Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ‘not entitled to security’ despite stalker scare

Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, was followed by the woman – described as a “fixated individual” – in London and even in Nigeria, but he left the Royal Family years ago

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are “not entitled to security” because they are now just “mere celebrities,” it is today argued.

The damning claim comes despite Harry being followed on several occasions, including twice in London, by a stalker, described as a “fixated individual”. She came “within yards” of the Duke of Sussex during his recent visit to the UK, it emerged this week.

His own private security “body blocked” the woman after she entered a “secure zone” at a hotel, and two days later, she came within just “a stone’s throw” from the duke when he visited Imperial College London’s Centre for Blast Injury Studies.

But it is argued today Harry and Meghan are just “celebrities” now and therefore should not receive security paid for by the British taxpayer, despite the scares. Jane Moore, a columnist and regular on Loose Women, said: “I sympathise. But the right (or not) to state-backed police protection is decided by executive committee Ravec, which decided that, as he is no longer a working royal, he’s not entitled to it. Indeed, thanks to their various commercial deals, it could be argued that Harry and Meghan are now classed as mere ‘celebrities.’”

READ MORE: Prince William and Kate Middleton’s non-negotiable parenting rules including strict banREAD MORE: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle offered sweet olive branch by King Charles

Jane shared her opinion in a column in The Sun this week, stating the couple have pursued commercial contracts since moving from the UK to the US five years ago. They announced they were stepping back as working members of the royal family in January 2020. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were then told they would receive a “bespoke” security service, where they’d need to give 30 days’ notice of any plans to travel to the UK, with each visit being assessed for threat levels and whether protection is needed.

But Jane, 63, claimed Harry and Meghan should not be afforded such protection if they are now seen as celebrities. The journalist added: “With alarming frequency, the newspapers are full of stories about other celebrities (particularly women) whose lives are blighted by stalkers that they don’t get state-backed police protection from. So if Harry was to get it, then why not them?”

The publication referred to high-profile stalking cases, including that of Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas who moved her mother to a different home due to the behaviour of 37-year-old creep Kyle Shaw. However, Shaw’s prison sentence was suspended for 20 months at Liverpool Crown Court earlier this year.

Article continues below

Friends star Jennifer Aniston endured secret 20-year battle to have a baby

Jennifer Aniston, who played Rachel Green in Friends for 10 years, has also addressed claims she chose not to have children because she’s a “selfish workaholic”

Hollywood icon Jennifer Aniston has blasted claims she didn’t want to become a mother because she’s a “selfish workaholic”.

The Friends actress, who was married to Brad Pitt for five years, also told how she endured a two-decade secret battle to have a baby. In a rare interview published today, Jennifer, 56, said she felt she needed to correct the “false narrative” about why she hasn’t started a family.

Jennifer said: “They didn’t know my story, or what I’d been going through over the past 20 years to try to pursue a family, because I don’t go out there and tell them my medical woes.

“That’s not anybody’s business. But there comes a point when you can’t not hear it – the narrative about how I won’t have a baby, won’t have a family, because I’m selfish, a workaholic. It does affect me – I’m just a human being. We’re all human beings. That’s why I thought, ‘What the hell?'”

READ MORE: Jennifer Aniston reveals her favourite ‘comfort food’ as she gives rare look into home lifeREAD MORE: Friends fans discover lie that could ‘never be true’ 21 years after show ended

Speaking to Harper’s Bazaar UK, the actress talked about her unsuccessful attempt at IVF – and admitted she wished she had frozen her eggs years earlier. Jennifer, who played Rachel Green in Friends for 10 years, continued: “The news cycle is so fast, it just goes away. Of course, there are times when I feel that sense of justice – when something has been said that isn’t true and I need to right the wrong. And then I think, do I really? My family knows my truth, my friends know my truth.”

The star split with Brad in 2005 after the actor met Angelina Jolie on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith. In a previous interview, Jennifer said “nobody did anything wrong” in relation to the breakup. She since dated Justin Theroux for six years, a relationship which ended in 2017.

