Prince Harry

RICHARD EDEN: For first time my Palace sources reveal what Meghan did BEFORE marriage that they describe as ‘punch to the solar plexus’. They tell me why ‘it set alarm bells ringing’ and made them fear her motivations


The allegations in the excoriating Vanity Fair article about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex this week have been dismissed by the couple and described as ‘distressing’, sources ‘close to’ them have claimed.

Among the slew of shocking allegations – including claims that Meghan was a bullying boss while Harry was hapless and disengaged – was the suggestion that people who work for the duchess spoke to an unnamed publishing house to ‘gauge interest’ in the idea of a book about her life ‘post-divorce’, even though the couple have not split up. It also stated in the piece that this was not on the horizon for the Sussexes, with another source saying their ‘love is real’ and that they are ‘still hot for each other’.

I can disclose, however, that it was not this Vanity Fair article but a previous interview in the magazine that truly alarmed Buckingham Palace

Back in 2017, the then Meghan Markle was thrilled when she learned she would be on the cover of the respected US magazine. It was an ambition that she had long held, but one of which she could only dream while still a minor actress on the TV legal drama Suits.

The cover of Vanity Fair was reserved for genuine stars, so when she was approached by the magazine, after news broke of her romance with Prince Harry the previous October, Meghan couldn’t contain her excitement.

‘She’s just wild about Harry!’ gushed the headline that September.

Inside, the magazine declared: ‘As Markle tells Vanity Fair about her bi-racial background, her romance, and her hit series, Suits, it seems that this 36-year-old American may be just the woman for Britain’s iconoclastic royal.’

While Meghan was jubilant at the prospect of her double-whammy – bagging a prince and a Vanity Fair cover – royal officials were perturbed by the article when it was published.

The Vanity Fair 8,000-word cover story, under the headline 'American Hustle', included claims that some staff who worked for Meghan found her 'really, really awful'

The Vanity Fair 8,000-word cover story, under the headline ‘American Hustle’, included claims that some staff who worked for Meghan found her ‘really, really awful’

Harry and Meghan's engagement was not announced until two months after the original Vanity Fair article was published in 2017. Pictured, the couple's official engagement photoshoot

Harry and Meghan’s engagement was not announced until two months after the original Vanity Fair article was published in 2017. Pictured, the couple’s official engagement photoshoot

‘It was like a punch to the solar plexus,’ a royal source told me this week. ‘We do not expect friends of members of the Royal Family to give such interviews.’

The source pointed out that Kate Middleton and Lady Diana Spencer, for example, waited until after their engagements had been announced before they gave an interview. And, in both cases, it was organised by Palace officials for the TV cameras under the strictest of conditions.

Harry and Meghan’s engagement was not announced until two months after the Vanity Fair article was published.

‘While people were pleased that Harry had found a serious girlfriend, the article did set alarm bells ringing,’ the source told me. ‘It made people worry that Miss Markle was seeking to use the relationship for publicity purposes.’

A source close to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex insisted this week that Kensington Palace had ‘signed off’ Meghan’s interview in 2017.

However, while Palace officials may have reluctantly agreed to the idea of an article, they did not know what it would contain.

In the article, Meghan was quoted speaking openly about her romance with Harry, saying: ‘We’re in love. This [time] is for us. It’s part of what makes it so special, that it’s just ours. But we’re happy. Personally, I love a great love story.’

However, although Meghan had been feverishly excited about the prospect of a cover story, she was said to be disappointed by the result.

She's 'just wild about Harry!' the Vanity Fair headline gushed in 2017 - but Meghan was not happy with the cover story, and neither was Buckingham Palace, say sources

She’s ‘just wild about Harry!’ the Vanity Fair headline gushed in 2017 – but Meghan was not happy with the cover story, and neither was Buckingham Palace, say sources

Royal author Valentine Low wrote in his book, Courtiers: The Hidden Power Behind The Crown, that Meghan was troubled by the focus of the article being her relationship with Harry.

A source was quoted as saying: ‘She was very unhappy with how that had been handled. And she was looking to throw blame in every possible direction, despite it having been a positive piece.

‘She did not like the photographs. She thought the story was negative. She was upset that it was about Harry, not about her.’

Harry and Meghan also allegedly thought the headline was racially motivated and pointed out the song, I’m Just Wild About Harry, had been performed by Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney as a ‘blackface’ number in the 1939 film Babes In Arms.

Now there has been speculation that the negative tone of this week’s Vanity Fair piece may have been influenced by its journalists’ experience dealing with Meghan in 2017.

The 8,000-word cover story, under the headline ‘American Hustle’, included claims that some staff who worked for Meghan found her ‘really, really awful’ and felt they could be ‘thrown to the wolves at any given moment’.

The magazine cited multiple sources who have worked for the Sussexes since they quit Britain five years ago, including one former employee who said they could not at first believe the claims that the duchess had bullied Buckingham Palace staff, which she has always denied.

But, after working for Meghan, the source changed their mind, adding: ‘Oh, any given Tuesday this happened.

‘You can be yelled at even if somebody doesn’t raise their voice. [It’s] funny that people don’t differentiate between the energy of being yelled at and literally somebody screaming at you.’

Some staff dubbed the duchess ‘a Mean Girl’ and said working on her short-lived Archetypes podcast for Spotify in 2022 was a ‘very painful’ experience.

Other sources claimed that a colleague with ties to the podcast took a leave of absence after working on just three episodes before ultimately quitting. Some described ‘taking extended breaks from work to escape scrutiny, exiting their job, or undergoing long-term therapy after working with Meghan’.

Meanwhile the magazine portrayed Harry as a dim-witted if well-meaning prince who came up with ‘crazy’ ideas such as a ‘sociopath podcast’ which would involve him interviewing men such as Russian president Vladimir Putin.

A former worker for Spotify, who ended their contract with the Sussexes in 2023, described Harry as ‘challenging to engage with’ and giving an air of ‘why should I do this?’ in interviews.

Cryptically, the article speculated on rumours that Meghan had been approached to write that ‘post-divorce’ book though, of course, it added this was not on the horizon.

The Sussexes declined to co-operate with the Vanity Fair piece and have refused to comment on it.

But it will no doubt leave alarm bells ringing – not least for the beleaguered couple.

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