It’s a boy! The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have had a son – seventh in line to the throne… and he is currently nameless.
Will they go for a ‘classic’ name, or buck tradition with a more modern choice? Will they find a moniker that has meaning to both the UK and US, befitting the dual nationality of the new boy? (Yes, according to royal commentator Victoria Arbiter).
In fact, a tweet by the Express suggesting a Transatlantic combo has gained quite the traction on Twitter – Cambridge Analytica? Texas Gloucestershire? Iraq War? MARKLE SPENCER? (Honestly, just read the replies).
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Or, will Harry and Meghan put loads of middle names in there, like the royals seem to do? Only time will tell, but that’s not stopping people guessing.
Odds makers seem pretty dead-set on what they think is the first choice – Alexander – although at this point it’s likely only Meghan and Harry know. They might be thinking of something really cool that nobody else has thought of, like Chewbacca (in tribute to the late Peter Mayhew) or Magnet (just a cool word, really).
Here are the top 10 names in the running, as they stand on Tuesday morning.
Alexander
4/1 SkyBet, 3/1 Ladbrokes, 7/2 Paddy Power
The Queen has the middle name Alexandra, so a gender-swapped version could function as a bit of a tribute to her – and Oddsmakers are keen to point out the American connection via founding father Alexander Hamilton. Harry and Meghan are on record as having seen Hamilton the Musical more than once. But of course, they might just be massive fans of Pointless, too – who isn’t?
James
7/1 SkyBet, 6/1 Ladbrokes, 4/1 Paddy Power
There was another founding father named James (James Madison – in all the founding fathers were two Johns, a Benjamin, an Alexander, a John, a George and a Thomas), although he doesn’t have an award-winning musical about him, so it might not count.
Arthur
7/1 SkyBet, 6/1 Ladbrokes, 5/1 Paddy Power
Sure to get people with England flags in their Facebook avatars really excited – is Britain ready for another Arthurian era? And how many people would buy him a toy sword as a christening gift? He’d be sitting on a big pile of them by the end, like an adorable tiny bit of Game Of Thrones cosplay.
Spencer
8/1 SkyBet, 5/1 Ladbrokes, 11/2 Paddy Power
Princess Diana’s maiden name would be a slightly off-piste choice for a royal, but the Queen’s first great-grandchild, Peter and Autumn Phillips’ daughter Savannah, sports a non-traditional name, so it wouldn’t be an entirely unprecedented choice. And, what goes better with Markle than Spencer?
Philip
Not offered by SkyBet, 12/1 Ladbrokes, 9/1 Paddy Power
The kid’s great-grandfather, Prince Philip, is 97 years old – so this could be a nice way of paying tribute to the royal family’s longest-ever serving consort. Phil Sussex, Philly Sussex and Big Philip S are all fun options he could go for later in life.
Albert
12/1 SkyBet, 8/1 Ladbrokes, 10/1 Paddy Power
There’s a slight problem with this one. The new baby won’t technically be a prince until William becomes King, but when he does – and if they go for Albert – he’ll have a name that’s inescapably associated with genital jewellery.
Oliver
16/1 SkyBet, 16/1 Ladbrokes, 12/1 Paddy Power
Currently the most popular name for newborn boys in the UK, there was one historical Oliver who made life pretty hard for a royal named Charles. Oliver Cromwell had Charles I’s head chopped off, which was ages ago but might still cause a bit of hesitation.
Edward
22/1 SkyBet, 22/1 Ladbrokes, 12/1 Paddy Power
Edward is one of those names that can be shortened in loads of ways, so he could grow up with a friendly nickname. Iron Maiden fans could call him Eddie, Game Of Thrones fans could call him Ned, and Prince Edward could call him Edward.
Henry
25/1 Skybet, 25/1 Ladbrokes, 25/1 Paddy Power
Prince Harry’s real name is of course Henry – a popular name among royals to the point that eight kings sported it. It would seem a bit uncharacteristic of what we know about Harry and Meghan’s relationship to slap a name on their child that only honoured his father, though – Harry has spoken of how awestruck and impressed he’s been by Meghan, so shouting “MINE!” would be a bit surprising.
Charles
33/1 Skybet, 20/1 Ladbrokes, 12/1 Paddy Power
Charles is Harry’s dad’s name, of course, but the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge named their daughter Charlotte – would a Charles be a bit too close? Would there be confusion at family picnics, with one cousin wearing the other one’s jumper by accident, and things like that? Might be best avoided.
