppose 40% Temporary basis support 26% Temporary basis neither 29% Permanent basis oppose 39% Permanent basis support 29% Permanent basis neither 25%


Elsewhere in the poll, despite perceptions of division mentioned above, attitudes to the Royal Family as an institution appear largely unchanged. 25% think it would be better for Britain if the Monarchy was abolished, 41% think it would be worse and 24% think it would make no difference. Figures that have not moved much since the start of 2023.

Ipsos Chart: Two in five think it would be worse for Britain in the future if the monarchy was abolished, compared to a quarter who say it would better - March 2024 Better if abolished 25% No difference 24% Worse if abolished 41%


Ipsos Director of Politics Keiran Pedley said of the findings:

These numbers make clear how far Prince Harry’s popularity has fallen in recent times. Once the most popular Royal, now just one in ten say he is their favourite. Meanwhile, whilst Harry and Meghan are most likely to be blamed for Royal divisions, there is significant public hesitancy about Harry returning to Royal duties, even on a temporary basis. Even if a majority are not actively opposed.

Technical note

Ipsos interviewed a representative quota sample of 1,085 adults aged 18-75 in Great Britain. Interviews took place on the online Omnibus 29th February – 3rd March 2024. Data has been weighted to the known offline population proportions. All polls are subject to a wide range of potential sources of error.

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The author(s)
  • Keiran Pedley Public Affairs

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