Sunday Mirror

Cage weds fifth wife in secret casino bash

- BY HALINA WATTS Showbiz Editor and RUSSELL MYERS Royal Editor Russell.myers@mirror.co.uk

NICOLAS Cage hopes he’s hit the jackpot as he weds for the fifth time, before partying with ex-wife No3.

The Con Air star, 57, and Riko Shibata, 26, wed in secret at a Las Vegas casino last month, with former Mrs Cage Alice Kim and their son Kal among guests.

Cage, whose last marriage to make-up artist Erika Koike lasted four days, said they were “very happy”.

THE royal “bullying” saga took an astonishin­g twist yesterday as it emerged Prince William’s wife Kate could assist the probe into Harry’s wife Meghan.

Former aides are set to claim the Duchess of Cambridge witnessed Meghan’s “challengin­g behaviour”.

It was already revealed by several sources that Kate, 39, stood up for her own staff after they were berated.

But now she could be questioned in a formal probe into alleged bullying by Duchess of Sussex Meghan.

And even Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, might be called upon to assist as Palace officials have vowed to carry out a thorough investigat­ion.

The developmen­ts came as the Palace – and the world – braced itself for Meghan and Harry’s interview with Oprah Winfrey.

The explosive twohour chat goes out in the US tonight – 1am UK time – and is on ITV at 9pm tomorrow.

The Queen, as ever, has maintained dignity throughout – showing calm leadership despite the worry over husband Prince Philip – in hospital after a heart procedure. Her Majesty ordered the probe into Meghan’s alleged bullying.

Palace aides will consider testimony from at least 10 ex-staffers who reportedly accuse her of “emotional cruelty and manipulati­on”.

The double whammy of the bullying probe and the Oprah interview has sent royal households into a spin. In their interview, no subject is “off limits” as Meghan and Harry discuss why they quit as working royals. Pregnant Meghan, 39, says she feels “liberated”.

She, Harry and toddler son Archie now live in the millionair­e’s playground of Montecito, California. They

Plenty of people have witnessed Meghan’s challengin­g behaviour EX-PALACE STAFFER TALKING ABOUT DUCHESS OF SUSSEX

Kate & Wills on BBC1 tonight have signed £100mplus deals with giants like Netflix and Spotify.

The Palace is braced for a raft of allegation­s after Meghan accused the royals of “perpetuati­ng falsehoods”.

The duchess discusses how the strain under the spotlight was “almost unsurvivab­le”. It is also believed she could confirm rumours of a rift with Kate by suggesting a lack of support.

Afghanista­n war veteran Harry tells

Oprah his “biggest concern was history repeating itself ” – referring to his mother Princess Diana, who felt hounded and isolated. She died in a Paris car crash in 1997, aged 36.

CBS reportedly paid Oprah’s production outfit up to £7million for the interview. The chat host, 67, is worth £1.8billion, with stakes in cable channel OWN and Weight Watchers, for which she is brand ambassador.

ITV is understood to have paid £1million for secondary rights to the interview, being shown in 68 countries. It comes after aides revealed

Meghan faced a bullying complaint during her time at Kensington Palace. Former communicat­ions secretary Jason Knauf claimed, in 2018, Meghan drove two personal assistants out of the household and was underminin­g the confidence of a third staffer.

HUMILIATED

Two senior members of staff have claimed they were bullied when the Sussexes were sharing Kensington Palace staff with William and Kate.

Harry and Meghan later moved their offices to Buckingham Palace and relocated to Frogmore Cottage, Windsor. Another former employee told The Times they had been “humiliated” by Meghan and claimed two members of staff had been bullied.

Previously, a source said Kate stood up to Meghan for publicly rebuking staff. A former staffer, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said: “That was just one of a catalogue of instances where Meghan spoke out of turn to staff in front of others.

“These aren’t isolated instances and plenty of people witnessed Meghan’s challengin­g behaviour.”

This is smear campaign... it is part of a wholly false narrative by the Palace SUSSEXES’ TEAM HIT

BACK AT BULLYING CLAIMS

In another incident, Kate was reportedly “left sobbing” by Meghan’s “outspoken demands” around Princess Charlotte’s bridesmaid dress. In today’s Sunday Times it is claimed “the entire household was on the verge of quitting... it was drama, drama, drama with those two”.

A source tells of Meghan allegedly flipping at her PA – over blankets.

It is claimed: “Meghan hosted a shooting party at Sandringha­m for Harry’s friends. She ordered personally embroidere­d blankets for guests, in red. When they arrived, they weren’t the right shade of red for Meghan and she went mental.”

The aide claimed Harry “behaved appallingl­y for months” and was “rude, petty and stressed about so many small things”. However, when made aware staff were unhappy “he apologised to everyone involved”.

Meghan denies bullying and the first she knew of the probe was in the press. A source close to them said:

“This is a tit-for-tat scenario. If this was a private company, we’ve effectivel­y already been fired.”

A spokesman for the couple said they are victims of a “smear campaign based on misleading, harmful misinforma­tion”. The couple’s lawyers say allegation­s are part of a “wholly false narrative” from the Palace.

It is understood Meghan believed courtiers and royals themselves had been briefing the press against her.

The Palace said: “We are clearly very concerned about allegation­s following claims made by former staff of the Duke and Duchess.

“Accordingl­y, our HR team will look into the circumstan­ces outlined in the article. The royal household will not tolerate bullying or harassment in the workplace.”

 ??  ?? LEAVING LAS VEGAS Cage & Riko after the cereomny
EX MACHINE With Alice Kim
YOU’RE MY ROCK Couple say their vows
SNOG MY FACE OFF They kiss to seal the deal
HONEYMOON PERIOD Pair in New York on Friday
LEAVING LAS VEGAS Cage & Riko after the cereomny EX MACHINE With Alice Kim YOU’RE MY ROCK Couple say their vows SNOG MY FACE OFF They kiss to seal the deal HONEYMOON PERIOD Pair in New York on Friday
 ??  ?? SOAP OPRAH Harry & Meg’s interview
THEY’RE ON TV TOO...
SOAP OPRAH Harry & Meg’s interview THEY’RE ON TV TOO...
 ??  ?? TRIBUTE Queen’s brooch is touching nod to Prince Philip
TRIBUTE Queen’s brooch is touching nod to Prince Philip

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