made a return to public life last week in a video filmed in their Montecito garden – four months after last having been seen together. The appearance was to promote the launch of the Responsible Technology Youth Power Fund, an initiative to fund online safety projects for young people. In the video shared on the website of the couple’s, they were seen personally phoning recipients of the funding with the video’s captions describing them simply as ‘Harry and Meghan’.
The BBC described the video as the couple putting on a ‘visible show of togetherness’ to make a clear message about their future. It’s true that the past four months, since the former royals were last seen at an awards ceremony in New York, have been a roller coaster for the pair. They’ve been involved in a paparazzi chase, lost their $20 millionpodcast deal and been subject of rumours about their financial future, with reports even claiming they could be forced to sell their £14.
That’s meant their inner circle is now closer to home – quite literally. The group is dubbed the ‘Montecito Mafia’, full, as it is, of powerful names who live in the small but rich Californian town 83 miles from LA. and Gayle King. It was, of course, Winfrey who undertook the couple’s first bombshell TV interview in 2021, and she is said to be ‘protective’ of Meghan. Other Montecito power players include Ari Emanuel, whose talent agency signed Meghan earlier this year, along with his wife, Sarah Staudinger, who designed a suit Meghan wore to a Lakers game in April .