Joined: 25 Jul 2005 Posts: 18335 Location: St. Pauls, Bristol, England
Posted: Wed Oct 02, 2019 11:58 am Post subject: Meghan/Thomas Markle, royal spin MI5 communication meddling?
Revealed: The handwritten letter showing true tragedy of Meghan's rift with father she says has 'broken her heart into a million pieces' - and why he feels forced to make the 'devastating' missive public
Thomas Markle reveals full content of letter written to him by daughter Meghan
The Duchess of Sussex penned the anguish letter in response to public attacks
Mr Markle, however, insists that Meghan's letter is actually far from conciliatory
He is speaking up after five friends of the Duchess gave anonymous interviews
By CAROLINE GRAHAM IN LOS ANGELES FOR THE MAIL ON SUNDAY
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6686817/Letter-showing-true-t ragedy-Meghan-Markles-rift-father.html
PUBLISHED: 00:00, 10 February 2019 | UPDATED: 16:34, 16 February 2019
The full content of a sensational letter written by the Duchess of Sussex to her estranged father shortly after her wedding can be revealed for the first time today.
Its existence emerged last week after five close friends of the Duchess gave anonymous interviews to an American celebrity magazine.
They said the Duchess was so upset by her father Thomas Markle’s public attacks on her and Prince Harry that she penned the anguished letter begging him to patch up their differences privately.
But last night Mr Markle said the letter, extracts of which are published today by The Mail on Sunday, is far from conciliatory and has left him feeling ‘devastated’.
Thomas Markle has revealed the full content of a five-page letter written to him by his daughter the Duchess of Sussex +11
Thomas Markle has revealed the full content of a five-page letter written to him by his daughter the Duchess of Sussex
The bombshell five-page letter, sent in August last year, lays bare the true depths of the Duchess’s estrangement from her father.
In elegant script, she accuses him of breaking her heart ‘into a million pieces’ by giving interviews to the press, fabricating stories and attacking her new husband.
The Duchess also admonishes her father, in anguished tones, for siding with her half-sister Samantha – who has attacked her in the press – while she ‘silently suffered at the hand of her vicious lies’.
Her writing is elegant and distinctive. Over five pages, the Duchess of Sussex pours out her heart to her father in a letter written last August – three months after their bitter rift began. Time and again, she chastises him for the hurt and pain he has caused her and insists she and Prince Harry did all they could to help Thomas Markle, even when he pulled out of the Royal Wedding days before their May 19 nuptials +11
Her writing is elegant and distinctive. Over five pages, the Duchess of Sussex pours out her heart to her father in a letter written last August – three months after their bitter rift began. Time and again, she chastises him for the hurt and pain he has caused her and insists she and Prince Harry did all they could to help Thomas Markle, even when he pulled out of the Royal Wedding days before their May 19 nuptials
Meghan’s sad opening message to ‘Daddy’ as she sits down to pour out her heart to her estranged father over five handwritten pages
Meghan’s sad opening message to ‘Daddy’ as she sits down to pour out her heart to her estranged father over five handwritten pages
The Duchess claims Mr Markle causes her pain by being manipulated in the media but he insists ‘I love her with all my heart’
She goes on to complain that Mr Markle has made no attempt to contact her – and chastises him for falsely telling journalists he is the one who has been shunned – a criticism her father vehemently refutes.
She also accuses her father of snubbing her and Prince Harry’s offers to help when he pulled out of attending their wedding following two heart attacks and accuses him of being ungrateful for money she has given him.
The former award-winning Hollywood lighting director, who now lives in Mexico, said that he never intended to make the handwritten missive public ‘out of respect for Meghan’ – but says he has been forced to do so now because its contents have been falsely portrayed.
Mr Markle insists: ‘I sent Meg and Harry a text telling them I wasn’t coming. It was too dangerous after my heart attacks’
Mr Markle says he only asked for help to move house and that any ‘modest’ financial gifts from Meghan were ‘greatly appreciated’
Mr Markle says he only asked for help to move house and that any ‘modest’ financial gifts from Meghan were ‘greatly appreciated’
Her father says: ‘I didn’t stop answering my phone. I was in hospital with a heart attack! Meg and Harry knew what was going on’ +11
Her father says: ‘I didn’t stop answering my phone. I was in hospital with a heart attack! Meg and Harry knew what was going on’
Mr Markle comments: ‘I have no idea what this means. This is pure Harry. Americans don’t use the “rabbit hole” expression’
Meghan complains Thomas sided with her half-sister Samantha in criticising her, but he insists: ‘I never wanted Meg to suffer.’
Contrary to claims made by the Duchess’s friends, he said the letter made no attempt to heal their bitter rift. ‘I thought it would be an olive branch. Instead, it was a dagger to the heart,’ Mr Markle, 74, said last night.
