From ‘bump-gate’ to her rumoured feud with Kate Middleton: Meghan Markle’s dramatic 2018
A wedding, pregnancy and multiple feuds, including with her sister-in-law Kate — it’s fair to say Meghan Markle hasn’t had the easiest ride into royalty.
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A wedding, pregnancy and multiple feuds, including with her sister-in-law Kate — it’s fair to say Meghan Markle hasn’t had the easiest ride into royalty.
The past 12 months have been dramatic for the Duchess of Sussex.
The former Suits star, 37, is ending the year in suitably headline-grabbing fashion, with tabloid rumours swirling about a rift with the Duchess of Cambridge, constant criticism from her estranged father and half-sister in the press, and of course, a baby on the way.
Meghan — who tied the knot with Prince Harry in May — has had an eventful 2018, with a string of controversies.
ROYAL FEUD
Reports of growing tensions between the Duchess of Sussex and her sister-in-law, the Duchess of Cambridge, have reached fever pitch.
It was reported that Kate Middleton was “in tears” after a tense bridesmaid fitting with her daughter, Princess Charlotte, 3, and Markle in the lead-up to the royal wedding, and that Kate was “furious” over the way Meghan spoke her staff.
The royal rift also extended to Wills and Harry, after Harry was reportedly “unhappy” with the way his brother acted towards Meghan last Christmas.
Adding weight to the reports that the sisters-in-law don’t get along was the sudden announcement that Harry and Meghan wouldn’t be taking up the offer to live in an apartment next door to William and Kate in Kensington Palace.
Instead, they’re moving to Frogmore Cottage at Windsor Castle.
Will the change in address help repair the strained relationships? 2019 will tell.
MARKLE FAMILY DRAMA
As if a falling out with her sister-in-law Kate wasn’t enough, Meghan’s half-sibling Samantha Markle has been a constant source of drama for the Duchess of Sussex in 2018.
Samantha — who once branded Meghan the “duchass” — has not been shy about her opinions, regularly launching Twitter and tabloid rants about Meghan.
When Meghan and Harry announced their pregnancy, Samantha desperately tried to look supportive, telling the press: “It’s so important that everybody put their egos aside”.
“Meghan’s done some things with my dad, but in my heart, I love her and I want her and the baby to do well,” Samantha said, at the time.
“I was kind of overwhelmed with emotion [when I heard] and I just thought, I’m letting everything go.
“It’s beautiful and I’m so excited for Harry too.”
Her kind words were short-lived, and as recently as this week, Samantha ripped into Meghan publicly yet again, this time over the royal couple’s Christmas card — calling it “sad” and “rude”.
Speaking of Meghan’s estranged father, he has not seen Meghan since she married Prince Harry (Thomas had been expected to walk her down the aisle but had to pull out due to illness).
Her father this week appeared on Good Morning Britain, calling Meghan “controlling”, admitted he texts her daily and said he wanted the Queen to personally intervene in their family affairs.
“I’m very disappointed by it. I’m not sure why it’s happening,” Thomas told the program.
“I’m reaching out … every day I try and text her and just haven’t had any comment back,” Thomas continued.
“She has always been a very controlling person and that is part of her nature but she has never been rude.
“The ghosting I don’t completely understand.”
Prince Charles’ biographer, Robert Jobson, even weighed in, suggesting the Duchess of Sussex is “playing a dangerous game” and urged her to reach out.
“He is not in the best of health and I would urge Meghan to make contact with him and to try and build bridges,” Jobson said, according to The Sun.
STAFF RESIGNATIONS
In the space of six months, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex lost three close palace aides.
Meghan’s personal assistant, identified as Melissa Toubati, 39, quit her post, sending shockwaves through the royal couple’s offices.
According to the Mail Online, a Kensington Palace source confirmed her resignation in particular was a “real shock” and raised questions about the way Meghan treats staff.
As a source told the UK media outlet that the continuous resignations were an alarming trend.
“To lose one member of the household could happen to anyone,” the source told the British newspaper.
“To lose three in a few months is starting to look like a stampede.”
According to The Sun, the French assistant who played a “pivotal role in the success of the Royal Wedding” ditched her appointment after “putting up with a lot”.
She had previously worked for rock star Robbie Williams.
She is also losing Samantha Cohen, an Australian originally from Queensland, who was the couple’s private secretary. Known as ‘The Panther’, Cohen, 50, will leave after Meghan and Harry’s child is born in the spring next year.
She has served as a communications secretary, and has spent 17 years working for the royal family. She was filling a role left vacant by Edward Lane Fox, after Harry and Meghan reportedly wanted her to stay on.
BUMP-GATE
She has developed a rep for being a style queen and Meghan certainly turned heads when she made a surprise appearance at the 2018 British Fashion Awards, taking the stage to deliver a speech about women’s empowerment.
The pregnant Duchess was introduced by actor Rosamund Pike, and presented the British Womenswear Designer of the Year award to Clare Waight Keller, of Givenchy, aka the designer who made her wedding dress.
Meghan wore a fitted black one-shoulder velvet gown by Givenchy, with her hair pulled back in a sleek bun. It was one of the most memorable style moments of the year and, in typical Meghan fashion, it created controversy.
While delivering the slightly cringe-worthy speech, Meghan was dissed on social media because she kept touching her baby bump.
“It’s so nice to see so many familiar faces,” Markle told the A-list crowd, which included supermodels Kendall Jenner and Kaia Gerber.
“As all of you in this room know, we have a deep connection to what we wear,” Markle continued, during her bizarre address.
“Sometimes it’s very personal, sometimes it’s emotional.
“But for me this connection is rooted in, really, being able to understand that it’s about supporting and empowering each other, especially as women.”
Even today, her bump made news. Visiting the Royal Variety Charity's residential nursing and care home in Twickenham, she sent the rumour mill into overdrive because her pregnancy belly looked more prominent than expected.
The former Hollywood actor said she appeared “very pregnant today’’.
It had been believed the Duchess was about five months pregnant and due in April, but her prominent bump set off speculation that she was much further along in her pregnancy than first thought — or even that she was expecting twins.
INSANE WARDROBE
She certainly has expensive taste. Reports have suggested Meghan has spent $US1 million (about $A1.36 million) on clothes ince she married Harry in May.
Her Givenchy wedding gown alone cost $440,000, while her sleek Stella McCartney reception dress had a price-tag of $155,000.
The Duchess of Sussex spared no cost when it came to her Australian tour wardrobe in October, wearing nearly $A30,000 worth of designer outfits in just four days.
The pregnant royal showed off her sleek and sophisticated dress sense during her time in Sydney, Melbourne and Dubbo, among other stops.
But the outfits were not cheap. Her cashed-up wardrobe has included a Martin Grant trench coat ($A2262), Dion Lee dress ($A1282), Stuart Weitzman heels ($A656) and a Gucci mini Sylvie bag ($A2650).
In Bondi, she sported a Martin Grant striped maxi dress, which cost about $A1605, teamed with $A145 espadrilles by Castaner, and Karen Walker ‘Temptation’ studs ($A169).
So what will Meghan wear next year? And what new dramas are in store for the Hollywood actor-turned royal? One thing’s for certain … she will definitely make headlines again in 2019.
Originally published as From ‘bump-gate’ to her rumoured feud with Kate Middleton: Meghan Markle’s dramatic 2018
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