Featured Image Credit: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images/Instagram/@raimanaworld
Topics: Royal Family, UK News, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle
Rhianna Benson
Topics: Royal Family, UK News, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have once again found themselves in the headlines as people believe they've spotted the couple's son Archie in a recent social media post.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have two children, Prince Archie, who was born in the UK in 2019, and Princess Lilibet, who was born in 2021 after the family relocated to the US following their resignation from royal duties.
The two children have largely been kept out of the public eye by their parents - however, glimpses of them have been seen now and then, like the Duke and Duchess's Christmas card.
Naturally, fans of the former royals were surprised to hear that a photo of Prince Archie was reportedly 'leaked' by a surfing firm in Texas last night (31 December) marking his and father Harry's New Year's Eve celebrations.
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According to GB News, professional surfer Raimana Van Bastolaer shared a video of the father-son duo enjoying a day on the sea at Austin Surf Club.
The clip was subsequently removed by the original poster after talk of a photo of Archie spread - not before it was re-posted by several other Instagram accounts, however.
One account to have shared the image is the widely-followed 'fan page' @dukeandduchessofsussexdaily, which posted a still image from the video online but chose to cover the child's face with a blue heart.
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"I'm pretty confident this photo includes Prince Archie so I chose to hide his face for my own peace of mind," the admin for the page explained.
It hasn't yet been confirmed whether the photo of the youngster was Archie.
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The speculation comes just weeks after Harry and Meghan shared their annual Christmas card, where some accused the image - which formed part of a wider collage from the couple's year together - of having been generated by a computer after supposedly spotting some 'inaccuracies'.
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Re-sharing it online, one Twitter user accused: "Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have released a FRAUDULENT Christmas photo - Archie hasn’t grown in two years and is the same size as his younger sister who is dressed like Princess Charlotte."
Others, meanwhile, were left with questions about whether their actual children even featured.
Summarising the confusion, another asked: "So Harry and Meghan’s new Xmas card! How is Lily as tall as Archie? Where is the hair Lily can almost sit on? Who thought this scene with such OBVIOUS staging was a good idea. More questions? And go!"
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Amid the controversy, one royal insider told PEOPLE Magazine that the decision to repeatedly obscure their children's faces wasn't one they took lightly and did so in order to protect their brood from potential harm.
The source explained: "Harry has been reluctant to show his children publicly, not out of a desire to hide them but to protect their privacy and safety from potential threats."
They added: "He wants them to lead as normal a life as possible without the fear of kidnapping or harm."