He dismissed suggestions he has made no attempt to patch things up since her wedding. He showed this newspaper texts which he says prove he reached out multiple times to his daughter and the son-in-law he has never met.
The US magazine People claimed to ‘put the record straight’ over the Duchess’s relationship with her father and criticism of her style as a Royal.
It was based on interviews with five friends – at least one of whom is thought to be one of the Duchess’s co-stars in Suits, the legal drama in which she starred for six years.
Thomas Markle says: ‘I’ve never attacked Harry. I asked him to man up’
He insists the Duchess is mistaken: ‘I have only ever spoken out in response to fake narratives and lies’
The Duchess refers to the MoS paparazzi photos story, right, but he insists he continued to reach out
The Duchess refers to the MoS paparazzi photos story, right, but he insists he continued to reach out
The Duchess came under fire over her apparent decision to allow her confidantes to defend her in the extraordinary interview, without, it is understood, involving Kensington Palace.
The palace has refused to comment on whether the magazine’s anonymous sources had co-operated at the direct request of the Duchess or with her tacit approval.
Former Buckingham Palace press secretary Dickie Arbiter, who worked for both Prince Charles and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, feared the decision would only exacerbate issues.
He said: ‘Assuming – and as these sources are anonymous we don’t know for sure – that this was done with her agreement, it has opened a Pandora’s box. The issue with her father is an open wound and I’m not entirely sure it is the best idea to aggravate that.’
In her letter to her father, the Duchess begged him to stop attacking 'patient, kind and understanding' Prince Harry +11
In her letter to her father, the Duchess begged him to stop attacking 'patient, kind and understanding' Prince Harry
Last night, Mr Markle said it was unfair for his daughter’s friends to use the media to ‘spin a line’ while he was being criticised for ‘giving a handful’ of interviews to the press. In the article last Wednesday, the Duchess’s friends said that she was devastated by his response to the letter, in which he suggested father and daughter pose for press pictures.
One friend said: ‘She feels like “that’s the opposite of what I’m saying. I’m telling you that I don’t want to communicate through the media, and you’re asking me to… Did you hear anything I said?” ’
Mr Markle said he had suggested the photo op as a way of showing the world they could be friends again, describing the Duchess’s reading of it as ‘tragic misunderstanding’ he wishes he could put straight. The rift between the Duchess and her father began after The Mail on Sunday revealed, just days before her wedding in May last year, that he had colluded with the paparazzi to stage a series of lucrative photo opportunities.
Such was his humiliation that he offered to pull out of attending the Royal Wedding and was later prevented from going after suffering two heart attacks.
Since then, he has given a series of damaging interviews in which he has spoken of his dismay at being cast adrift by his daughter and the Royal Family.
Thomas's Anguished Reply
The Duchess insisted she phoned him, but he had no missed calls +11
The Duchess insisted she phoned him, but he had no missed calls
Mr Markle says he never attacked Harry, but feels he should have met him before the wedding +11
Mr Markle says he never attacked Harry, but feels he should have met him before the wedding
Mr Markle insists his bid to reduce press intrusion was ‘completely misinterpreted’
Mr Markle insists his bid to reduce press intrusion was ‘completely misinterpreted’
Mr Markle says he never heard from his ex-wife after his plea to help him heal the rift
Mr Markle says he never heard from his ex-wife after his plea to help him heal the rift
How Meghan's media fightback led her father to reveal letter he wanted to keep secret
The Duchess’s father told no one about her letter and planned to ‘keep it totally private out of respect for her’ – until her friends launched their ‘attack’ on him last week.
Following Meghan’s ‘Duchess Difficult’ reputation and stories of her allegedly petulant behaviour like firing off 5am emails to staff and demanding air freshener be sprayed around musty St George’s Chapel, Windsor, Meghan is said to have authorised five of her closest friends to speak to US People magazine to correct the falsehoods.
The article painted Meghan in a glowing light, while insisting the negative stories about her were lies. But Mr Markle says Meghan’s decision to reveal the private letter in the pages of the magazine left him with no choice but to go public: ‘The letter was presented in a way that vilified me and wasn’t true,’ he said last night. ‘It was presented as her reaching out and writing a loving letter in the hope of healing the rift, but the letter isn’t like that at all. Meghan can’t have it both ways. She can’t use the press to get her message across but hang me out to dry. I have the right to defend myself.’
Experts have claimed the Duchess is walking a dangerous path by allegedly bypassing the palace press office.
Meghan Markle urged her father to stop 'painful' attacks on 'patient, kind and understanding' Prince Harry in five-page letter - but anguished dad says 'I like him. I'll always love you'
For months, the letter has stayed concealed in his battered black leather briefcase inside a simple FedEx envelope. Five pages, written in his daughter’s distinctive, elegant script – he shared it with no one because, he says: ‘It was just too painful.’
