A royal expert has claimed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who quit their royal duties in March 2020 and relocated to the United States to be financially independent, are very money-driven and would like to earn millions a year while doing good things.

Former royal correspondent Richard Mineards said the Duke and the Duchess want to get to a level where they can "earn lots of money" like their friend James Corden, the presenter of the late-night talk show "The Late Late Show." He added that the royal couple, who already have an £18 million deal with Spotify to produce podcasts and a £100 million deal with Netflix, would like to make several more millions a year.

Mineards, who now works for the local paper The Montecito Journal, told Evening Standard, "They've obviously got their eye on the money like their good friend James Corden who now earns something like $12 million per season of The Late Late Show."

The royal expert noted that what drives the couple more to earn a lot of money is their intention to be able to give back to society. He explained, "I think they'd like to get on that sort of level where hopefully they can earn lots of money and get their views across but also do good things with the Archewell Foundation as well."

Mineards added that though the couple have kept a low profile at their neighbourhood in Santa Barbara, where they live with their two children, Archie two, and Lilibet, eight months, locals can expect to see them "more in the community" now that the lockdown is over. Meghan is a regular at Montecito Country Mart, a local shopping village with its own designer children's clothing boutique Poppy, while Harry also steps out to ride his bike on the beach with his Labrador.

Mineards also ruled out the chances of the couple ever moving back to the United Kingdom. He said, "The British people see [Meghan] as the Wallis Simpson stealing the golden prince. They are much more welcome on this side of the Atlantic."

Harry and Meghan
Harry, the Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, at New York Veteran's Day gala Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
Prince Harry Meghan Markle British Royal Family