Why DID all of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's publicists quit? All the reasons PR gurus gave for leaving Team Sussex
SOURCE:Daily Mail
The revolving door of being Harry and Meghan's publicist continues to spin with the confirmed departure of James Holt. Here, the Mail looks at the most recent departures from Team Sussex.
The revolving door of being Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's publicist continues to spin with the confirmed departure of James Holt.
The tally to have fallen by the wayside is now at twelve in the space of five years: a rapid turnover of just over two every 12 months.
Only the likes of perennial manager sackers Watford Football Club can match that churn in staff (also 12) during the same period.
Mr Holt's exit comes days after Meredith Maines announced she was leaving Team Sussex. Her tenure as Harry and Meghan's PR guru is by no means the shortest, despite her lasting in her role as chief communications officer for less than a year.
Remarkably, Mr Holt is the sixth key publicity staff member to cut ties with the couple in 2025 alone.
For some, their time working for Harry and Meghan does not even appear on their LinkedIn profiles with insiders saying it is an 'impossible, miserable' job.
Indeed, some former staff have dubbed themselves the 'Sussex Survivors Club'.
There was no mention of any difficulty in Mr Holt or Ms Maines's statements when announcing their respective departures.
So just why are Harry and Meghan losing so many members of staff? Here, the Mail looks at the most recent departures.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle during their visit to Canada House in London in January 2020
James Holt - Head of Engagement and Communications (2019 to December 2025)
James Holt has been running their Archewell charity since 2021. Before then, he had been their PR chief from 2019 to 2021, a turbulent period of their life when they left the UK and stepped back as working Royals.
He followed the couple to live in California and featured prominently in the Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan, during which he suggested that the Brexit debate fuelled racist views that wrecked the Duchess's 'fairy tale' of marrying into the Royal Family.
Sources indicate that Mr Holt now wants to return to live in London with his husband and young child and that it would be a 'governance issue' if he carried on as their charity boss.
A former Lib Dem spokesman who, for a time, worked for Nick Clegg when he was deputy PM, he started working with Prince Harry back in 2017, at the time as a PR for the Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry as it then was.
He had recently returned from three months paternity leave.
Mr Holt said that working with the couple had been a 'great privilege' and that he had found a 'kindred spirit' in Meghan.
A spokesperson for the couple said that Mr Holt will remain a 'senior philanthropic advisor' to the couple and Archewell Philanthropies, and will support their 'humanitarian trips overseas in 2026.'
James Holt had remained with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for nearly five years before his departure was announced on December 29
A source added: 'He will be supporting the Duke with a number of engagements over the next 12 months.'
Mr Holt's statement said: 'Working with Prince Harry and Meghan has been one of the great privileges of my career.
'From my first project with Prince Harry eight years ago to improve mental health support for soldiers in the British military, to our recent work helping injured children in Gaza, he has consistently challenged me to think bigger about how we can make a difference.
'From the moment I met Meghan, I recognised a kindred spirit - someone who finds joy even in difficult moments and connects authentically with people regardless of circumstance.
'Above everything else, the work we've done together to support families affected by online harm will remain the most meaningful of my professional life. These families are extraordinary, and they inspire me every day.
'After five incredible years in Los Angeles, it's time for my family to return to London. When I pass the baton to the team leading Archewell Philanthropies in the coming months, I'll do so with immense pride and optimism for what lies ahead.
'I'll miss my colleagues deeply, and I'm grateful to Harry and Meghan for everything they've done - for me, and for the countless people we've worked to support.'
The Duke and Duchess released a statement which said: 'James has been a stellar support for us for nearly ten years. His enthusiasm and talent in overseeing our philanthropic endeavours have been extraordinary. As James moves his young family back to the UK, we are proud that he will continue to guide various humanitarian trips for us overseas through Archewell Philanthropies.'
A source said of his move: 'He's frustrated that his moving back to the UK is coming at a time of transition for the Duke and Duchess, hence his staying on for a few months yet to manage things at Archewell. He's very protective of the couple and anxious this is going to cause them grief.'