‘When I opened the letter I was hoping it was the olive branch I’d longed for,’ he said last night. ‘I was expecting something that would be a pathway to reconciliation. Instead, it was deeply hurtful. I was so devastated I couldn’t show it to anyone and never would have had it not been for the events of last week.’
Indeed, the existence of the letter – in which his daughter chastises her father time and again – was revealed by anonymous friends of the Duchess in a magazine article published in the US on Wednesday. It was portrayed as a loving missive from a heartbroken daughter anxious to heal the rift with her father.
Except it wasn’t.
In her letter to her father, the Duchess begged him to stop attacking 'patient, kind and understanding' Prince Harry +11
In her letter to her father, the Duchess begged him to stop attacking 'patient, kind and understanding' Prince Harry
‘There was no loving message in there, nothing asking about my health, nothing from her saying, “Let’s get together and heal our differences,” Mr Markle, 74, said last night.
According to a ‘longtime friend’ of Meghan’s quoted in People: ‘After the wedding she wrote him a letter. She’s like, “Dad, I’m so heartbroken. I love you, I have one father. Please stop victimising me through the media so we can repair our relationship.” ’
Yet, Mr Markle insists, the letter again proves she and Harry have ‘misunderstood’ him – leading time and again to her believing one thing whereas, he insists, his reality is far different.
In one angry passage, the Duchess blasts her father for not telling her he would not walk her down the aisle. Prince Charles famously stood in at the last minute.
She writes: ’You’ve told the press that you called me to say you weren’t coming to the wedding – that didn’t happen because you never called.’
Mr Markle says this is ‘totally false’ and he has the text messages proving it.
He pulls out his phone and scrolls through dozens of text messages between himself, his daughter and Prince Harry.
In the turbulent week before his daughter’s May 19 wedding, Mr Markle was exposed by this newspaper as colluding with a paparazzi photographer. He later ended up in hospital after suffering two heart attacks and underwent an angioplasty procedure to unblock two arteries to his heart.
It is during this time that the relationship between him and the couple fell apart.
In her letter, the Duchess accuses him of ignoring her increasingly desperate attempts to reach him.
She writes: “From my phone alone, I called you over 20 times and you ignored my calls… leaving me in the days before our wedding worried, confused, shocked and absolutely blindsided.’
Mr Markle shakes his head: ‘I don’t know anything about 20 phone calls. There were no missed messages.’ He shows me a text message dated May 16 which, he insists, proves ‘conclusively’ that he told the couple he could not fly to the UK as planned.
The text reads: ‘Surgery went OK… The doctor will not allow me to fly so of course I’m sorry but I can’t come. Love you and wish you the best of everything.’
Mr Markle said: ‘The doctors absolutely refused to let me fly to the wedding after my procedure. As soon as I knew this, I texted Meg and Harry to let them know I couldn’t be there.’ Mr Markle insists he called his daughter after the rift began ‘but she never picked up.’
+11
Thomas Markle has revealed the full content of a five-page letter written to him by his daughter the Duchess of Sussex
People magazine quotes a friend saying: ‘He knows how to get in touch with her. Her telephone number hasn’t changed. He’s never called; he’s never texted.’
In an extraordinary moment, Mr Markle dials his daughter’s number as we sit in a hotel room in Los Angeles. He activates the speakerphone. An automated voice responds: ‘The service you have attempted to use is restricted or unavailable.’
He says: ‘The number worked until a couple of weeks ago. I sent them numerous text messages and I tried calling. That recording is the message I get now on the number she says hasn’t changed.’
Reading the letter again is clearly deeply painful for a man who says he longs for nothing more than to be reunited with his pregnant daughter. He pauses: ‘This is not the girl I know. It’s not the way she talks. For her friends – and by default Meg – to portray this as a loving letter is ridiculous.
‘Love isn’t mentioned once in the entire thing. Meg wrote me tons of letters and cards over the years. She always signed off with “Love” or “Love you”.
‘This letter is cold. When she signs off it’s “Meg”. You read the way it ends and it felt like a final farewell to me. It doesn’t even start out with “Dear”. It’s just “Daddy”.’ He continues: ‘Meg accuses me in the letter of cashing in but I’ve only accepted a few payments. I worked it out and if I’d taken all the offers I’ve had, I could have made $600,000. I haven’t done that.’
He insists he did try to heal the rift in ‘multiple’ text messages, calls and in a heartfelt four-page letter he sent to Meghan after receiving hers.
Until last week’s article in People which disparagingly mentions his reply, he never knew she had received it. ‘They just stopped talking to me. I never heard from them after the wedding in May so by June I reached out.’
