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Thursday 4 June 2026 marked a big moment for Princess Lilibet, as she ushered in her fifth birthday surrounded by the love of her Montecito clan.
But as the young daughter of Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, celebrated her milestone moment, experts have pointed to a “notable shift” that may prove to be a turning point both for Lilibet and her seven-year-old brother, Archie, in the year to come.
PR and branding experts have noted that Meghan’s approach to featuring her children on social media has changed over the last year – a move, they say, that “reinforces the idea that [Meghan’s lifestyle brand] As Ever is an extension of her life as a mother and homemaker”.
Indeed, since Lilibet turned four, her mother has shared more than a dozen photos and videos of the little girl on social media.
While Lilibet’s face has largely remained hidden – in keeping with the Duke and Duchess’ desire for privacy – Meghan gave her followers the clearest glimpse yet in a Valentine’s Day post in 2026.
A promotional clip for Meghan’s As Ever Mother’s Day collection also featured the young princess.
“We certainly have seen a noticeable shift in Meghan’s approach to featuring her children on public social media, especially when we compare it to hers and Harry’s earlier dedication to privacy,” Megan Dooley, head of London-based TAL Agency, told Daily Mail in May.
“But a closer look suggests that these appearances are very selective and intentional rather than casual and unplanned.”
The expert suggested the move was a “strategic reevaluation of what they post”.
“Meghan is allowing more of a glimpse behind the curtain into their family life – carefully curated, of course – to support the positioning of the As Ever lifestyle brand as warm and aspirational, with its roots in home, motherhood and authenticity.”
Content marketing expert Aidan van Vuuren suggested that featuring the children in posts “tells the audience this is a family story, not a celebrity vehicle”.
Yet he had a word of warning too.
“The risk, as with any founder-led lifestyle brand, is that audiences are increasingly sharp at spotting family content that serves the brand first,” he said.
“Meghan’s challenge is keeping it feeling effortless rather than engineered.”
An added challenge faced by Harry and Meghan, is the Royal Family’s stance on such blurring of status and gain.
Indeed, the commercial moves Meghan has been making of late are said to have irked senior royals, given it was exactly what the Queen feared if Harry and Meghan were allowed to pursue the “half-in, half-out” role they wished before Megxit – a role that would see them combine royal duty with commercial profit.
And yet, there have been suggestions that King Charles, at least, may be softening to the idea of welcoming Harry and Meghan back into the royal fold – with one expert even going so far as to suggest a “secret alliance” had formed between Charles and his youngest son.
“Richard Eden of the Daily Mail was much ridiculed when he first unveiled his “Project Thaw” narrative – the idea that the King is secretly engaged with a cabal of civil servants who are trying to ease Harry back into public life in the United Kingdom,” royal expert Tom Sykes previously wrote on The Royalist substack .
“But the co-ordinated messages now coming out of Harry’s office and the King’s office have taken this idea out of the realm of fact-free conspiracy theory.”
However, Royal biographer Andrew Lownie, author of the number one bestseller Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, told Woman’s Day that reconciliation won’t be an easy feat for the King to pull off.
“I think he certainly wants to reconcile with Harry. The problem is he can’t win,” Lownie shared. “Because if he does that, he’s annoying William, and the relationship with William is more important than with Harry, so he’s caught.
“I think Harry wants to reconcile, but I think, again, there’s no trust there,” the expert added.
“There’s the worry that they have a meeting, Harry will kind of give away details, so they have this sort of standoff at the moment, which is sad.”
