Prince Harry and wife Meghan expecting their first child

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, are expecting a baby in the spring of 2019, an official statement said on Monday.

“The Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are very pleased to announce that the Duchess of Sussex is expecting a baby in the spring of 2019,” their Kensington Palace residence said.

The couple recently touched down in Sydney on Monday, kicking off a bumper Pacific tour that is the British royals’ first major outing abroad as a couple.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex made a low-key arrival to a wet Australia after a weekend spent celebrating the marriage of their relative Princess Eugenie.

Their more-than-two-week official visit will take in multiple stops in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand – all parts of the Commonwealth, a group of predominantly former British colonies.

Queen Elizabeth II is still the head of state in Australia, although there is significant support for the country becoming a republic.

Recent polls show Australians fairly evenly split on the issue, with only the slimmest of majorities in favour of ditching the British Queen and nominating an Australian head of state.

During the trip, the royals plan to pet koalas, watch soldiers perform the haka and attend the Invictus Games, a multi-sport tournament for military service personnel and veterans who have been wounded or suffered injury or illness that opens on Saturday 20 October.

The whole visit will be keenly watched by the British and Australian media.

Meghan, a photogenic US actress, married the grandson of Queen Elizabeth II in May, becoming the newest royal to attract media obsession in Britain and beyond.

The trip officially ends in New Zealand on October 31.

– AFP