Jennifer described the subsequent IVF struggle as “a challenging road”. In a previous interview, the celeb, born in Los Angeles, California, had said: “My late 30s, 40s, I’d gone through really hard sh*t, and if it wasn’t for going through that, I would’ve never become who I was meant to be. I was trying to get pregnant.

Article continues below

“All the years and years and years of speculation… It was really hard. I was going through IVF, drinking Chinese teas, you name it. I was throwing everything at it.”

Jennifer was 35 when she split with Brad, who went on to have six children with Angelina. However, Jennifer previously said the suggestion he left her because she wouldn’t give him a child was an “absolute lie.”

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,323

Here is how things stand on Thursday, October 9, 2025:

Fighting

  • Three people were killed and one injured by Ukrainian shelling in Russia’s Belgorod region, the local governor said.
  • The Russian Ministry of Defence said its forces had taken control of the settlement of Novohryhorivka in Ukraine’s Zaporizhia region.
  • Russia’s air defence units destroyed 53 Ukrainian drones overnight, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported, citing Russian Defence Ministry data.
  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly address that his country’s forces had killed thousands of Russian soldiers in the Dobropillia region of eastern Ukraine since August 21, when they launched a counteroffensive against Moscow’s occupying troops. Zelenskyy said this information was based on a report he had received from the Ukrainian army’s Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskii.
  • Zelenskyy also said Ukraine’s attacks on Russia’s oil facilities had degraded them to an extent that the country was experiencing energy shortages. Russia, he claimed, had been forced to turn to its diesel reserves, which it had been saving for “a rainy day”.
Ukrainian soldiers ride a military vehicle with Russian POWs in the truck bed, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, near the Russian border in the Sumy region, Ukraine, August 13, 2024 [Viacheslav Ratynskyi/Reuters]

Regional security

  • European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said recent drone incidents and other airspace violations show Europe is facing hybrid warfare to which it must respond with measures that go beyond traditional defences, speaking at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
  • Von der Leyen said it was clear Russia’s aim was to “sow division” and “weaken support for Ukraine”, and that Europe could “either shy away and watch Russian threats escalate, or meet them with unity, deterrence and resolve”. Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, has denied that Moscow was behind the recent drone incursions into the airspaces of multiple European nations.

Military aid

  • Russia will respond harshly if the United States supplies Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles, Andrei Kartapolov, head of the Russian parliament’s defence committee, said, emphasising that “those who supply them and those who use them will have problems”.

Diplomacy

  • Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said the impetus to find a Ukrainian peace deal, which emerged after the summit between President Putin and US President Donald Trump in August, had proven to be exhausted.
  • Ryabkov urged US leadership to take a “sober and responsible approach” to a possible transfer of Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine, saying such transactions could lead to a “qualitative change” in the situation.

Ant McPartlin’s ex-wife Lisa Armstrong puts fire-ravaged former marital home on market

Ant McPartlin, part of the Ant & Dec duo, was married to Lisa Armstrong – a make-up artist and former member of pop band Deuce – for 12 years until their divorce in 2018

Ant McPartlin’s ex-wife Lisa Armstrong has put their fire-ravaged former marital home on the market as she “just wants to get shot of it”.

Although the five-bedroom property is on sale for an asking price of £3.4million, Lisa will take a financial hit on the property as it was reportedly worth in the region of £7-£8million before the blaze. Friends, though, say 48-year-old Lisa hopes to move on from what is said to be “the only thing linking her to Ant”.

The fire in September 2023 caused significant damage to the lavish mansion in Chiswick, west London, and so Lisa attempted to sell the property some months later for £4million. However, it is back on the market now with the value slashed again, and it is believed potential buyers will have a restoration job on their hands.

A friend said: “Lisa just wants to house off her hands now, she wants shot of it. Apart from her dog Hurley, the house is the only thing linking her to Ant now and she feels it’s time to let go, even though it means she will take a hit in the pocket.”

