Duchess distraught at Palace ticking-off over ‘H&M’ necklace
MEGHAN told friends that she was ‘scolded’ by palace staff for wearing a personalised necklace, the new biography of the Sussexes claims.
She said she was warned that wearing the 14-carat gold chain with the initials H and M during the early days of the couple’s romance would only fuel media interest.
When she was pictured in the £230 necklace while shopping in Toronto in December 2016, it was viewed as confirmation of the seriousness of the couple’s relationship.
Up until that point, it had been reported they were dating but they had not been photographed together in public. The necklace, by designer Maya Brenner, customised with M and H charms, is believed to have been a gift from Harry.
In the biography, Finding Freedom, authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand say the necklace prompted palace aides to offer her some advice, which left Meghan feeling ‘frustrated and emotional’.
‘She was advised that wearing such a necklace only served to encourage the photographers to keep pursuing such images – and new headlines,’ they wrote.
During a conversation with one senior Kensington Palace aide, the book reports, Meghan ‘said little during the call, choosing instead to simply listen to the counsel.
‘But after hanging up, she felt frustrated and emotional. While she knew the aide had good intentions, the surreal experience of having someone from her boyfriend’s office tell her what kind of jewellery to wear or not to smile at a photographer was too much.’ According to the book, a ‘distraught’ Meghan then called a friend, saying: ‘I can’t win.
‘They make out like I’m to blame for these pictures, that it looks like I’m encouraging them, that me even acknowledging the cameras may not be sending the right message.
‘I don’t know what to say. It was only yesterday that people online were saying I look miserable in pictures, because I was trying to just ignore the [photographer].’ Meghan was said to have ‘felt damned if she did and damned if she didn’t’, according to the book, excerpts of which were published by US magazine People yesterday.
The book also sheds new light on a row over Meghan’s wedding tiara, blaming the fallout on the Queen’s favourite dresser. Preparations for the couple’s big day were said to have been marred by the debate over which tiara Meghan could wear.
She had reportedly set her heart on an emerald encrusted headpiece, but her request was refused when the origin of the piece could not be established.
When Harry heard this, he reportedly said: ‘What Meghan wants, Meghan gets’ – prompting the Queen to intervene.
In the end, Meghan wore Queen Mary’s diamond and platinum bandeau tiara from the Queen’s private collection during the wedding ceremony, which took place at St George’s Chapel in Windsor.
According to the book, Harry felt it was the Queen’s dresser and personal assistant Angela Kelly who deliberately dragged her feet in helping Meghan choose a tiara.
Miss Kelly, 52, is a close confidante of the Queen, having worked with her since 2002.
‘Damned if she did and if she didn’t’