Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ‘plan to take six weeks off from their royal duties’

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will take six weeks off from Royal duties for some ‘much-needed family time’, it was reported on Saturday night. 

The break follows Harry and Meghan’s ten-day tour of southern Africa, footage of which will be seen on ITV Sunday night in a documentary by broadcaster Tom Bradby.

Speaking ahead of the programme, Mr Bradby, a friend of Harry, said he believed the couple are ‘vulnerable and bruised’. In the hour-long documentary, Harry reportedly voices his desire to leave the UK, describing Cape Town in South Africa as ‘an amazing place to be able to base ourselves’.

He, however, acknowledged that such a move would be very difficult, if not impossible.

A Royal source told The Sunday Times: ‘The Duke and Duchess have a full schedule of engagements and commitments until mid-November, after which they will be taking some much-needed family time.’

The couple are expected to spend their first Christmas with their son Archie, who was born in May, with the Queen and other members of the Royal Family at Sandringham in Norfolk. 

It is understood they will fly to Los Angeles next month to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland. 

Their recent tour included a visit by Harry, 35, to a minefield in Angola, which saw the Prince retrace his mother Diana’s footsteps 22 years after her death.

The break follows Harry and Meghan’s ten-day tour of southern Africa, footage of which will be seen on ITV Sunday night in a documentary by broadcaster Tom Bradby

During an emotional interview for the documentary, Meghan admitted feeling ‘vulnerable’ during her pregnancy and thanked Mr Bradby for asking about how she was feeling.

‘Thank you for asking because not many people have asked if I’m OK, but it’s a very real thing to be going through behind the scenes,’ she said.

Harry, meanwhile, spoke candidly about the pressures of being a member of the Royal Family in the spotlight.

When asked by Mr Bradby if he has yet ‘found peace’, Harry said the grief of his mother’s death still remains, describing it as ‘a wound that festers’.