Prince Charles thinks that his youngest brother, Prince Edward, and sister-in-law, Sophie, are the "hidden gems" of the royal family and he may have found his replacement for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle when he becomes the king after Queen Elizabeth.
A report from Daily Star revealed that Charles has big plans in motion for the Earl and Countess of Wessex in his monarchy after his original plan was in disarray with Harry and Meghan's departure.
Royal experts have discussed for years that Charles will slim down the number of working royals under his rule to just his direct descendants from William and Harry's family. But since the Sussex pair decided to pursue a different path, Charles has set his sights on the Wessexes to help the family's work.
Royal expert Brittani Barger said that Edward and Sophie have been stepping up on their engagements since Harry and Meghan left the royal fold in March 2020. In particular, Sophie has been primed to represent Queen Elizabeth at the front and center and Barger believes this will continue under Charles.
In an interview with The Times, however, Sophie downplayed rumors that she will be taking on more work meant for Meghan in The Firm. The Countess of Wessex said that she is "already pretty busy" and is not quite sure if she can add to her load.
Sophie said that she has always been busy with her royal duties but people have only started paying attention to her work in the last year. Edward's wife also touched on Harry and Meghan's move to the U.S. and said that her only wish for her in-laws is that they are happy with their choices in life.
Meanwhile, an anti-monarchist said that Charles could be at risk of losing the monarchy within a year of his reign. Graham Smith of the Republic believes that a referendum will succeed to replace the monarch as the head of state with an elected official.
For decades, the Republic has been campaigning to scrap the monarchy. Smith admitted that he will likely lose his push for the referendum while Queen Elizabeth is still on the throne. He is confident, however, that the dynamics will change during Charles' time. To be fair, Smith also said that the public should give Charles a year to see if he's performing as expected as the new King of the United Kingdom.
Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams disagrees with Smith and said that a referendum will divide Britain once again. He also pointed out that support for a referendum is below 20 percent, which means that the public still favor the royal family.