Meredith Maines - Chief Communications Officer (March 2025 to January 2026)
According to her LinkedIn, Ms Maines began working as the couple's first CCO in March 2025.
She wrote that as CCO, she oversees 'all external communications' for Harry and Meghan.
This included Meghan's lifestyle brand As Ever, launched in April this year; their media production company, Archewell Productions; and their joint charity, Archewell Philanthropies.
Ms Maines said earlier this year that the hiring of Method Communications in the Sussex PR team would give international media and stakeholders 'better access' as well as a faster response time to inquiries.
In a statement, she said: 'After a year of inspiring work with Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Archewell, I will be pursuing a new opportunity in 2026.
'I have the utmost gratitude and respect for the couple and the team, and the good they are doing in the world.'
Meredith Maines, who was appointed as chief communications officer, is parting ways with Harry and Meghan after a year in the role
However, the high-flying PR professional was at the centre of a media storm over the summer when she was pictured meeting with King Charles' communications secretary Tobyn Andreae in London.
The rendezvous was said to have been part of a secret 'peace summit' between the two camps.
By October, sources were indicating that Ms Maines was enduring a 'difficult' time as COO.
Meghan's surprise trip to Paris to attend a fashion show was derailed after she posted a video to Instagram which showed her being driven at night along the Seine – the route taken by Princess Diana the night she died.
'Word is that Meredith is a sitting duck, and is being iced out,' one source said after the event.
While some say she left under a dark cloud after the bungled handling of a celebrity birthday celebration, others claim she has gone out on a high, having achieved her goal of reuniting Harry with the King in September.
Early last month, rumours raged of an ugly rift between Meghan and 'momager' to the Kardashian clan Kris Jenner, 70, after Ms Jenner removed a photo of the Sussexes from her birthday Instagram post, as reported by Alison Boshoff.
Journalists across the pond were immediately briefed by the Sussexes' team, and told that Meghan, 44, and Harry, 41, had signed a 'no photo' consent form ahead of attending the star–studded birthday bash.
Sources close to the Kardashian matriarch strongly denied there had been any forms and said that they had taken them down after a 'request'.
The Sussexes then denied that they had asked for the images to come down. Like many of these tense celeb briefing spats, the row appeared, at some point, to fizzle out, rendering the whole episode a bit of a storm in a teacup.
Not, however, for Ms Maines, sources claim. For, fuelling rumours that her departure from Archewell, previously known as the Archewell Foundation, was less than triumphant, The Mail on Sunday revealed that although the news of her leaving was announced on Friday evening, she actually resigned in mid–November – just days after the Kris Jenner saga exploded.
According to a source, her time in the role was seen as unsuccessful, whether because of her own decisions or how events unfolded.
The source adds that if she has stepped down, it appears to be an effort to protect her image before matters deteriorated further, and the departure does not seem especially amicable.
Another source said previously: 'When anything negative comes out, someone has to pay. It is a miserable and impossible job. Meghan will get disappointed by one thing and then ice someone out. She will never let you live it down or forget how you let her down and neither will Harry.'
Commenting on Ms Maines' departure, a spokesman for the Sussexes said: 'Meredith Maines and Method Communications have concluded their work with Archewell. The Duke and Duchess are grateful for their contributions and wish them well.'
But for Ms Maines' supporters, her recusal from the Sussexes is a natural career move. With her departure planned for mid–January, it will mark almost a year of working for the couple.
One source said: 'She really enjoyed her time there, but at a certain point it is time to go... They begged her to stay to manage the transition of Archewell Foundation and other transitions. She stayed to do that.
'Meredith feels that she has done what she set out to do. She launched the show and the brand and the website. She also got Harry to meet with his father in September, which was a priority that they set out to achieve.'
For Ms Maine, there are no hard feelings towards the Sussexes – at least publicly.
