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Meghan And Harry Bonded with Celebrity Neighbors over Paparazzi Photos

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Updated on June 15, 2023

See more articles on:Meghan Markle, Orlando Bloom, Prince Harry, Prince William

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Both Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have expressed their dissatisfaction with the tabloid press’s effect on their mental health. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have moved to Montecito, but the relentless media coverage hasn’t stopped following them across the Atlantic. During a candid interview on Dax Shepard’s “Armchair Expert” podcast, Prince Harry revealed that the paparazzi pounced on his and Meghan’s families in a “feeding frenzy” when they first moved to California.

In July 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex moved into their current permanent residence in Montecito, California, a $14 million home. The royal couple and their celebrity neighbours are not free from the paparazzi, despite living in a gated neighborhood.

The celebrity couple reportedly lives just across the street from Orlando Bloom and Katy Perry, so the famous foursome keeps each other updated on photographers who visit their neck of the woods.

Prior to purchasing their home in Santa Barbara, Prince Harry and Meghan stayed at Tyler Perry’s Los Angeles residence, where they had significant privacy concerns. “It was madness,” Prince Harry said of the jets, drones, and paparazzi cutting the fence. “The people out here, their response was, ‘well, what do you expect if you live in L.A.?’”

Prince Harry said that just because he is a public figure doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the right to privacy, and that he and Meghan didn’t want to remain in Los Angeles; it was only intended to be a stopover as they planned to purchase a house.

“Just two days ago, Orlando Bloom sent me a message — because he’s just down the road and we sort of keep in contact because of the paparazzi,” Prince Harry was quoted as saying by People. “He sent me a photograph which his security got of this long-haired guy with a beanie on, with his ear pods in, with his massive camera lying in the back of his 4×4 truck.

“A woman driving who did the peace sign sitting there as a distraction, and he is laid down in the back of this truck taking photographs of them out with their kid and whoever else is in that area,” he continued. “How is that normal, how is that acceptable?”

Harry did, however, say that living in Southern California is “way better” than living in England.

“Here, I can actually lift my head and I feel different. My shoulders have dropped, so has hers,” he said. Adding, “You walk around feeling a little bit more free. I get to take Archie on the back of my bicycle. I never had the chance to do that.”

Prince Harry said the situation has improved “significantly since he and Meghan moved to Santa Barbara, but he voiced his disappointment that the paparazzi continue to go to great lengths to capture the pair and Archie, and that Page Six recently released pictures of Meghan picking up their two-year-old from his first day of school without blurring their son’s face.

Kids haven’t signed up to be photographed, because “these kids don’t get a choice, they don’t get a say in it,” according to Prince Harry.

Prince Harry grew up in the public eye, but he made it known that he didn’t want to live in a fishbowl.

The paparazzi have previously harassed Prince Harry and his wife. They already sued Splash News and Picture Agency in January of last year over photos of Markle and their son Archie taken in Horth Hill Regional Park on Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

During the podcast, Prince Harry also discussed mental wellbeing and rehabilitation, as well as how he felt helpless as a member of the royal family.

Just days after Prince Harry returned to California from the United Kingdom following Prince Philip’s funeral, Markle was pictured out with their son. Since the mother and son’s photos were released the day before Prince Louis’ birthday, the sighting raised several eyebrows. Many people believe Markle was attempting to overshadow Prince William and Kate Middleton’s youngest son.