MORE CAD THAN DAD
Meghan Markle’s father has, for some months, been painted as a doddery, pathetic figure whose desire to live a quiet life has been turned upside down by her marriage. And that may be true. But I doubt it. This week he was back on TV spilling secrets of conversations with Meghan and Harry. All this just weeks after the debacle of staged paparazzi pictures. So why does he appear to be going out of his way to embarrass the newlyweds? Well there’s the money obviously. But there appears to be a gargantuan ego at play too. If Prince Harry wasn’t such a nicely brought up young man he’d have told Thomas Markle to go stuff himself when his request for permission to marry Meghan was greeted with: “Promise you’ll never raise your hand to my daughter and of course I give you my permission.”
What a ludicrous thing coming from a man who has dipped in and out of his children’s lives as it has suited him. Who most likely never had any intention of attending her wedding. And who rather than celebrate his daughter’s achievements as a successful, single woman referred to her as a chattel he was happy to trade for the right commitment.
The whole exchange was like a scene from one of those dreadful movies Markle made his money from. Any father who truly cared whether his daughter may one day be a victim of domestic violence would be more involved in her life than a single transatlantic phone call.
But the reality is that Markle cares little about the impact his words have on those he purports to care for. And cares everything about the way others perceive him.