She said: 'After a year of inspiring work with Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, and Archewell, I will be pursuing a new opportunity in 2026. I have the utmost gratitude and respect for the couple and the team, and the good they are doing in the world.'
Emily Robinson - Director of Communications (June 2025 to October 2025)
The departure of Meredith Maines comes hot on the heels of Emily Robinson, who was hired as director of communications in June 2025
The departure of Meredith Maines comes hot on the heels of Emily Robinson, who was hired as director of communications in June 2025 - but had already jumped ship by October.
With a background in TV publicity, Ms Robinson was considered a controversial hire as she had worked on Netflix series The Crown for years – a show which aired a number of damaging narratives about the Royal Family.
One friend of LA-based Robinson, who built up a reputation as a 'tough cookie' at Netflix, said at the time: 'It was her decision. She left a few weeks ago. She's not a quitter, so things must have been pretty horrible for her to go.'
On her LinkedIn profile there is no mention of her three-month role with Meghan and Harry. Returning to her roots, she is currently listed as the senior vice president in the US & Canada for drect and consumer at streaming service Paramount+.
It came after the couple have suffered numerous PR disasters, most recently the duchess's surprise trip to Paris Fashion Week.
She posted a video to Instagram which showed her being driven at night along the Seine – a similar route to that taken by Princess Diana on the night she died.
There was also criticism of her appearance in Washington at Fortune magazine's Most Powerful Women event.
There was an unflattering cover story in Vanity Fair in February which included the claim: 'The person who worked in media projects read stories in the tabloids about Meghan 'bullying' palace aides and couldn't imagine such behaviour actually happening.
'After working with her, though, this person realized, 'Oh, any given Tuesday this happened'.'
The Sussexes hit back with a feature in People magazine with a number of employees attesting to their kindness.
A spokesman for the couple said: 'Ms Robinson oversaw project-based work for a very successful season of With Love, Meghan and additional support for the production company.
'She did an excellent job and completed these projects with great success.'
Ashley Hansen - Global Press Secretary (May 2022 to October 2024)
The well-respected PR strategist worked for the Sussexes between May 2022 and October 2024 as their global press secretary.
Ms Hansen said at the time of her departure that she had left to launch her own firm, Three Gate Strategies, a role she stayed in until September 2025.
Harry and Meghan were understood to have worked with her as 'part-time' clients.
For the last four months she has worked as a managing partner at the Los Angeles branch of Forward Global in Los Angeles, a business consulting and services firm.
Last month her former colleague Kyle Boulia, who worked under the Sussexes as press secretary, joined the team at Forward Global.
Ashley Hansen departed from Meghan and Prince Harry in 2024 to start up her own agency
She was also the Head of Communications for Archewell and oversaw the publicity for some of Markle's various projects, including her controversial Archetypes podcast.
Hansen is still advising the Duke and Duchess through her new firm, whilst providing oversight to their international communications team.
Commenting on the change, Meghan said in a statement last year: 'We are so proud of Ashley, especially as a female entrepreneur.
'We look forward to having her focused expertise on our business and creative projects and her continued oversight of our communications team.
'My husband and I are excited to be alongside Ashley as she builds something extraordinarily special with her firm.'
Hansen, meanwhile, said: 'I am incredibly grateful to The Duke and Duchess for their continued trust in me. Their unwavering support and belief in my new firm has been meaningful and is a testament to their leadership.
'I knew when they first hired me that they were giving me the opportunity of a lifetime and I couldn't be happier to continue working together.'
She was one of a string of the Sussexes' loyal current and former staff members who last year leapt to their bosses' defence to offer a glowing account of their working lives following an article in the Hollywood Reporter that called Meghan 'Duchess Difficult'.
Hansen said they treated her with 'the kind of concern and care a parent would express if it were their own child' when she took time off for surgery, adding that they also sent flowers and gifts.
'Meghan would personally reach out to my husband daily to make sure that we both were OK and had support. It meant so much to him and even more to me. You don't realise how much that kind of kindness and thought means until you need it,' she insisted.