On June 10, he texted his daughter: ‘My surgery was successful. I will be on blood thinners and the diet for the rest of my life but I will live. Just thought you might want to know.’
On June 19, he again texted, saying he had spoken to Piers Morgan on Good Morning Britain and given his first interview (in which he revealed private conversations with Harry about Brexit and President Trump) ‘because you guys don’t respond back to me’.
His phone is filled with texts to the couple. On October 24, he writes: ‘I don’t know if this is still your phone number or not? I don’t know if you received my letter. I am only giving two interviews to the press not hundreds and I haven’t made millions of dollars.’
Thomas Markle spoke out after five friends of his daughter gave an anonymous interview +11
Thomas Markle spoke out after five friends of his daughter gave an anonymous interview
Yet again, on November 8, he reaches out: ‘Please respond back to me. You shunned me long enough unless you plan this for a lifetime? I don’t like speaking to the press but when the announcement for the baby came out, seven cars and reporters were outside my house every day for seven days. I gave a statement and all the cars went away. Anyway, I’m very happy for you and Harry and I wish you all my love.’
The Duchess’s letter accuses him of asking for money: ‘You’ve said I never helped you financially and you’ve never asked me for help which is also untrue…’
Mr Markle responds that the Duchess – worth a reported $4 million before she married – never supported him financially: ‘Meghan’s given me cash gifts occasionally but I never begged or asked for them. She would send money at Christmas, birthdays. It was a couple of grand here or there.’
There is one expression in the letter that her father is convinced comes from Harry. It is when she refers to him being down a rabbit hole. She writes: ‘Please stop taking the bait from the press. I realise you are so far down this rabbit hole that you feel (or may feel) there’s no way out, but if you take a moment to pause I think you’ll see that being able to live with a clear conscience is more valuable than any payment.’ He says: ‘Americans don’t know what the hell “down the rabbit hole” means? It’s apparently to do with Alice In Wonderland. You Brits use it. That feels like pure Harry.’
Mr Markle is baffled at his daughter’s claim that he was given support from her LA-based ‘team’ and from the Palace.
She writes: ‘We all rallied around to support and protect you from Day 1 and this you know. So to hear about the attacks you’ve made at Harry in press who was nothing but patient, kind and understanding with you is perhaps the most painful of all.’
He responds: ‘I was left to hang out to dry both before and after the wedding. Not one person came to see me. My ex-wife Doria received an engagement announcement via two people from the British consulate in Los Angeles who went to her door. No one came to my door. I felt hurt. I’m only 120 miles from LA.
‘I haven’t attacked Harry. I told him to man up. I still believe he should have flown to LA to see me, first to ask for my daughter’s hand and later to sort out the problems between us. He has all the resources in the world at his disposal.’
The Duchess’s letter talks of her hurt when her father denied cooperating with the paparazzi pictures only for this newspaper to publish CCTV footage of him colluding with a photographer: ‘I believed you, trusted you and told you I loved you. The next morning the CCTV footage came out.’
He says: ‘I’ve apologised for that a hundred times. I made a mistake, I shouldn’t have done it but how many times do I need to say “I’m sorry?” I did the pictures because I was tired of being portrayed as a slob. They were calling my home a shack.’
+11
Thomas insisted that he didn't attack Harry but added that the Prince should have met him before the wedding
Mr Markle wrote a heartfelt reply to the Duchess’s letter in September. ‘I took a long time to write back because I wanted to address all her accusations.’
He wrote: ‘The last time we talked was about three days before the wedding because I was in a hospital bed and just had my procedure.’
The Duchess complained her father did nothing when her older half-sister Samantha – from Mr Markle’s first marriage - attacked her, calling her ‘a social climber with a soft spot for gingers’.
‘You watched me silently suffer at the hand of her (Samantha’s) vicious lies. I crumbled inside.’
In his letter, Mr Markle refers to his elder daughter by her pet name, ‘Babe’, saying: “I did try to control Babe. I have as much control over Babe… as I do over you!’
In People magazine, the Duchess’s friend dismissed her father’s letter, saying he used it to ask for a ‘photo op’. In fact, Mr Markle wrote: ‘I wish we could get together and take a photo for the whole world to see. If you and Harry don’t like it? Fake it for one photo and maybe some of the press will shut up!’
He says: ‘That request was totally misinterpreted. When Doria was photographed with Meghan and Harry for the first time it took the heat off Doria. It showed she was part of the family. I don’t want a picture for any other reason than if we show harmony then the press will back off.’
In desperation, he even reached out to Meghan’s mother Doria, who he divorced amicably when their daughter was three. He hand-delivered a one-page letter to Doria’s LA home last October. That letter, too, was met with stony silence.
