On Sunday, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced they are expecting. A spokesperson for the couple said: “Archie is going to be a big brother. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are overjoyed to be expecting their second child.” But Sky’s royal correspondent, Rhiannon Mills explained how the announcement would have been very different if the Sussexes were still working royals.
Ms Mills wrote for Sky News: “The fact they’re now no longer working royals has allowed them to keep their baby news quieter for longer.”
The royal analyst said she understands the Sussexes had already told the Royal Family before announcing the baby news to the public.
In a statement, the Palace said: “The Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales and the entire family are delighted and wish them well.”
But Ms Mills added how it appears as though the Palace may have been unprepared to receive the baby news.
She said: “Although it does seem the palace may have been caught a little on the hop by their decision to announce it tonight, with the message from the family taking a bit of time to be released.”
Meghan and Harry shocked the nation last year when they decided to step down as senior members of the Royal Family.
When the couple had their first child Archie in May 2019, Meghan and Harry tried to give their son as much privacy as possible as working royals.
But now they have been released from their royal roles, Ms Mills explained how the Sussexes will try even harder to keep their children “from the media glare”.
READ MORE: Queen ‘caught off guard’ by Meghan Markle’s baby announcement
Ms Mills said it will be “fascinating” to see how Meghan and Harry choose to tell the world future information about the pregnancy.
She also claimed the Palace would have announced the pregnancy very differently to how the Sussexes released the news.
Ms Mills explained: “The way they’ve announced the pregnancy is very different from the way it would have been done through the palace, so it’ll be fascinating to see how they decide to tell the world when the baby arrives.
“We know with Archie they did their best to avoid the usual media circus of a royal birth.
“But when will we see the new arrival?”
In November last year, Meghan wrote about the miscarriage she had in the summer.
She spoke about the “almost unbearable grief” she felt after losing her child in July.
Writing in the New York Times, Meghan said: “I knew, as I clutched my firstborn child, that I was losing my second.”
The Duchess shared her traumatic experience to urge people to “commit to asking others, ‘are you OK?'” and to help end the taboo around miscarriage.