READ MORE: Kate Garraway’s very sad reason for joining Celebrity Traitors after five hard yearsREAD MORE: Piers Morgan reveals Paul O’Grady was BGT’s original host but lost role for sour reason

Ant, 49, and Lisa divorced in 2018 after a 12-year marriage. Lisa, former member of pop band Deuce, had the house and, when she eventually tried to sell it, she reportedly became fed up with receiving low ball offers and “nosey” parties who just wanted to take a look around the place with no real interest in buying. It was then removed from the market in January 2024.

But the advert is back on Rightmove, which states the property “presents a unique opportunity to restore and enhance a residence to its former glory.” The ad, which gives no details of the fire, continues: “The property boasts impressive proportions throughout, including a generous fully fitted kitchen/dining room, expansive main reception room with tall ceilings, and five double bedrooms.”

And the friend told the Daily Mail: “Lisa had loads of derisory offers, some of them were actually quite insulting and many people were simply put off by the fire damage.

Article continues below

‘But it’s in such a desired location, some houses in the same street are going for big money, so it’s still an attractive property to purchase. At its new price, she’s confident of selling the house this time.”

Is it time for Man Utd ‘rock’ Le Tissier to shine for England?

Getty Images
  • Comments

Manchester United coach Marc Skinner was quick to shut down an obvious line of questioning around his match-winner Maya Le Tissier after the club’s Champions League debut.

“Your next question is probably ‘should she start for England’,” he said. “I am not here to answer that.”

Despite becoming one of the most consistent defenders in the Women’s Super League, making a record 71st consecutive appearance in last week’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea, central defensive anchor Le Tissier has had limited exposure at international level.

Marshalled by Le Tissier, United had the WSL’s second-best defence last season, conceding just 16 goals in 22 games.

The United captain was rewarded with a place in Sarina Wiegman’s Euro 2025 squad, but did not play a single minute in Switzerland as the Lionesses retained their European title.

Eight caps since her first call-up in November 2022 is scant reward for a player of her ability. In the WSL this season, Le Tissier tops the rankings for most clearances (34) and most touches (444).

Wiegman has said she prefers Le Tissier at right-back, despite her playing at centre-back for United.

But injuries to England captain and centre-back Leah Williamson, plus right-back Lucy Bronze, must give Le Tissier a chance of playing when Weigman’s side take on Brazil and Australia later this month, with the Dutchwoman naming her squad next week.

Skinner was not keen to get involved in the debate but he was happy to extol the virtues of the 23-year-old, who kept her nerve to convert the first-half penalty that secured victory over Norwegian side Valerenga in Leigh in their league phase opener.

“She is [at the top of her game] and has been for a long time,” he said.

“I start her for a reason. She is an incredible footballer and a driven personality. When she gets her opportunity, she will be an incredible England stalwart and someone who will give the country pride.

Maya Le Tissier scoresGetty Images

While his counterpart as head coach of United’s men’s side, Ruben Amorim, has made a point of not looking as his players take vital penalties, Skinner was happy to watch skipper Le Tissier take hers, so sure was he that the defender would convert.

“When she steps up I feel confident,” he said. “I am not one of these managers who looks away.

“You are at the mercy of technique and composure and mental acumen, not whether the wind is blowing in the wrong direction.

“She practices them and is calm with them. I trust her technique 100%.

“I thought she was good in defence as well tonight. She’s a rock for us and it’s fitting that she got the first goal [for United in the Champions League].”

With matches to come against Atletico Madrid, who beat Austrian side SV Polten 6-0 away from home, next week, then French heavyweights PSG and Lyon, plus Juventus, United needed to win to stand any chance of reaching the ‘nine to 12 points’ Skinner thinks will be needed to get through to the knockout stages.

He dismissed the notion his side looked tired against limited opponents, even though they only had eight substitutes, including two goalkeepers, when they could have named 11.

Instead, representing a club that has such an illustrious European history on the men’s side, he needed to remind his players at the end of the monumental strides that have been taken with a team that didn’t even exist eight years ago.

“This is a special group and I have reminded them there is special expectation on a Manchester United team,” he said.

Ellen White, Jen Beattie and Ben Haines

Related topics

  • Football
  • Women’s Football

More on this story