Mr Markle says the estrangement from his daughter is affecting his health, causing ‘massive stress’.
‘I want nothing more than to sort this mess out. I would ask her and Harry to contact me. All it would take is one phone call and most of this craziness would stop.’
* Mr Markle neither asked for nor received payment for this article.
THE Duchess of Sussex may face claims she invaded her OWN privacy if her newspaper fight ends in court.
Meghan is suing The Mail on Sunday for publishing a highly personal letter she wrote to her estranged father.
Meghan Markle, with her dad Thomas, may face claims she invaded her own privacy if her newspaper fight ends in court
5
Meghan Markle, with her dad Thomas, may face claims she invaded her own privacy if her newspaper fight ends in courtCredit: James Breeden - The Sun
Meghan, 38, and husband Harry, 35, launched their legal fight on Tuesday
5
Meghan, 38, and husband Harry, 35, launched their legal fight on TuesdayCredit: Rex Features
But it is suggested she put it in the public domain herself by telling friends about it and giving them the nod to go public.
The pals then briefed journalists at celebrity magazine People, with one of them going into details about the letter.
–– ADVERTISEMENT ––
And, if the Duchess is called as a witness in court, she may have to swear on oath she did not give her friends permission to discuss the letter.
Meghan, 38, and husband Harry, 35, launched their legal fight on Tuesday with a wild rant against press intrusion.
CLAIMS WILL BE FOUGHT
Her lawyers filed papers claiming publishing the letter to her father, Thomas, 75, was a breach of copyright, infringed her privacy and was a breach of the Data Protection Act.
But The Mail on Sunday is fighting the case, which some royal watchers have criticised as ill-judged and ill-timed.
In court, privacy arguments could centre on the People story in February when five pals were cleared to give Meghan’s side of her fall-out with Thomas.
One refers to the letter, saying she asked him to stop victimising her through the media.
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The case could mean Thomas, who has not met grandson Archie, is called to give evidence.
Royal author Patrick Jephson said: “This kind of litigation is easy to start but nobody can predict the path it will take or the damage it will cause.”
Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams added: “One of the problems with the case is that it will bring back the issues between Meghan and her father.”
Prince Harry launched into a furious rant against press intrusion
5
Prince Harry launched into a furious rant against press intrusionCredit: Getty - Contributor
The row could eventually see Meghan and Thomas Markle called to give evidence in court
5
The row could eventually see Meghan and Thomas Markle called to give evidence in courtCredit: The Mega Agency
Harry quiz fury
HARRY is filmed scolding a TV reporter for asking a question hours before he released his rant.
He talked to health officials and children suffering from malaria and Aids before being ushered to a waiting vehicle by palace officials.
Harry scolds Sky News reporter Rhiannon Mills
5
Harry scolds Sky News reporter Rhiannon Mills
But Harry appeared annoyed when he was asked an unscheduled question about the visit as he was whisked away.
Sky News reporter Rhiannon Mills asked: “That short conversation, what do you hope to achieve through it?”
Harry let out a laugh before responding: “What? Ask them” and pointing back towards the hospital.
The reporter followed up: “Is that why it’s important for you to come and talk to them?”
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, are working on their communication. BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images
When everything you say and do is endlessly scrutinized from countless different angles, it’s probably best to hire a publicist. When you’re a member of perhaps the world’s most visible and famous couple, hiring a ruthless publicist may be the only way to go. Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, seem to have taken the old adage “the medium is the message” to heart in hiring Sara Latham, a former senior advisor on Hillary Clinton’s notorious 2016 presidential campaign, as the new head of their communications team. The message, of course, is that they mean serious business.
Latham doesn’t just have a history with the woman who inspired the rise of Pantsuit Nation. During president Bill Clinton’s second term, Latham worked as special assistant to the chief of staff, so she’s clearly well versed in office politics magnified for the global stage. And as part of Hillary’s bid for president, Latham “led the political strategy and execution for the ‘super surrogates ([Barack] Obama, [Joe] Biden, President Clinton) and ran the campaign’s covert running-mate selection process, announcement and general election plan,” her bio states. The only work environment in the world more stressful than the White House is probably Buckingham Palace, so Latham should be very comfortable with high-stakes gigs.
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The press hiccups Meghan and Harry have weathered together are almost too numerous to list, but suffice it to say Latham has her work cut out for her when it comes to navigating the attention (both positive and negative) surrounding the royals. Markle’s personal assistant quit in 2018 after only half a year at her post, leading many to speculate that the newly minted Duchess is a difficult boss; her personal protection officer resigned not long afterward. Plus, the Duchess’ father’s side of the family is basically a disaster. DUIs, unflattering tell-all interviews and unfortunate photo opps abound.
