UK monarchy scrambles for solutions after Harry, Meghan bombshell

The British monarchy scrambled Thursday to find urgent "workable solutions" for Prince Harry and his wife Meghan after their bombshell decision to quit front-line duties caught the royal family off guard.

Queen Elizabeth II, heir to the throne Prince Charles and his eldest son Prince William, Harry's brother, have ordered their aides to work with Harry's household and Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government to come up with swift answers to the royal crisis.

"The Queen, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge have directed their teams to work together at pace with government and the Sussex household to find workable solutions," a Buckingham Palace source said, according to multiple British media outlets.

This process is "expected to take days, not weeks", the source added. Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, rocked the monarchy on Wednesday with an announcement made without consulting any senior royals from the sovereign downwards.

The couple said they would now "balance" their time between Britain and North America, rip up long-established relations with the press, and seek financial independence.

They released their shock statement on a pre-prepared new website, their Instagram account and through Buckingham Palace's email communications system.

An hour and 40 minutes later, the palace, seemingly rattled, issued a brief statement of its own, saying discussions were at an early stage and involved "complicated issues".

The mood in the palace was understood to be one of disappointment and even "hurt", according to the BBC, while Thursday's newspapers were full of reports of a family "split" and the queen's "dismay".

London's Evening Standard newspaper said they had "defied clear instructions from the queen" not to go public about any future plans at this time.

It added senior courtiers had warned the couple "will be punished for this".

Meanwhile Madame Tussauds London said it was moving its waxworks of the pair away from other top family figures "to reflect the upcoming change in the royal line-up".

Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams said Harry and Meghan announcing this step without the 93-year-old monarch's blessing was "extraordinary".

"This is symptomatic, clearly, of the fact that they are unhappy with royal roles and feel deeply pressurised," he told AFP.

"They've chosen to... go rogue. The result, therefore, could have very serious consequences." The couple's decision follows a turbulent year, in which they admitted to struggling in the spotlight, and growing apart from William.

They have also lashed out at negative news coverage and taken several papers to court -- another unusual move.

"We intend to step back as 'senior' members of the royal family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen," they said.

"We have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution."