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Meghan Markle was once one of the most popular members of the royal family, but it seems even the birth of her son Archie – a truly wonderful event – has been unable to quell some of the negative publicity the Duchess has had to wrangle recently.
Now a new survey has revealed the 37-year-old sits below both her sister-in-law Kate Middleton and the Queen in public opinion.
The 2019 Opinium Monarchy Tracker surveyed 2,003 UK adults this month about their favourite royals and only 39 per cent said they had a positive view of Duchess Meghan.
But 62 per said said they liked Duchess Catherine, putting her just eight percentage points behind the Queen, on 70 per cent.
The least-liked female royal was Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, with a 24 per cent approval rating.
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The survey revealed Kate is more popular than Meghan. (Image: Getty)
Meanwhile, their respective husbands, Prince Harry and Prince William, still enjoy high popularity rates, with Harry liked by 70 per cent of respondents and William at 73 per cent.
Their father Prince Charles came in significantly lower at 40 per cent approval, coincidentally the same rating as his father Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh.
As for what the public thinks of Harry and Meghan’s new Sussex family, 65 per cent agreed with the couple’s decision to keep details of baby Archie’s birth out of the public eye and about 74 per cent thought the couple had an important role to play in the world, noting especially their extensive charity work.
Both the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are passionate about the education of young women and girls, access to clean and safe feminine hygiene products, as well as conversation and sustainability.
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Prince Harry and Prince William are both considerably more popular than their wives. (Image: Getty)
Overall, support for the British monarchy was high, at 63 per cent.
A spokeswoman for data firm Opinium, Priya Minhas said in a statement: “As British politics remains turbulent and its place in Europe uncertain, it’s good to see support for a longstanding British institution.”
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In Australia, research conducted in 2018 found just over half of Australians (52 per cent) believe Australia should split from the Commonwealth and become a republic.
They said the most recent events in the royal family, including Harry and Meghan’s engagement and Kate Middleton’s pregnancy with Prince Louis, made little difference to their opinion.
However, 22 per cent of Australians said they prefer the monarchy, while 25 per cent said they were unsure whether they backed the monarchy or a republic.
Support for the monarchy is highest among Australians aged 65 years and over, with 36 per cent disagreeing that we should become a republic.