In confluence with the announcement that Latham is taking over the couple’s communications, news broke this week that the couple will be moving to Frogmore Cottage and officially separating themselves from Kate Middleton and Prince William’s residence and staff in service of getting their own, independent team of staffers.
Prince Harry and Meghan’s Frogmore crew will report directly to the Queen’s communications secretary, Donal McCabe, who himself has been busy lately handling the fallout of the Duke of Edinburgh’s widely publicized car accident in January. When you’re royalty, there’s never a dull moment.
Barack and Michelle Obama are advising Meghan and Harry on their new life outside the Royal Family... with Duchess set to copy their use of 'star power' to promote 'humanistic projects'
Harry and Meghan become close friends with the former US president and wife
Couple want to model themselves on Obamas who have written autobiographies
Mrs Obama's Becoming sold 1.4m copies in its first week with 10m copies so far
By REBECCA ENGLISH ROYAL CORRESPONDENT FOR THE DAILY MAIL
Barack and Michelle Obama have advised the Sussexes on their plans for a new life outside the Royal Family.
Harry and Meghan have become close friends with the former US president and his lawyer wife and turned to them for help.
The Queen’s grandson and his wife want to model themselves on the Obamas, who have both brought out extraordinarily successful autobiographies.
Prince Harry watches the Wheelchair Basketball finals with Barack Obama at the Invictus Games 2017 in Canada +3
Prince Harry watches the Wheelchair Basketball finals with Barack Obama at the Invictus Games 2017 in Canada
Mrs Obama’s Becoming sold 1.4million copies in its first week and is set to become the biggest-selling autobiography of all time, having shifted over 10 million copies so far.
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It has also seen her embark on a lucrative global speaking tour. The couple have formed a production company and signed a deal to make films and documentaries with Netflix. Their ambition to produce a series of worthy ‘humanistic projects’, attracting participants using their ‘star power’, is a model that is said to appeal hugely to former actress Meghan. Harry has already collaborated on an Apple TV series on mental health with US talk show host Oprah Winfrey, who is also a friend.
It follows the duke and duchess’s bombshell statement on Wednesday announcing – against Buckingham Palace advice – that they were stepping down as senior royals.
Royal aides last night told the Mail the Government is now involved in negotiations over the couple’s future roles.
Sources close to Harry and Meghan said they were ‘hopeful’ that discussions to find solutions can be concluded ‘sooner rather than later’.
Grin: Mr Obama meets Meghan Markle at The White House in 2016. Harry and Meghan have become close friends with the former US president and his lawyer wife and turned to them for help +3
Grin: Mr Obama meets Meghan Markle at The White House in 2016. Harry and Meghan have become close friends with the former US president and his lawyer wife and turned to them for help
It is understood that a series of meetings and phones calls were held all day yesterday by officials trying to work up proposals, with the Canadian government consulted as well as British officials. But senior royal sources admitted that no one is entirely sure whether a compromise that would keep the Sussexes happy can be achieved. Harry is staying at Frogmore Cottage, the couple’s Windsor estate home.
Insiders insisted yesterday that he always planned to stay in Britain when his wife flew back to Canada this week. Meghan is busy working with friends on their future plans. Sources confirmed Harry and Meghan had discussed their plans with the former US president and his wife and wanted to mimic the way they had managed to build a successful, but dignified, life for themselves after the White House. A source said: ‘They have found huge commercial success without actually looking like they are getting their hands dirty, to put it bluntly, and retaining their popularity.
‘In fact it is fair to say that their star has soared since leaving the White House, particularly Michelle’s, and this is something Meghan admires very, very much.’
Joined: 25 Jul 2005 Posts: 18335 Location: St. Pauls, Bristol, England
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2020 8:51 am Post subject:
Harry given stark choice by honey trap golddigger?
Its royals or me!
Royal heartbreak: Meghan Markle ‘would have left Royal Family without Harry' during split
MEGHAN MARKLE would have had to "leave the Royal Family alone" if the Queen had decided Prince Harry and the Duchess were not allowed to stand down as senior royals, an expert has revealed.
By Clive Hammond
PUBLISHED: 01:31, Wed, Mar 4, 2020 | UPDATED: 02:05, Wed, Mar 4, 2020
Novelist Dame Hilary Mantel said that she thought Meghan was “too good” for the “dull” Royal Family. The author spoke to Harper’s Bazaar as she discussed the publication of the last episode of her Tudor trilogy - The Mirror & the Light. Hilary admitted she was pleased that Meghan and Harry’s relationship survived after the made their bombshell decision earlier this year.
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She said: “I’m pleased that it’s the marriage that’s surviving and the connection with the monarchy that has to go because I think almost all of us would have bet that if she [the Duchess of Sussex] left, she’d have to leave alone.
