Things appear to be worsening for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, particularly in the eyes of the British public. Prince Harry's recent BBC interview about his family seems to have backfired, leading to a significant drop in his popularity in the UK.
The latest polling data, combined with the ongoing feud with his royal relatives, raises the question: can Prince Harry recover from this self-inflicted exile? Would his family and the public even welcome him back?
Many observers believe there is currently no path back for Prince Harry and Meghan. His decision to give a 30-minute interview to the BBC on May 2nd has been widely criticized as a misstep.
The interview's impact is drawing comparisons to Prince Andrew's disastrous Newsnight interview in 2019. Like Andrew, Harry's public comments have seemingly worsened his public image. The Duke of Sussex made a series of extraordinary comments about the royals while claiming it "would be nice to reconcile" with his family.
In the interview, Harry said he didn't "know how much longer my father has", in reference to the monarch's cancer battle, adding the King "won't speak to me because of this security stuff".
YouGov's recent survey reveals a sharp decline in the Sussexes' popularity. Harry's favorability rating has fallen to 27%, its lowest in over two years, while Meghan's has dropped to 20%, the lowest since 2017.
The poll suggests growing public dissatisfaction with the Sussexes five years after their royal exit. This marks a stark contrast to 2011, when Harry enjoyed an 80% approval rating.
Prince Harry says he wants reconciliation with the royal family, but his decision to speak publicly about his family to the BBC is unlikely to encourage the King or Prince of Wales to reach out. As Harry said, "there's no point in continuing to fight".