Come April, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will have a different life. They will be out of the media spotlight as non-working royals and they will be enjoying a normal existence without the public scrutinizing their every move.
But their quest for a normal life could have some consequences. According to Daily Express, Sir David Attenborough warned of this mistake before. He said that royals hoping to be more "ordinary" will kill the monarchy.
In the 1960s, Attenborough was the controller of BBC. At that time, there was a plan to make a documentary that will follow Queen Elizabeth and the royal family for 18 months, much like how many reality TV shows are today.
However, Attenborough was against the release of this documentary because he believes it will demolish the mystique around the royal institution. He compared the royals to a tribal chief that is always inside his hut. If anyone spotted the chief outside then it often leads to the disintegration of the tribe.
Royal expert Ingrid Seward wrote in her book, "The Queen and Di: The Untold Story," that the royal family ignored Attenborough's warning. The royal family documentary aired and opened an "intrusive interest" in the private lives of the Windsors.
In retrospect, some parallels from this attempt to become accessible can be seen from Prince Harry and Meghan's decision to leave their royal status. Though the Duke and Duchess of Sussex said that they would like to focus on charities, much like the work of the royals, they also want to do something different that could shake the very idea of the monarchy.
The royals are supposed to be apolitical but Prince Harry and Meghan expressed that they want to use their voices to bring about real change. Once Prince Harry and Meghan use their voices and give their opinions then they start behaving like normal people, according to Seward.
So, if prince Harry and Meghan want to come off as normal then the public will treat them like ordinary people. In the end the public will also see the rest of the royal family the same way: ordinary.
It has to be said that the documentary Attenborough didn't want to air was actually stripped of any archives. It was a misstep from the royal family that they never want to revisit again precisely because of what Attenborough warned.
