Prince Harry & Meghan Markle ‘desperately need his £8MILLION birthday gift – they love to spend money’, expert says
PRINCE Harry and Meghan Markle desperately need his £8million birthday gift, an expert has claimed.
The Duke is set to inherit the sizeable funds from the Queen Mother when he turns 40 on Sunday.
Royal expert Hugo Vickers believes the timing couldn’t be better for the now US-based couple so they can continue with their “expensive lifestyle”.
Splashing out $14.5million (£11million) on their seven-bed and 15-bathroom sprawling California pad four years ago, the Sussexes don’t shy away from flaunting their wealth.
But while the lump sum will be helpful in keeping up appearances, Hugo said it can “disappear pretty fast” across the pond.
He told The Sun: “No doubt that would be helpful because I think he leads a very expensive lifestyle.
“Hopefully he will put [the money] to good use. £8million can disappear pretty fast in a place like Montecito if you have an enormous staff, a big house to maintain, and cars.
“Harry has to pay for his own security [too] which we know he takes very seriously.”
The publicly-funded round-the-clock royal protection was downgraded in the wake of Megxit.
And is one of the reasons Meghan refuses to come to the UK with kids Archie, five, and Lilibet, three.
Their seemingly excessive spending is also behind Harry and Meg’s large number of start-up projects, Hugo added.
The couple recently launched their newest venture The Parents Network to help support families who have lost their children to online harm and abuse.
On Monday, Netflix also dropped the teaser for their latest documentary POLO.
And Harry’s bombshell memoir Spare is set for a second release, this time in paperback, in an attempt to make more money and “dredge everything back up“.
Hugo added: “That’s why they have to keep reinventing themselves and coming up with new ideas to keep themselves in the swim and popular because that’s how they make their money.
“They make their money for themselves unlike the rest of the Royal Family.”
A generous tax-free £19million was put aside by the late Queen Elizabeth, when Harry was just 10 years old, to be split between her great-grandchildren.
Two instalments were instructed to be divided and paid out when the royals turned 21 and 40.
However, palace insiders believe Harry could have been left more money than his estranged brother William.
Sources suggested the differing sums may have been based on the Queen Mother’s assumption Wills would be entitled to a larger fortune from the Duchy of Cornwall as future heir.
William became Duke of Cornwall when he was anointed Prince of Wales after King Charles ascended the throne.
He is thought to have gained £23.6million through inheriting the estate.
Meanwhile, other royals thought to be part of the Queen Mother’s trust fund include Princess Anne’s children Zara and Peter Phillips, as well as Princess Beatrice and Eugenie.
Princess Margaret’s children, Viscount Linley and Lady Sarah Chatto are also believed to be beneficiaries.
The Queen Mother passed away in 2002 and the details of her will were shrouded in secrecy.
A statement released by Buckingham Palace read: “Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother has bequeathed her entire estate (which mainly comprises the contents of her houses) to The Queen.
“In her will, she asked The Queen to make certain bequests to members of her staff, and these bequests will be subject to inheritance tax in the normal way.
“The Queen has decided that the most important of Queen Elizabeth’s pictures and works of art should be transferred to the Royal Collection.”
The Sussexes have been contacted for comment.
Prince Harry's £8million gift for his 40th birthday
PRINCE Harry is set to inherit an £8million gift on his 40th birthday from the Queen Mother.
The late Queen Elizabeth began collecting a sizable trust fund for the Duke of Sussex, who will celebrate his special milestone on September 15, when he was just 10-years-old.
A former Palace aide told The Times: “There was a trust fund set up at the time.
“It was a way in which the Queen Mother could set aside money for when her great-grandchildren were older and a way of passing a slice of her estate down in a tax-efficient way.
“It was a way in which some of her estate could be ring-fenced for them.”