Prince Harry, Meghan quit as senior royals without queen consultation

London : Prince Harry and his wife Meghan made a surprise announcement of quitting as the front-line members - reportedly without first consulting Queen Elizabeth II.

In a shocking announcement, the couple said that they would like to spend time in North America and rip up their relations with the press.

Media reports said the Duke and Duchess of Sussex made their bombshell statement without notifying either Harry's grandmother the monarch, or his father Prince Charles.

"We intend to step back as 'senior' members of the royal family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen," they said in a statement released by Buckingham Palace.

"We have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution," they added.

"We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America."

The announcement surprised both the royal family and people across the world.

Buckingham Palace, however, released a statement after an hour claiming that the discussions with Prince Harry and Meghan are on the early stage.

"We understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through," it added.