“Though, none of us know the details of how this is going to work out.”
She added: “I think that Meghan was too good to be true.
“She was a smiling face in a dull institution, she cheered the nation up no end, or at least men and women of good will.”
Royal heartbreak: Meghan Markle ‘would have left Royal Family without Harry' during split
Royal heartbreak: Meghan Markle ‘would have left Royal Family without Harry' during split (Image: GETTY)
Novelist Dame Hilary Mantel said that she thought Meghan was “too good”
Novelist Dame Hilary Mantel said that she thought Meghan was “too good” (Image: GETTY)
It comes after Royal Family tensions have his an all-time high.
The Queen and the Sussexes were embroiled in a bitter dispute over their use of the word royal in their branding.
Part of the reason for the Sussexes departure was their desire to pursue a “financially independent” life.
Their plan had been to use the name Sussex Royal as their main brand point.
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Hilary admitted she was pleased that Meghan and Harry’s relationship survived (Image: GETTY)
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However, the Queen refused permission.
On Sunday, Her Majesty and Prince Harry held a four-hour heart-to-heart talk about their future relationship.
The Queen told Harry over lunch that he and Meghan would be able to rejoin the fold.
A royal source said: “The Queen had a lot to talk to Harry about and this was the ideal time for them to both say their piece.
“When Harry and Meghan announced they wanted to quit it all happened very quickly and it was very stressful for all concerned.
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Their plan had been to use the name Sussex Royal as their main brand point
Their plan had been to use the name Sussex Royal as their main brand point (Image: GETTY)
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“Sunday was the first time the Queen has had the chance to talk to Harry on his own and really find out what his plans are. It was a much more relaxed environment and they were both able to speak their mind.”
The source told The Sun the Queen was “very upset” about Harry and Meghan leaving the family as she wanted to “see more” of their son Archie.
However, she is said to “accept” that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have “made their mind up” to live in North America.
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Joined: 25 Jul 2005 Posts: 18335 Location: St. Pauls, Bristol, England
Posted: Sun Mar 14, 2021 12:03 am Post subject:
Four Big Lies Told By Meghan Markle In Oprah Interview
Meghan and Harry's sensational claims fact-checked: How friend contradicted Meghan's claim she never Googled Harry, the truth about that secret wedding and whether Archie really should have been a prince
Meghan and Harry unleashed bombshell after bombshell in their Oprah interview that was sure to send shockwaves pulsing through the heart of the monarchy.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-9340147/Meghan-Markles-half -sister-Samantha-slams-Oprah-interview.html
They made jaw-dropping claims of brazen racism and delved into difficult conversations of family rifts.
Although much of the interview was an outpouring of emotion, many of the claims can be stood up - or knocked down - with facts.
Here, MailOnline drills down into some of the central claims of the interview.
1. Archie has a birthright to be a prince
Meghan said: Idea of the first member of colour in this family, not being titled in the same way that other grandchildren would be... It's not their right to take it away'
Fact check: False
Archie did not have a birthright to be a prince, but could potentially become one when Charles accedes to the throne.
That William and Kate's children have the HRH title and are styled as prince and princesses - and Archie is not - stems from a ruling more than 100 years ago.
In 1917, King George V issued a written order that only royal offspring who are in the direct line of succession could be made a prince and receive HRH titles.
The Letters Patent read: '...the grandchildren of the sons of any such sovereign in the direct male line (save only the eldest living son of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales) shall have and enjoy in all occasions the style and title enjoyed by the children of dukes of these our realms.'
Under the rules, only Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge's eldest son Prince George - as a great-grandson of the monarch down the direct line of succession to the throne - was originally entitled to be a prince.
The Queen stepped in ahead of George's birth in 2013 to issue a Letters Patent to ensure all George's siblings - as the children of future monarch William - would have fitting titles, meaning they were extended to Charles and Louis.
Under the George V rules, Archie would be entitled to be an HRH or a prince when his grandfather Charles, the Prince of Wales, accedes to the throne.
2. Archie wouldn't get 24/7 security because he wasn't a prince
Meghan said: In those months when I was pregnant, all around this same time, so we (had) the conversation of he won't be given security, he's not going to be given a title.
Fact check: False
Being a prince or princess does not automatically mean royals have police protection.
Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie's security is no longer paid for by the taxpayer.
Harry and Meghan no longer receive British police protection, and are understood to be paying for private security.
3. Meghan has not seen Samantha Markle in almost 20 years
Meghan said: 'The last time I saw her must have been at least 18, 19 years.'
Fact check: False
During the interview Meghan distanced herself from her half-sister Samantha, who she said she hardly knows and she grew up 'an only child'.
A photograph from 2008 - 13 years ago - shows Meghan with Samantha at her graduation.