Hansen reflected on her working relationship with Harry and Meghan in an interview with Dear Media earlier this year.
'There's never a day where they're not in the news,' she said.
'With most celebrities, there's an ebb and flow—a movie comes out, there's press, then it dies down. But with Meghan, it's constant. Like, presidential-level constant.'
She added, 'We read everything. Twitter, Quora, Reddit—we'd monitor it all because you have to know what's out there.'
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex later replaced Hansen with Ms Maines.
Kyle Boulia - Press Secretary/ Director of Communications (April 2024 - June 2025)
Kyle Boulia, their Los Angeles-based deputy press secretary, was among a cull of six staff in June 2025
The senior communications leader worked for the couple between April 2024 and June 2025.
Mr Boulia among six staff to be culled in June this year and is understood to have left amid a 'broader communications reshuffle'.
The mass exodus came in the wake of Prince Harry's eyebrow-raising BBC interview, where he launched a fresh attack on his father King Charles and complained of an 'establishment stitch-up' after losing his legal battle over taxpayer-funded police protection in the UK.
Sources say the interview didn't go down well behind Palace gates.
On Mr Boulia's LinkedIn, the PR professional states that he has 'a track record of managing global media strategy and brand reputation at the highest levels.'
He adds: 'Most recently, I served as Press Secretary to Prince Harry and Meghan and Director of Communications at Archewell, where I led international press operations, crisis response, and global launches with Netflix, Spotify, and major philanthropic initiatives — shaping narratives that reached hundreds of millions worldwide.'
Since November he has started a new position as Principal at Forward Global, working alongside his former colleague Ashley Hansen.
His employment was described by Hansen as 'a deliberate and strategic decision—one rooted in trust, collaboration, and an appreciation for excellence'.
'Having worked with Kyle before, I've seen firsthand his unmatched dedication, creative tenacity, and commitment to delivering his clients results that move the needle,' she said.
'He embodies the forward-thinking spirit we're building here, and I couldn't imagine a stronger first hire to expand our west coast presence.'
Charlie Gipson - European Communications Director (April 2024 to June 2025)
Charlie Gipson first started working for the Sussexes in April 2024, before leaving in July 2025
With a seasoned background in communications, Charlie Gipson first started working for the Sussexes in April 2024, before leaving in June 2025.
According to his LinkedIn, Mr Gipson 'led UK and European media strategy, delivering high-impact communications for their global charitable initiatives'.
'I provided senior counsel on strategic planning and crisis management, supported international engagements, and drove campaigns that reached billions worldwide.'
Mr Gipson is now a senior communications consultant for business consultancy firm CG Strategies.
He left as part of the mass exodus that involved Mr Boulia and Meghan's social media manager amid the Duchess's infamous twerking video.
Ms Maines oversaw many of the changes and said of the departure of Mr Boulia and Mr Gipson barely a year after they were hired: 'As the Duke and Duchess's business and philanthropic interests grow, I have made the strategic decision to move toward a more traditional communications structure of specialist agency support.
'Transitioning from a team of two to an agency support staff of eight, operating across five different time zones, will give international media and stakeholders better access, and critically, faster response times to enquiries.'
Toya Holness - Head of Communications (July 2021 to May 2022)
Described as 'Meghan's shadow' - having often been seen wearing the same style of power suits and Hollywood sunglasses - Toya Holness worked for the couple from October 2020 to July 2021 as their press secretary, before being promoted to head of communications.
She stayed in the post for 11 months until leaving in May 2022.
Since then Ms Holness has held a number of roles, including as vice president of public relations and chief communications officer at video game company Activision Blizzard.
She also co-founded communications agency Rostra, in February 2024 before leaving at the start of this year.
Toya Holness was described as 'Meghan's shadow', having often been seen wearing the same style of power suits and Hollywood sunglasses
In July she took on a role in corporate communications for AI safety and research company Anthropic.
She was said to have 'wanted out' after finding herself 'having to fulfil a great many functions for the couple', insiders claimed.
