Prince Harry and Meghan have hired a new head of communications days before their Netflix show, it has been revealed.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have replaced their Chief of Communications Ashley Hansen with Meredith Maines.
Ms Maines is thought to be a huge fan of the royal couple and is due to start in the role from March 3.
It’s the latest in a long line of staff departures from the Sussexes’ team, with at least 19 leaving since the couple married in 2018.
In a statement, Ms Maines said: ‘I’m honored to partner with Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, to highlight the amazing work they are doing through Archewell, their broader business portfolio, and nonprofit work.’
Ms Maines was most recently employed at Lightspeed Venture Partners and has previously held positions at Google, Hulu and American idol.
It comes just days before the premiere of Meghan’s Netflix show ‘With Love, Meghan’.
The programme was pushed back following wildfires in California but is now set to be released on March 4.
Ms Hansen announced last year that she would be moving on from her role to create her own firm.
The couple’s PR chief for more than two years, praised on her boss following an article in the Hollywood Reporter that called Meghan ‘Duchess Difficult’ and accused her of reducing grown men to tears.
Leaping to the Duchess’ defence, Ashley she’d felt ‘personally supported’ by the Montecito-based mother-of-two and her royal husband.
Commenting on the change, Meghan said in a statement: ‘We are so proud of Ashley, especially as a female entrepreneur.
‘We look forward to having her focused expertise on our business and creative projects and her continued oversight of our communications team.
‘My husband and I are excited to be alongside Ashley as she builds something extraordinarily special with her firm.’
Ashley, meanwhile, said: ‘I am incredibly grateful to The Duke and Duchess for their continued trust in me. Their unwavering support and belief in my new firm has been meaningful and is a testament to their leadership.
‘I knew when they first hired me that they were giving me the opportunity of a lifetime and I couldn’t be happier to continue working together.’
Ms Maines studied English and Music Composition at Stanford University in the US and has a Master’s degree in communications.
She worked as part of the global communications team at Google and worked on launching Google’s first TV Ads product.
Ms Meredith then worked as a talent manager on American Idol.
She then became head of communications at Hulu, at a time when the video-streaming service created its very first original series and received its first Emmy nomination.
Since 2016 she has worked as a Marketing Partner for Lightspeed.
The company’s website says outside the office, Meredith is an ‘avid amateur equestrian’ and loves spending time with her husband and children in Santa Barbara.
On Wednesday, Meghan Markle shared a ‘backstage video’ from her new Netflix show ‘With Love, Meghan’ on her newly-launched Instagram account before the video appeared to be taken down.
The 14-second clip featured a short cameo from her husband Prince Harry, and the couple’s beloved beagle Guy – whose death was announced by Meghan last month.
In the video, the Duchess can be seen showing off her dance moves and sharing lighthearted moments with crew members and some of the guests who will feature.
After it was deleted, the short clip was reposted on X before a seemingly identical version of the teaser was later reuploaded to her social media without explanation.
Meghan, 43, wrote: ‘Six more days until our show launches on @Netflix! Celebrating the crew and everyone who helped make this happen! The countdown begins.’
The new series will see the Duchess ‘reimagine the genre of lifestyle programming’ as she and her guests roll ‘up their sleeves in the kitchen, the garden, and beyond, and invite you to do the same’, according to Netflix promotional material.
A previous trailer for the series in January showed Meghan inviting friends and guests to a California estate where she shares cooking, gardening and hosting tips.
Guests include Roy Choi, Mindy Kaling, Alice Waters, ‘with additional acclaimed chefs and special friends’ – and there will be eight episodes, each lasting 33 minutes.
With Love, Meghan will air eight 33-minute episodes on March 4 on Netflix.
Meanwhile Ms Hansen joins the ever-growing list of staff who have departed since the Sussex’s married in 2018.
Jason Knauf made a complaint of bullying against Meghan during his seven years working for the Royal Family.
The American-born former corporate affairs executive worked for a range of institutions before joining the royal household, from the office of the New Zealand prime minister to HM Treasury and the Royal Bank of Scotland.
He became the communications secretary to William, Kate and Harry in 2015 before leading the press team for Meghan and Harry and later becoming a senior adviser to William and Kate.
When working for Harry and Meghan in October 2018, he emailed his concerns about Meghan to William’s then private secretary, in an apparent attempt to force Buckingham Palace to protect staff. Meghan’s legal team have in the past strenuously denied any wrongdoing.
Mr Knauf led a review of the Royal Foundation’s role and structure from March 2019, before becoming its chief executive in September of that year.
He left his post at the end of 2021 but remains a trustee of William’s Earthshot prize having overseen its launch during his time at the Foundation. In December 2022, he was made a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order (RVO) in the King’s gift.
Meanwhile former chief of staff for Prince Harry Josh Kettler lasted just three months in the post before he quit suddenly.
Among others, Dominic Reid quit his role as chief executive of the Invictus Games Foundation in July last year.
While Bennett Levine, their manager of Archewell Productions, departed in 2024.
Oscar-nominated producer Ben Browning also stepped down as head of internal content at the company in January 2023.