The Duchess of Sussex appears to be particularly picky when it comes to finding a des res, writes Giles Sheldrick.
The Duchess of Sussex has a list of demands as she hunts for a home (Image: Getty)
Demanding is a word often associated with Meghan Markle.
And now, it would appear, upmarket estate agents in the Cotswolds are becoming familiar with the very particular needs and requirements of the Duchess of Sussex.
The 45-year-old former actress who dragged Prince Harry to California in 2020 has sloped back to the UK. And she is dreaming big. Very big in fact.
And that poses something of a conundrum, accommodation wise.
The mum-of-two, who already owns a tidy £22m estate in Montecito, is apparently insisting on a minimum of NINE bedrooms as she takes the lead in hunting for a home.
And that’s not all.
A film studio is also on a long list of necessities, reportedly, because she wants to continue running her As Ever brand from the UK, despite it currently not shipping in Britain.
Her needs will do little to garner sympathy nor support from a public that has lost patience with the couple since they quit royal life and rode off into the California sunset.
For them, it’s always jam tomorrow. Or, in Meghan’s case, a jar of signature raspberry jam at £10.80 a pop.
Despite stepping away from their royal duties, and seeing a slew of business ventures fail and aides quit, the couple are most certainly not short of a bob or two with the Sussexes reportedly happily having a “gargantuan budget” to play with in their hunt for a house.
The couple are back in the UK and looking for somewhere to live (Image: Getty)
There is certainly no cost of living crisis for this family, not with a £6.2m holiday home in Portugal in the portfolio.
Soon it could be a hat trick of posh pads.
One source claimed Meghan “won’t be able to resist building a film studio at their new home” and will end up at “home making content” once she has found her feet, adding “that is the heart of who she is”.
As for Harry, it is thought he wanted children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet to be schooled at an establishment with an “outdoorsy and sporting ethos” and a home with plenty of land.
It is why in and around the Cotswolds ticks all the boxes with a handful of properties meeting the specific numerical requirement – typically large Victorian houses or farm houses.
Since arriving back in the UK with their tails between their legs last week the Sussexes have endured a frosty reception from a public that remains bemused by their modus operandi and enraged by the way the Royal Family – particularly King Charles – has been treated by a succession of flounces.
It was claimed earlier this month Meghan was considering a return to acting in the Guy Ritchie series The Gentlemen on Netflix.
But a reported offer to cast her in the drama – her first acting role since she quit performing in 2017 when she got engaged to Prince Harry – was then said to have been “withdrawn” because of a British backlash.
Remarkably, Meghan is the 14th most popular member of the Royal Family (enjoying a higher league placing than Princess Beatrice and her mother Sarah Ferguson) and the 80th most popular public figure.
But if her latest location, location, location demand is true, anger will surely grow as her place in the hit parade tumbles.