For a brief, shining moment, it seemed Meghan Markle and Prince Harry had finally cracked the royal code: keep your head down, keep your mouth shut and, most importantly, don’t tell anyone what happened behind the gilded doors of Highgrove House.
In the days after their top-secret summit with King Charles and Queen Camilla last month, the couple’s unusually low profile left royal watchers wondering what on earth had happened. There were no interviews, no photographs and barely a peep from the Sussex camp.
Then, just as she made her appearance on MasterChef Australia, the Duchess seemingly decided it was time to lift the lid. Three weeks after the secret meeting, Meghan returned to social media with a carefully curated collection of photographs from the family’s European summer, including the first glimpse of Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, as they visited Princess Diana’s grave at Althorp House to lay flowers.
The images may have offered a warm glimpse into the Sussexes’ family life, but they reportedly failed to impress everyone behind palace walls, with Prince William said to be particularly unimpressed.
And now, barely a week later, the Sussexes have found themselves facing another royal headache – only this time, it’s the oven mitts rather than the crowns that are coming off.
US homemaking powerhouse Martha Stewart, 85, appeared to drop Meghan into some seriously hot water after claiming she had been discussing her reconciliation with Charles at a recent Hollywood dinner party. A revelation which, if the King really did want the meeting kept under wraps, could hardly have come at a more awkward time.
Martha Stewart seemed to suggest Meghan had been talking about her royal return, despite reportedly being sworn to secrecy by the king. © Getty Images
Now, we’re told the latest reports have left Harry particularly frustrated. A source tells us that he is worried the Martha Stewart claims could upset the royals and, more damagingly, breathe new life into concerns among some members of the royal household that the Sussexes remain loose cannons who simply cannot be trusted with sensitive family matters.
An insider says, ‘This is the absolute worst thing that could be happening right now. Here they are trying so hard to build back trust, and Harry’s giving his father and everyone on the King’s staff these assurances that he and Meghan will both be total vaults. And then this comes out – it’s an absolute nightmare.
‘The King has a ton of people in his ear who have made it their job to warn him about anything that might be interpreted negatively, and no doubt they will see the headlines about Meghan supposedly talking about her visit with His Majesty as a full-scale disaster and use it as proof that she can’t be trusted.’
Harry wants a full scale reconciliation with his family, but could these latest accusations have cast doubt in royal circles? © Getty Images
Ever since Meghan landed her own now-defunct Netflix cooking show, With Love, Meghan, she has been widely pitted against Martha, even being depicted in the press as ‘Montecito’s version of Martha Stewart’. Martha, meanwhile, appears to have done little to dampen the growing speculation of a feud and, last week, the apron-clad firecracker served up a low blow during an interview with People magazine.
Martha told them, ‘I had dinner with Meghan Markle the other night. We were both guests at a dinner party in California. And she had just gotten back from the palace. I didn’t talk to her really more than to say a couple words, but I know she was talking about it.’
Grab your popcorn folks, as she then went on to deliver yet another clanger when she speculated why Meghan’s foray into cooking may not have chimed with viewers as much as she might have hoped.
The outspoken octogenarian then added, ‘If you’re an actress, it’s hard to then transition to a princess and then from a princess into a homemaking guru on a television show. It doesn’t sort of follow. So go from there.’
It’s not clear what, if anything, Meghan did let slip, but the source warns that at such a vulnerable point in time with the Sussexes on the precipice of a royal return, the damage may have already been done.
‘Meghan is adamant that she absolutely wasn’t sharing anything private, or anything at all for that matter, but unfortunately, that doesn’t really undo the damage that Martha’s comments have done,’ the source says.
‘Perception is everything, and now there are global headlines that make it seem as though Meghan was blabbing all about the visit. It’s a terrible look and is not going to go over well with anyone at the Palace. Things are so delicate right now, and people are so thirsty for any bit of gossip, even the nod of a head can be twisted into something.’
Meanwhile, until now, Harry, 41, had been riding on the crest of his homecoming, which included his much-anticipated return to the One Year to Go for Invictus Games; his attendance at a festival for the incredible charity, Scotty’s Little Soldiers, and, of course, the highlight – his frolicking with baby goats.
Now the source says the headlines have made the largely estranged royal, who still hasn’t spoken to his brother for four years, even more determined to put his foot down over who, if anyone, they can really trust in Hollywood.
We’re told, ‘It’s incredibly frustrating for Harry; these sorts of public dramas have the potential to set back everything he’s been working towards. Harry’s goal is to smooth things over with his family, and these are the exact sorts of things that make them wary.
‘Harry’s now taking the stance that the safest thing to do for now might be to avoid attending these sorts of Hollywood parties for the time being, just to make sure nothing like this happens because he feels they cannot afford any missteps and clearly nowhere is safe.’
© Instagram/@meghan
Meghan, however, appears to be dusting herself off in the way that only a Duchess knows how – with ice cream, a tiara and launching herself into a swimming pool whilst holding a bunch of birthday balloons to celebrate turning 45 last week.
But even then, her celebrations have been labelled ‘desperate’, ‘embarrassing’ and ‘obnoxious’ by her critics, as we’re told the headlines she’s once again generated over the past few days have led some to advise the King to ‘pull back’.
‘The same goes for all the photos and videos Meghan shared online [for her birthday], that was also deeply frowned on,’ the source says.
‘She’s gone and given the critics ammunition by dancing around in a tiara and essentially playing right into the hands of people urging the King to pull back. Yes, it’s an authentic fun moment and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it, but the question is: Why share it online with people who are going to make it their business to suck the joy out of it and turn it into something that bites them?’
These latest pictures also only add fuel to the growing speculation that Harry and Meghan may have differing views over how much of their private lives they share on social media. Not only that, it has also been widely reported by royal observers that Harry appears to have become increasingly disillusioned with the Hollywood scene – putting him at odds with Meghan’s goal to launch a global lifestyle brand which depends on her having a very public presence.
‘The root problem is that their goals are at odds. In order to please the royals, the best approach is to take a very low-key, very guarded approach to anything public-facing. But, to promote her brand, Meghan is required to do the total opposite,’ the insider explains.
‘To build a fan base on social media and connect with them and hang on to them, she needs to share her life. If she doesn’t do that, she won’t get followers, and that impacts everything these days, including investments.’
They add, ‘The truth is, it’s just not possible for her to fit into the royals’ very narrow and stuffy view of what is acceptable. She doesn’t want to have to censor herself and everything she does in hopes of pleasing them. Especially because she’s done so much already and gotten next to nothing back. It’s very hard to imagine that she and Harry will ever see eye to eye on this.’
