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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have reportedly dropped plans to recreate their famous 2017 Nottingham walkabout on October 15. “There was talk of another walkabout, but that idea has been killed,” a source told Rob Shuter’s Naughty But Nice newsletter. 

“The nightmare is people turning up to boo them,” the source said. The insider also warned about “nobody bothering to turn up at all. Neither is a risk anyone wants to take.” The couple’s return comes nearly nine years after their first official joint engagement in Nottingham. 

They visited the city on December 1, 2017. It came just four days after announcing their engagement on November 27. Hundreds of people turned up to see the newly engaged couple. Harry and Markle waved to cheering crowds during a walkabout before visiting local charities. 

But now, the source claimed, their team doesn’t want to take the same risk and see how popular they really are. “In 2017, crowds were desperate to see them,” the insider said. The tipster added, “Now nobody wants to find out how many people would actually show up. Empty streets could be even more embarrassing than angry crowds.” 

The insider claimed the couple’s team “can control the schedule and the photographs.” But “they cannot control genuine public affection. That’s why the walkabout idea is dead.” Harry and Markle are expected to visit three organizations in Nottingham on Thursday. 

According to ITV News, their schedule includes the Community Recording Studio, Himmah Hub, and Epic Partners. These visits will let the couple meet people involved in local community work. The reported decision comes as they prepare for their first public appearances since returning to the U.K. 

They stepped back from royal duties in 2020 and now carry out engagements in a private capacity. Harry also faced boos during a Leicester Tigers rugby match on October 9, 2026. 

When Harry appeared on the stadium’s big screen, some spectators appeared to boo. TNT Sports commentator Nick Mullins noticed the reaction. “Some boos there,” he said. According to Rugby journalist Robert Jobson, he also heard boos when the cameras showed Harry on the big screen. 

This isn’t the first time Harry and Markle have reportedly faced boos in public. Back in June 2022, some people booed while others cheered as they arrived at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London for Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee service. It was their first joint public appearance in the U.K. since stepping back from royal duties in 2020.

They reportedly faced boos again in Los Angeles on October 8, 2025. The couple attended Game 4 of the World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays at Dodger Stadium. According to the Evening Standard, some fans booed when Harry and Markle appeared on the big screen. 

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