Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's upcoming trip to the UK will see them "venture into the lion's den", a royal expert has warned.
The Sussexes announced earlier this week that they would be coming to Britain next month for the first time since returning for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations. The couple will head to Manchester for the One Young World Summit, an event which brings together young leaders from more than 190 countries, on September 5. The Sussexes will then head to Germany for the Invictus Games Dusseldorf 2023 One Year to Go event on September 6, before returning to the UK for the WellChild Awards in London on September 8 where Harry will deliver a speech.
Since quitting as senior working royals and leaving the UK to live in California, the pair have spoken out about their time in the Royal Family - most notably in their bombshell chat with Oprah Winfrey.
And according to royal expert and author Richard Fitzwilliams, this has damaged their popularity with some in the UK - and will make their upcoming visit "fairly difficult".
He told Newsweek: "What has happened during this period is that their ratings have dropped phenomenally.
"Their popularity has plunged in Britain.
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"They know when they appear that they are at war with the press here, it's rather like venturing into the lion's den now because you've got the public who are not supportive and you've got the press who are ferociously against them—and then you've also got the royal family where there's a rift."
Mr Fitzwilliam's comments come just months after an opinion poll revealed Harry and Meghan's popularity had slumped to an all-time low in the UK.
Polling by YouGov back in May - just before the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations - showed that the couple's popularity had dropped once again with the public, with popularity scores for both royals hitting new lows.
Harry's popularity fell with just one in three (32 per cent) seeing him in a positive light compared to over half (58 per cent) who thought of him negatively.
Likewise, Meghan's favourability dropped. Only 23 per cent of the public held a positive outlook on the Duchess of Sussex while approaching two in three (63 per cent) had a negative view.
However, the Sussex's remained positively seen among the young, but by a narrower margin.
Some 42 per cent of those aged 18 to 24 saw Harry positively, and 33 per cent saw him negatively.
The most popular royal then, according to the poll, was the Queen, with eight in ten Brits (81 per cent) holding a positive opinion of her, versus the 12 per cent who saw her negatively.
Following the Queen, the second most popular royal was Prince William, followed by his wife Kate.