4. Meghan's half-sister Samantha only changed her name back to Markle when Meghan began dating Harry
Fact check: False
Samantha has shared evidence to the contrary, revealing that she filed a petition to change her last name to Markle in December 1997
5. Harry was financially cut off by the royals
Harry said: 'My family literally cut me off financially, and I had to afford security for us'
Fact check: False. They wanted to be financially independent
When Harry and Meghan announced their intention to step back from being senior royals, they said they wanted to be 'financially independent'.
Before cutting ties, 95 per cent of their money came from Prince Charles's income from the Duchy of Cornwall, and 5 per cent from the taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant.
Princes William and Harry received most of a £13million fortune left by their mother Princess Diana. Harry is also thought to have had millions left to him by the Queen mother.
Meghan never researched the Royal Family prior to joining
Meghan said: 'I didn't do any research about what that would mean,' she said. 'I never looked up my husband online.'
Fact check: Unlikely
Meghan's claim that she never researched Harry, nor the Royal Family, before entering into the relationship is at odds with claims made in the couple's biography.
Although the Sussexes maintain they did not contribute to Finding Freedom, it was written by friendly journalists Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, who say the book was impeccably well-sourced by those closest to the couple.
Prior to their first date at Dean Street Townhouse in 2016, the authors write: 'Naturally both participants in this blind date did their homework with a thorough Google search. Harry, who scoped out Meghan on social media, was interested.'
A friend is also claimed to have impressed on Meghan the attention she would command for dating Harry, saying: 'This could be crazy...you will be the most wanted woman'.
Harry and Meghan were actually secretly wed three days before the Windsor ceremony by the Archbishop of Canterbury
Meghan said: 'You know, three days before our wedding, we got married. No one knows that... We called the Archbishop and we just said, 'Look, this thing, this spectacle is for the world but we want our union between us.'
Fact check: Unlikely
Church of England marriages require at least two witnesses and the public must also have unrestricted access to the building during any marriage ceremony to allow for valid objections against the marriage.
At the time the couple were living in the grounds of Kensington Palace, and their residence is off limits to the public.
A couple who are already lawfully married cannot choose to re-marry each other, unless there is some doubt as to the validity of the earlier marriage.
Reverend David Green, Vicar of St Mary's, West Malling and the Rector of St Michael's, Offham, said it was impossible to have had two weddings, adding: 'I think the Archbishop needs to clarify what did or did not happen three days before.'
This means that one of the two ceremonies was more likely just an exchange of vows rather than a legally recognized wedding.
Kate made Meghan cry before her wedding to Harry
Responding to claims that she reduced Kate to tears, Meghan said: 'No, no. The reverse happened.'
Fact check: Contested
Reports of a pre-wedding clash between the duchesses first emerged in November 2018, when sources claimed Meghan had been left displeased with a 'stressful' dress fitting for the flower girls.
Accounts differed as to the source of the row. Some said it was a disagreement on whether the bridesmaids should wear tights - Meghan reportedly believed they should not.
Other reports said it stemmed from Princess Charlotte's dress not fitting, meaning another had to be scheduled.
A source said at the time: 'Kate had only just given birth to her third child, Prince Louis, and was feeling quite emotional.'
But during the Oprah interview Meghan flatly denied the reports and claimed it was Kate that left her upset.
Couple witnessed racism inside the monarchy
Meghan said: [There were] concerns and conversations about how dark his [Archie's] skin might be when he's born'
Fact check: Almost impossible to verify
Harry and Meghan said they will never reveal the person who made these comments.
However Oprah revealed that Harry confirmed it was not the Queen nor Prince Philip.
While currently not commenting on the contents interview, Buckingham Palace are almost certain to push back on suggestions of institutional racism.
They could launch an investigation - as they have done with claims of bullying.
Meghan had to turn over her passport, keys and driving licence to royal aides
Meghan said: 'When I joined that family, that was the last time I saw my passport, my driving licence, my keys - all of that gets turned over.'
Fact check: Difficult to verify
Senior royals are often pictured driving themselves and it is believed there have never been prior claims of a royal having keys and passports held.
Harry and Meghan received police protection, meaning their travel was meticulously planned by officers.
Meghan's press team didn't defend her when 'things weren't true'
Oprah asked Meghan about stories that she made Kate cry, saying: 'So, all the time the stories were out that you had made Kate cry, you knew all along, and people around you knew that that wasn't true.' Meghan replied: 'Everyone in the institution knew it wasn't true.' And Oprah then said: 'So, why didn't somebody just say that?' Meghan said: 'That's a good question.'
Fact check: Contested
Making a wider point, Mail on Sunday royal correspondent Emily Andrews has said that Meghan's press team did in fact defend untrue stories, saying this was 'just not right'.
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