Harry and Meghan 'cheapening' UK royal family, says Thomas Markle

Buckingham Palace announced the couple would no longer be using their ‘Royal Highness’ titles

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, Meghan the Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry watch a flypast of Royal Air Force aircraft pass over Buckingham Palace in London. AP Photo

Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex leave after visiting Canada House in London after their recent stay in Canada. AP Photo

Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, arrive to greet members of the public in Kingfisher Bay on Fraser Island in Queensland, Australia October 22, 2018. Reuters

Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex meet with a local surfing community group, known as OneWave, raising awareness for mental health and wellbeing in a fun and engaging way at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia. AP Photo

Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex hold their baby son Archie during a photocall in St George's Hall at Windsor Castle, in Berkshire, Britain May 8, 2019. Reuters

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, visits Auwal Mosque on Heritage Day with Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, during their royal tour of South Africa on September 24, 2019 in Cape Town, South Africa. Getty Images

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, pose for a photo with the New York Yankees before their game against the Boston Red Sox at London Stadium on June 29, 2019 in London, England. The game was in support of the Invictus Games Foundation. Getty Images

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, dance as they visit a Justice Desk initiative in Nyanga township, during their royal tour of South Africa on September 23, 2019 in Cape Town, South Africa. Getty Images

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex attend a service marking the centenary of WW1 armistice at Westminster Abbey on November 11, 2018 in London, England. Getty Images

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, visit an exhibition of Tongan handicrafts, mats and tapa cloths at the Fa'onelua Convention Centre on October 26, 2018 in Nuku'alofa, Tonga. Getty Images

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, meet with local children as they arrive at Dubbo Airport on October 17, 2018 in Dubbo, Australia. Getty Images

Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and his new wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, leave from the West Door of St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, in Windsor on May 19, 2018 in Windsor, England. Getty Images

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Susse, arrive for a visit to "Justice desk", an NGO in the township of Nyanga in Cape Town, as they begin their tour of the region on September 23, 2019. AFP

Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, chats with Disney CEO Robert Iger as Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, embraces US singer-songwriter Beyoncé as they attend the European premiere of the film The Lion King in London on July 14, 2019. AFP

Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, joined by her mother, Doria Ragland, show their new son to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip at Windsor Castle, Windsor, England. AP Photo

Prince Harry and Meghan have "cheapened" the British monarchy, her estranged father Thomas Markle said on Sunday as Buckingham Palace announced that the couple would no longer be working members of the royal family.

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth said on Saturday that her grandson and his wife, also known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, would no longer use their “Royal Highness” titles or receive public funds for their work.

The palace statement was made after just over a week of talks following a surprise statement by Harry and Meghan that they intended to step back as senior royals.

The Sussexes said they were seeking “progressive new roles” which would see them combine some royal duties with private work. But the statement ruled this out.

The couple will be known as Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. They have also agreed to repay £2.4 million (Dh11.4m) spent by British taxpayers on renovating their home Frogmore Cottage, near Windsor Castle.

Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams said the palace’s announcement showed that the Queen was “reasserting herself” after a bad few months for the monarchy, which saw her son Prince Andrew embroiled in a scandal over his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

"There was definitely a feeling that things had got out of control," Mr Fitzwilliams told The National. "Meghan and Harry's idea was to be some sort of half-in, half-out royals and the Queen wanted to rule that out."

He added that if the couple had continued to perform royal duties while earning money privately “every single thing that they did would have been microscopically examined”.

The monarch, 93, said she was pleased that “a constructive and supportive way forward” had been found for the couple and their nine-month-old son.

“Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved members of my family,” the Queen said, making particular mention of how proud she was that Meghan had quickly become one of the family.

Meghan's father had less favourable things to say about the former actress, who became famous for her role in US TV series Suits.

Mr Markle told British broadcaster Channel 5 that Meghan and Harry had taken an obligation “to be part of the royals and to represent the royals”.

“This is like one of the greatest long-living institutions ever,” he said in extracts from an interview released on Sunday. “They are destroying it, they are cheapening it, they’re making it shabby … They are turning it into a Walmart with a crown of it now. It is something that is ridiculous, they shouldn’t be doing this.”