Friends’ comments draw criticism for the Duchess of Sussex

LONDON: THE Duchess of Sussex faced criticism this week over her apparent decision to allow her closest friends to defend her in an extraordinary magazine interview.

The feature, in US celebrity magazine People, saw five of “those who know Meghan best set the record straight” over her troubled relationship with her father, Thomas Markle, pictured right, and criticism of her style as a royal.

But experts and royal insiders said the duchess had been wrong to sanction the interview.

Kensington Palace refused to comment on whether the anonymous sources had co-operated with the magazine at the direct request of the duchess or, at the very least, with her tacit permission.

It was clear, however, that the palace press office had not been involved. It is understood that the palace was informed by the magazine staff only minutes before publication about the article’s exceptional detail – including a verbatim account of a letter written by Meghan, 37, to her estranged father.

The duchess showed no sign of the furore this week as she and Harry arrived, hand in hand, for the Endeavour Fund Awards, which celebrate the achievements of injured service personnel.