Could Prince Harry and Meghan Markle give up their royal titles for good?

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are reportedly under pressure to give up their titles following a turbulent few months. 

• Prince Harry's comments have been labeled 'disrespectful' given his grandfather's recent death. 
• Prince Harry and Meghan Markle could be pressured into giving up their royal titles. 
• It follows royal news that it's not Prince Harry's 'place' to say Prince William is 'trapped' in the family.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle could soon drop their royal titles and become just Harry and Meghan, according to palace insiders. 

There is said to be a growing sense of "bewilderment" as to why the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are still using their royal titles if Prince Harry's royal upbringing has "caused him so much pain"—as recently referenced in both his interview with Oprah Winfrey and a recent appearance on Dax Shepard's Armchair Expert podcast.

The Mail on Sunday reports that royal aides are keen for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to drop their royal titles.

According to the publication, a palace insider said, "People are appalled that he could do this to the Queen when the Duke of Edinburgh is barely in his grave.

"To drag his grandfather into this is so shocking and disrespectful."

Given the level of detail they went into with Oprah Winfrey just a matter of months ago—in which claims emerged that a member of the royal family had made a racist remark—there is rising pressure on Harry and Meghan to distance themselves from their royal titles.

"The Duke of Sussex has now spent a significant amount of time emphasizing that he's no different to anyone else and attacking the institution which he says has caused him so much pain. There is a growing feeling that if you dislike the institution that much, you shouldn't have the titles."

That is not to say they would lose them, but simply not use them. 

"They should put the titles into abeyance, so they still exist, but are not used, like they agreed to do with their HRHs. 

"They should just become Harry and Meghan. And if they refuse to do that, they have to explain why not."

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were given their titles by the Queen after their wedding ceremony in May 2018 and have continued to use them in the aftermath of their withdrawal from the Royal Family last year. 

Meghan and Harry announced their decision to 'step back' as senior royals in January 2020, before emigrating to the US with their son, Archie, to pursue independent projects away from the glare of the British tabloids. The Duchess, who had a lead role on a hit TV show before marrying Harry, has already been rumored to want to return to the screen. Meghan Markle's Suits career came to an end in 2017 after seven seasons of playing Rachel Zane on the legal drama series, marking her official retirement from showbiz. 

It comes after the Duke—who is expecting a second child with Meghan—likened his upbringing to being in a "zoo" and took aim at his father, Prince Charles' method of parenting.

Speaking on the mental health podcast, Harry said, "I don't think we should be pointing the finger or blaming anybody, but certainly when it comes to parenting, if I've experienced some form of pain or suffering because of the pain or suffering that perhaps my father or my parents had suffered, I'm going to make sure I break that cycle so that I don't pass it on, basically.

"It's a lot of genetic pain and suffering that gets passed on anyway so we as parents should be doing the most we can to try and say, 'you know what, that happened to me, I'm going to make sure that doesn't happen to you'".