A Mail exclusive later revealed emails ahead of Harry and Meghan visiting the Public School in 123 were spearheaded by Ms Holness.
It revealed how the Sussexes' high-powered aides had pulled strings behind the scenes to ensure they were presented in a positive light during a series of public appearances that were filmed for their $100million Netflix documentary.
For one of the stops in their three-day tour, representatives for Harry and Meghan raised the idea of bringing cushions and a new carpet to a public school in one of New York's low-income areas to better fit with Meghan's aesthetic.
The press list for their events was also tightly controlled and restricted to Meghan-friendly publications, such as Vogue and other outlets, while British tabloids were banned.
The emails show students and faculty at the Harlem elementary school were even asked to sign consent forms for filming that also banned them from discussing the project or making 'negative' remarks about the famous couple who were visiting.
Harry and Meghan's trip to New York in September 2021 was designed to showcase them as world leaders as it included a stop at the United Nations to talk about vaccine equity.
Their itinerary included a speaking appearance at the Global Citizen festival in Central Park, where they were constantly tailed by a camera crew for the six-part Netflix series, Harry & Meghan, which premiered last December.
According to the correspondence, event planning started six months earlier in April 2021.
Josh Kettler - Chief of Staff (May 2024 to August 2024)
Josh Kettler suddenly quit from his role with Harry and Meghan after just three months in 2024
Harry appointed Josh Kettler as his chief of staff in May 2024 and it was said that he was the perfect man to 'guide' the prince 'through his next phase'.
Mr Kettler joined Harry that month on his visit to London and was seen entering St Paul's Cathedral with the Duke for the Invictus Games anniversary service.
Later in May 2024, Mr Kettler was a key figure on the Sussexes's three-day tour of Nigeria.
But he suddenly quit from the role in August just ahead of the couple's trip to Colombia, after just three months in the role.
Mr Kettler does not publicly state his role with the couple on his LinkedIn profile, posting instead that he was a 'chief of staff and strategy consultant' during this period.
He is currently the president at insurance firm The Buckner Company, as of May of this year.
Mr Kettler insisted he was 'warmly welcomed' by both Harry and Meghan and described them as 'dedicated and hardworking'.
It is understood he left his post after mutually agreeing he was not the right fit.
Christine Schirmer - Senior Communications Advisor (October 2020 to late 2023)
Ms Schirmer began her role as head of communications for Archewell in October 2020
Ms Schirmer began her role as head of communications for Archewell in October 2020.
In July 2021 she was promoted to senior advisor, before quietly departing from the couple in 2023.
She is now a partner at global advisory firm Brunswick Group in San Francisco.
Her departure came in a year that saw the release of Harry's controversial autobiography Spare, the couple claiming they were in a 'near catastrophic' car chase in New York, and the duo being dropped from their Spotify deal.
Archewell also made a charitable loss in the year with a deficit of $674,485 due to a drop off in donations from $13m in 2021 to $2m the year before.
Harry and Meghan were also named as losers in The Hollywood Reporter's annual winners and losers round-up.
'After a whiny Netflix documentary, a whiny biography (Spare — even the title is a pouty gripe) and an inert podcast, the Harry and Meghan brand swelled into a sanctimonious bubble just begging to be popped,' it read.
Deesha Tank - Communications Director at Archewell (June 2022 to June 2025)
Deesha Tank, Archewell's director of communications, a personal assistant, and Meghan's social media manager have all reportedly gone too.
Deesha Tank left days before Mr Gipson and Mr Boulia were axed in the cull of June 2025.
She first worked for Harry and Meghan as a communications manager in June 2022, before being promoted in May 2024 to director of communications.
Archewell's tax return for 2023 showed Ms Tank was paid $140,000 plus $7,100 in 'other compensation'.
Ms Tank is now director of communications at the Rare Impact Fund for cosmetics brand Rare Beauty in Los Angeles, California.
She did not release a statement when she left the foundation.