Harry and Meghan drop titles in heartfelt letter praising sport charity's work

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have signed off as simply ‘Harry and Meghan’ in a new letter sent to one of their charities in the UK.

In the letter, sent to sport charity StreetGames, the couple signed off with their first names only, dropping their duke and duchess titles which they can still use despite stepping back as senior royals.

It could be seen as a signal that they will reduce how often they go by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

The couple, who now live in Los Angeles, agreed not to use their HRH stylings, but are still entitled to be called a duke and duchess, and Harry is also still a prince.

In February, Harry, 35, indicated he preferred a relaxed approach when he told attendees at a conference in Edinburgh “just call me Harry”.

The letter thanked StreetGames, who Harry sent a video message to back in May, praising their work delivering food to vulnerable people during lockdown.

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StreetGames has since linked up with another of the couple’s charities, as they supported Hubb Community Kitchen based in west London.

Meghan, 38, worked with Hubb Community Kitchen, which formed after the Grenfell Tower fire, and wrote the forward for a cookbook with their recipes.

She also had a video call with the members during lockdown, to offer her support to them as they switched to food delivery.

Harry and Meghan wrote: “To know that North Paddington Youth Club, Solidarity Sports, and St Matthews Project distributed hundreds of freshly prepared meals across their networks of young people over the last few months is fantastic.

“The impact of COVID-19 has been a scary and testing time for so many people from all walks of life, all over the world. However it is in difficult times like these that goodwill to others and community spirit prevails.”

The couple praised the volunteers for their “compassion and leadership of young people” and signed off with their thanks.

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In letters to charities, there are different ways royals sign their names. The Duchess of Cambridge often signs off with her full name Catherine, while Prince William signs off as William.

But on social media both couples tended to be more formal, using their duke and duchess titles frequently.

Harry and Meghan signed off their last post on SussexRoyal with just their first names, but have since used their duke and duchess titles in letters to charities.

The couple are reportedly delaying the launch of their new project, Archewell, and ran into early problems with their trademark last week when the application was deemed too vague.

A source said the response was not a rejection but part of the usual back and forth with new applications.

The couple failed to sign one part of the application and also did not pay enough of the fees related to the form.