Samir Hussein/WireImage
Meghan MarkleandPrince Harryare doing their own thing in California.
While the Duke and Duchess of Sussex continue to find their way in Hollywood, their home life — 90 miles away from starry Los Angeles in Montecito — is a happy one.
The couple — who are parents to sonPrince Archie, 4, and daughterPrincess Lilibet, 2 — have taken on routine, relaxed beats: Harry can be seen weaving through the village on his bike; Meghanpops into local markets; Lili sits atop Harry’s shoulders at the town’s July 4 parade.
A family insider tells PEOPLE exclusively in this week’s cover story that for Prince Harry, it’s a “very different” life, and one he “seems to be embracing.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle August 2023 PEOPLE magazine cover.
Despite their recognizability, a friend says Prince Harry, 38, and Meghan, who turns 42 on Friday, are quite casual.
“Harry’s a beer and steak-and-potatoes kind of dude,” says the pal. “They’re playful and flirty when they’re hanging out.”
The resident added that the Duke of Sussex “didn’t wear a hat; I could see his red hair.”
Remko de Waal / ANP / AFP/ Getty
Despite their public outings, Prince Harry and Meghan largely keep to themselves. They work out of a shared office inside their sprawling $14.65 million estate, which boasts chicken coops, a playground and a vegetable garden.
“They’re not into a big scene. They prefer smaller group hangouts at home, karaoke, that sort of thing,” says the friend. (Of the two, Harry is more frequently out and about.)
But when Meghan arrives at school pickup, “she talks to everyone; there is no pretense,” says a longtime Montecito resident.
Some locals wish the couple would more fully engage with the community in Montecito, where Oprah, Ellen DeGeneres, Katy Perry and Jeff Bridges call home. “Quite a lot of people are very protective of them,” saysMontecito Journalcolumnist and local resident Richard Mineards, while others are “grumbling” about a noticeable uptick in paparazzi.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry onstage at the 2022 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Ripple of Hope Gala.Kevin Mazur/Getty
It’s been three years since Prince Harry and Meghan announced that they were stepping back from their roles as working members of the royal family and moved to her home state of California. The couple has stressed that the change was necessary for their mental well-being, with Meghanhaving thoughts of self-harmand Harrybattling press intrusion— and theroyal family planting storiesagainst each other.
However, “there wasn’t necessarily a five-year plan” — as one royal insider tells PEOPLE — when they left the U.K.
Royal life “wasn’t a world they wanted for their family,” says the royal insider, noting that their choices reflect that. “Everything else flows from that, for whatever time period it takes.”
Meghan and Harry signed major deals with Netflix and Spotify in 2020, resulting in arecord-breaking Netflix seriesand ahit podcastin addition to the Duke of Sussex’sbestselling memoir. However, they’ve hit a few road bumps in recent months: in June, they announced they had"mutually agreed to part ways” with Spotify, where they were operating under a $20 million deal, and theWall Street Journalrecently declared the couple was “looking like a flop” after looking into their production company’s Netflix output, where their deal is valued at $100 million.
Joe Quenqua, a senior media strategist, tells PEOPLE that the latest headlines signal “serious growing pains” for Prince Harry and Meghan’s brand, while a top Hollywood insider says, “The royal element and, in some ways, the drama around them inflated the price, deals and expectations.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in May 2023.Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
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They’re also hard at work with theirArchewell Foundationsupporting causes close to their hearts. On Wednesday, they shared a video showing Meghan and Harry calling young people who are working with the Responsible Technology Youth Power Fund to congratulate them on their impact in creating safer online spaces.
“Has their final chapter been written? Absolutely not,” an industry executive tells PEOPLE. “Hollywood loves a comeback.”
source: people.com
