Meghan Markle’s new UK family life (Image: https://www.instagram.com/meghan/)
In a 34-second video shared on September 13, Meghan offered a rare glimpse of life with Prince Harry, Archie and Lilibet in Britain, showing the family outdoors, Lilibet riding a bicycle and Harry spending time with the children. Archie, 7, and Lilibet, 5, have also begun school in the UK after the family returned from California. 10 Sept 2026 | 12:19 Here are seven lifestyle shifts the Sussexes may be embracing.
Reports had confirmed before the move that the children were enrolled in a British school, with their education being one of the reasons behind the family’s decision to spend an extended period in the UK. A puddle, a bicycle and a fishing rod are unlikely symbols of a royal family’s new chapter. Yet that is exactly what Meghan Markle has chosen to show. After nearly six years in Montecito, the change is more than a new address. The family’s British routine could mean different weather, different school rhythms, more countryside and a renewed connection to Harry’s home country. There are woodland walks, muddy puddles, cycling, fishing and children playing outside. Harry is seen fishing with Archie and Lilibet, while the family appears to be spending time around the countryside. That suggests a lifestyle that may be more closely tied to the outdoors. For children, outdoor play can mean something as simple as getting muddy, riding a bicycle or exploring what’s around them rather than moving from one organised activity to another. Of course, one carefully selected video cannot tell us what the family’s entire routine looks like. But it does show what Meghan wanted people to see: family life away from cameras and formal royal settings. Archie and Lilibet have spent most of their childhood in California. Now they are experiencing school and daily life in Britain. That could expose them to a different school culture, British traditions and a closer connection to their father’s childhood. Their California life has often been associated with sunshine, gardens and the Montecito lifestyle. Their new British footage is filled with green countryside, cloudy skies, puddles and muddy paths. The family is not abandoning California altogether. Reports say they intend to retain their Montecito home while establishing Britain as their base for an extended stay. That means the Sussexes may effectively be creating a two-country lifestyle rather than making a clean break with their American life.
Their British life may therefore look less like traditional royal life and more like a private family’s routine, just with an extraordinary amount of public attention surrounding it. Harry grew up in Britain, went to school there and served in the British Army. For Archie and Lilibet, however, Britain is something they have largely experienced through family history rather than everyday life. Their return gives them more opportunities to experience the country where their father grew up and where their grandparents and wider family have deep roots. Harry and Meghan’s decision has reportedly been driven partly by wanting their children to understand their British heritage and develop a connection with the country. Harry and Meghan are living in a private, non-royal residence outside London, and there are no plans for either to resume their roles as working royals. Moving to Britain does not mean California disappears.
For Meghan especially, it means Britain may become a new chapter rather than a return to the life she left in 2020. The Sussexes left Britain in 2020 and built a life in California. The family is expected to retain its Montecito home, and Meghan is also expected to continue running her California-based business, As Ever, while in the UK. That could create an unusual family rhythm: British school and countryside life for the children, while American connections, business and travel remain part of the family’s world. Perhaps the biggest lifestyle change is the hardest to measure. The video does not show a packed royal calendar. It shows small things: a child learning to ride, a parent cheering, a family walking outdoors and Harry fishing with his children. Six years later, they have returned with two children who are old enough to understand that their parents have roots in two different countries. For now, Britain is expected to be their home for an extended period rather than necessarily a permanent move. But Meghan’s first glimpse of that life suggests that the family’s British chapter may be less about palaces and protocol and more about school runs, muddy shoes, countryside walks, bicycles and ordinary family memories. And perhaps that is the biggest lifestyle change of all: after years of a very public family story, Meghan is choosing to show the Sussexes doing something surprisingly ordinary. Looking for trusted parenting advice? Follow TOI Parenting Circle on Instagram for expert guidance, relatable stories, and practical tips delivered every day. Get the latest Lifestyle News and more. Download the TOI app.