Meghan and Harry’s texts to her dad went public – and that was just the beginning of their week from hell
Their secret texts have opened up old wounds
Their royal resignation at the beginning of the year suggested that they wanted a more private and low-key life, while their actions since then – including moving to Hollywood and Meghan’s recent work for Disney – have caused some to question whether they really do crave a quiet life. But, whether the Duke and Duchess of Sussex want fame, fortune or none of the above, it’s safe to say that they don’t want the kind of exposure they had to deal with last week.
It started badly and only got worse – with Prince Harry infuriating millions by seemingly downplaying the severity of coronavirus in the UK, before he and Meghan announced they would no longer be working with a massive chunk of the British media. But it was the intimate messages they’d sent to Meghan’s father Thomas Markle in the lead-up to their wedding – which they submitted as evidence in a legal case against The Mail On Sunday – that must have really hurt the most and surely opened up a lot of old wounds for the pair. The messages also highlighted just how much they had tried, and failed, to avoid their now-infamous rift with Meghan’s father.
Early last week, Meghan’s lawyers filed court papers containing texts that both she and Harry had sent to Thomas before their wedding on 19 May 2018. The Duchess is currently suing the MOS for breach of privacy and copyright, after it published a handwritten letter that she had sent to her dad shortly after she and Harry got married. The texts were sent after they found out that Thomas had been paid to stage paparazzi pictures of himself preparing for their wedding – and had also lied about it.
While Thomas has since claimed that Harry and Meghan treated him unfairly, the texts appear to show that they’d offered their support and had repeatedly tried to get in touch with him – especially after finding out that he’d subsequently suffered a heart attack.
In one text, Meghan wrote, “I’ve been reaching out to you all weekend, but you’re not taking any of our calls or replying to any texts. Very concerned about your health and safety and have taken every measure to protect you, but not sure what more we can do if you don’t respond.”