From 'WE QUIT' to 'MEGXIT': All the wild newspaper front pages on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's s
- Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's announcement Wednesday of plans to "step back" as senior members of the royal family came as a shock to royal followers around the world.
- UK and US front pages on Thursday described the departure in terms of the Queen's reported "dismay" and the newly popular term "Megxit," which lampoons Britain's coming exit from the European Union.
- Scroll down to see the various front pages.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced on Wednesday night that they would "step back" as senior members of the royal family in an effort to become financially independent.
Their departure came as a shock to many royal followers around the world and, reportedly, even the Queen herself. Multiple outlets, including the BBC and Harper's Bazaar, reported that not a single member of the royal family was told before the couple published their announcement.
Most of the UK's front pages on Thursday were dominated by the royal news, despite it coming on a busy news day that involved a commercial plane crash in Iran, Iranian missile strikes on US bases, and former Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn giving his first press conference since his escape from Japan.
Scroll down to see various UK and US front pages that featured the couple's news:
Tones ranged from outrage to subdued, with the most emphatic one arguably coming from the New York Post, which simply said "Megxit" — a play on words combining "Meghan" and "Brexit." The front page included a crude photo illustration of the couple sitting on a couch in their pajamas.
The tabloid reported the couple as embarking on their "commoner" life and portrayed as an American couple watching TV, smoking, and drinking the beer Pabst Blue Ribbon.
The Sun also used the word, while reporting of a "civil war" within the royal household and describing reactions of the Queen, Prince Charles, and Prince William.
The Daily Express and the Daily Mail also focused on the Queen's reported reaction to the departure.
The Times of London also described rifts within the royal family, citing sources saying that neither the Queen nor Prince Charles were told of the decision and that the Queen was "understood to be very disappointed."
Source: The Times of London
The UK's free daily Metro newspaper portrayed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex as employees of the royal family.
In their statement, the Sussexes said they would stop taking money given to the royals by the British taxpayer in what is known as the Sovereign Grant.
They had already said 95% of their daily costs were covered by the private wealth of Harry's father, Prince Charles, rather than the Sovereign Grant. They did not say whether they would give up that money.
Before marrying into the royal family, Markle may have already accumulated millions of dollars of her own wealth thanks to her acting career, Insider's Tanza Loudenback noted.
Similarly, The Daily Telegraph referred to the royal family as "the Firm," a phrase often used by Prince Philip, the Queen's husband and Harry's grandfather.
The I focused more on Harry and his search for privacy by moving out of the UK.
It also characterized the split as the "most turbulent time" for the royal family since the 1936 abdication of Prince Edward VIII to marry the American divorcée Wallis Simpson and later move to Europe.
The Daily Star didn't dedicate as much space to the royal news but was more playful in its headline — which called Harry the "Royal formerly known as Prince."
It's a reference to the media describing the musician Prince as the "Artist Formerly Known as Prince" in the 1990s when he briefly changed his stage name.
The Guardian was more subdued on its front page, with the simple headline: "Harry and Meghan to 'step back as senior royals."
The Financial Times also dedicated less than a quarter of its front page to the royal couple, focusing instead on Ghosn's press conference and US President Donald Trump's reaction to the Iranian strikes.
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