Future Cotswolds Neighbors Reportedly Wary of Harry and Meghans Move, Told Dont Bring the Circus

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's decision to relocate to the Cotswolds is drawing a cautious reception from prospective neighbors in the English countryside region, according to a royal commentator, who said residents are more wary than welcoming as the couple begins house hunting in the area.

Kinsey Schofield, host of the "Kinsey Schofield Unfiltered" podcast, told Page Six Monday that the "chattering class" of the North Cotswolds is "not overly excited" about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex moving into the area. "The Cotswolds can be incredibly welcoming to high-profile people because there's an unwritten agreement: 'You don't make a spectacle of yourself, and neither will we,'" Schofield explained.

According to Schofield, the region's relationship with celebrity residents typically depends on those residents keeping a low profile once they arrive, a dynamic she said makes Harry and Meghan's situation somewhat unusual given the level of media attention that has followed the couple throughout their post-royal life. "The irony is that Harry and Meghan are moving to a place that is accustomed to famous people... but completely unimpressed by fame," Schofield said. "You can bump into Liam Gallagher at the local pub and nobody cares."

Schofield said she had heard from an insider that other celebrities already living in the area, including David Beckham and Ellen DeGeneres, have settled comfortably into the community precisely because locals do not "bat an eyelid" at their presence, a pattern she suggested Harry and Meghan may struggle to replicate given the scale of press attention that has historically accompanied their movements.

The advice being passed along through local channels has been direct, according to Schofield. "The advice from locals is essentially that Harry should keep a low profile and allow the family to settle quietly into the community," she said. "One source put it rather colorfully: 'Shut up for at least eight months!' and 'Harry needs to respect the community.'" She summarized the broader local sentiment more bluntly still, saying, "There's a sense of, 'Please don't bring the circus here.' These people are used to celebrities. Harry and Meghan are different because wherever they go, the headlines tend to follow."

Despite the guarded reception, Schofield said she believes the couple still has an opportunity to shift local perception over time, though she cautioned that doing so would require genuine discretion. "But that requires restraint," she said, according to a report from Jingletree. "You cannot ask a community to protect your privacy while simultaneously generating headlines that bring attention to their doorstep."

Page Six had previously reported that Harry and Meghan were actively house hunting in the Cotswolds, with royal commentator Tom Sykes telling the outlet last week that a friend of Harry's had indicated earlier this year that the prince was considering the region, potentially near King Charles III's Highgrove estate. The couple has been linked to a roughly 16.2 million dollar property, though multiple sources have said no formal deal has yet been finalized. In the interim, the family has reportedly been staying in a spare house belonging to a wealthy friend on the outskirts of the Cotswolds since arriving in the UK on Aug. 26.

This is not the first time Harry and Meghan's presence has generated friction with neighbors in an affluent residential community. Schofield made similar comments about the couple's Montecito, California, neighborhood in a January 2025 interview with Fox News Digital, saying at the time that some residents there felt Harry and Meghan's various business ventures "come off as desperation" and struggled to understand why the couple would trade "tiaras in pursuit of Tupperware." That characterization followed a Vanity Fair report describing the couple as being viewed as "local villains" by some Montecito neighbors, though other sources close to the couple have pushed back on that framing, telling outlets including AOL that Harry and Meghan maintain a "great relationship" with their California community and genuinely care about it.

A representative for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the reported reception in the Cotswolds. With the couple's children expected to begin school in the region this month, Harry and Meghan appear likely to remain under close local and media scrutiny as they work to establish their new base in the English countryside.