Meghan Markle pregnant: Duke and Duchess of Sussex told the Queen their news at Princess Eugenie's wedding
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are expecting their first child in the spring, Kensington Palace announced today.
Prince Harry and Meghan, who arrived in Sydney for the start of a 16 day royal tour today, told the Queen, Prince Charles and the rest of the senior royals at Princess Eugenie’s wedding on Friday before they left for Australia.
Kensington Palace said the Queen is “delighted” by the news - the baby will be her eighth great grandchild and seventh in line to the throne.
A statement from the Palace said: “Their Royal Highnesses have appreciated all of the support they have received from people around the world since their wedding in May and are delighted to be able to share this happy news with the public.”
Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland also said she was “very happy at this lovely news” and is looking forward to the birth of her first grandchild.
However, officials would not comment on whether 37-year-old Meghan’s father Thomas has been told about the news, which comes five months after the couple were married in Windsor.
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It is understood that Meghan is past the 12 week mark when it is regarded as safe to announce a pregnancy - suggesting that the baby is due around late April.
Kensington Palace said there would be “no changes” to the packed itinerary in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand as a result of the news.
The couple decided to press ahead with the tour after taking medical advice.
Prime Minister Theresa May was among the first to offer her best wishes, saying: “My warmest congratulations to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex on the happy news they are expecting a baby in the spring. Wishing them all the best.”
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Woody Johnson, the US ambassador to the UK said in a tweet: “Happy news to wake up to on a Monday morning - congratulations to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex!!”
The announcement immediately sparked speculation about a likely name with traditional royal names among the favourites.
Upmarket bookies Fitzdares were this morning quoting odds of 2/1 on Alexander , 3/1 on Arthur and 6/1 on Philip for a boy, and 5/2 for Alice, 4/1 Victoria and Mary if the baby is a girl.
Fitzdares CEO William Woodhams said: "They are a couple that might not follow Royal convention and go for a name outside of the usual 5 - 10 names that are traditionally chosen. As we get closer to the birth we expect money on some pretty unconventional names".
However, the Duchess who is the first mixed-race person in modern history to marry a senior British royal may want to draw on her own American upbringing.
Google said searches for “when is spring?” had spiked suddenly following the announcement that Harry and Meghan were expecting a child during the season.
The announcement came just hours after Prince Harry and Meghan touched down in a rain soaked Sydney today for the start of their four country Commonwealth tour.
The couple landed after their 22 hour Qantas flight from London and headed to Admiralty House - the Sydney residence of the Governor General Peter Cosgrove.
A source said the couple, who flew First Class on the Airbus 380 plane, appeared to be “in good spirits” and were “excited about coming to Australia.”
The trip is their first outside the UK and Ireland and officially begins tomorrow.
The itinerary of 76 engagements will see the couple watch the Invictus Games, tour a Sydney zoo, and visit the rural flying doctor service.
The 34-year-old prince and his wife, looking remarkably fresh-faced and holding hands, were whisked out of the airport and into a waiting car.
The pair and their entourage were surrounded by a heavy security presence, but still managed to offer up quick smiles for the waiting media.
The Duke and Duchess are travelling with 10 staff members, including press secretaries and a hairdresser.
Meghan was carrying two hefty purple folders, presumably full of briefing notes and information detailing the couple’s itinerary.
The former Suits star held the folders in front of her stomach prompting speculation among royal watchers that she was pregnant.
Kensington Palace confirmed the news just hours later.
There had already been suggestions that she was pregnant after she wore a wide-fitting Givenchy coat to Princess Eugenie’s wedding four days ago.
The couple had spoken openly about wanting to have children.
The topic cropped up in their engagement interview, with Harry, saying: “Hopefully we’ll start a family in the near future.”
The duchess found fame playing Rachel Zane in the US legal drama Suits.
They became engaged following a whirlwind 16-month romance after going on a blind date in London.
The prince has told how “all the stars were aligned” when they met.
“This beautiful woman just sort of literally tripped and fell into my life, I fell into her life,” he said when their engagement was announced last November.
They wed in a ceremony in St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, in May.
After Australia, the couple will fly to Fiji, where Harry will pay tribute to Fijian war veterans and the couple will attend a state dinner, before travelling to Tonga.
The tour will conclude with a four-day trip to New Zealand, where they will be greeted by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Harry and Meghan will return to London on November 1.
Kensington Palace said in a statement: “There is a long history of friendship between the royal family and Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand, and their links with the UK are extensive.
“The duke and duchess are very much looking forward to experiencing the unique cultures and customs of those four Commonwealth countries and have asked that this tour allow them opportunities to meet as many Australians, Fijians, Tongans, and New Zealanders as possible.”
Father to be Prince Harry later went on to speak about a cause close to his heart, the Invictus games.
On Australian television - hours after his officials has announced he and Meghan were expecting their first child next Spring - he did an ABC TV special about the event.
He said: "Tonight, this special episode of Australian Story is about a cause which is very close to my heart.
“Four years ago in London we launched the Invictus Games, a sporting event which brings together former and current members of the armed forces to harness the power of sport, to inspire their recovery from physical and mental injuries.
“As a former soldier I wanted to do something positive for service men and women whose lives have been turned upside down and hopefully have a positive impact on their families too.
“Next week in Sydney, Invictus competitors will be competing across 11 different sports at some of Sydney’s most iconic venues,” he said.
Harry picked out former commando Garry Robinson who was critically injured in a Blackhawk helicopter crash 8 years ago.
He went on, “I first heard Garry’s remarkable story in 2014 when we met at the London games and I am thrilled to see how far he has come since then. Never underestimate the power of sport.”
The show then highlighted Garry Robinson’s story.
Harry went on, “What we must remember and what I think the Invictus Games encapsulates really, really well is just proving that human spirit is incredibly strong. And if you have the will then you can really achieve absolutely anything.
“The The invisible injuries, the mental health injuries are the ones that are invisible to us, that we don’t understand. And what we don’t understand scares us.
“Just the way that you are, your whole personality can sometimes change, for a period of time or for the rest of your life.
“So, you’re constantly having to explain to somebody why you don’t want to go on the underground, why you don’t want to be in small enclosed spaces, or why even if there’s a loud bang or a plane or a helicopter flying over you, why that might trigger something.
"So for a lot of guys post-traumatic stress is a big issue.”
"The Invictus Games came about 2007/2008 when I flew back from Afghanistan early on that same plane with three critically injured soldiers, all UK guys and the coffin of a Danish soldier underneath as well.
Harry added: “That kind of hit me quite hard to see the injuries these guys had sustained and also that war ultimately has its price.
“Then a few years later I ended up going to the Warrior Games in America.
"Three hundred competitors using sport as part of their recovery. And there was no media, no families, it was just them, but I could see on their faces the impact that sport was having, so there and then the Invictus Games was half stolen from the Americans, and what they have done here is absolutely amazing. What if we could do this internationally.
“Let’s recover together - and not just the individuals themselves, but also the families, so within nine months we managed to create the Invictus Games.
“We’ve had people you know, sending in emails, thousands of civilians who have broken backs, who have broken collar bones, whatever it is something that has put them on their sofa for a period of weeks or months.
“And they’ve written in saying thank you, I have just watched somebody who should be dead run the hundred metres and that has given me a whole new lease of life."
The Invictus Games - with a lot of help, with a lot of support, and the British public absolutely loved it in 2014 has now grown onto Sydney in 2018.