Royal family avoids offering any emotional support to Meghan Markle, Prince Harry during ‘difficult’ time: ‘Not their fight’
The royal family is expected to wash their hands of any drama surrounding Meghan Markle’s father, Thomas Markle Sr., after he was accused of possessing a collection of child pornography, according to multiple royal insiders.
“I don’t anticipate the royal family becoming involved in this situation,” royal reporter Andrea Caamano exclusively told Page Six.
“Despite Harry and Meghan’s return to the UK, relations remain complicated, and I don’t see the Palace wanting to become involved in matters concerning Meghan’s father.”
The co-host of Hello!’s “A Right Royal Podcast” pointed out that there has been no publicly confirmed face-to-face meetings between King Charles III and Harry or the Duke of Sussex’s kids since he and Meghan moved back to the UK in August.
“The King also has an enormous amount on his plate,” Caamano said, noting that he is embarking on a “hugely significant” nine-day Caribbean tour, during which he will attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
Meanwhile, Prince William is preparing to travel to Mumbai in November for the Earthshot Prize Awards. It has yet to be confirmed whether his wife, Kate Middleton, will join him for the trip.
“Ultimately, I think the King and the Prince and Princess of Wales will continue doing what they do best: concentrating on their royal duties and the work ahead of them,” Caamano said. “I wouldn’t expect any public intervention from the royal family in this particular matter.”
Royal commentator Kinsey Schofield agreed, exclusively telling Page Six that Charles is currently in a “difficult position.”
“As a father, he would like to offer Prince Harry emotional support during such a distressing situation. However, as monarch, he has to consider the potential consequences of any private conversation,” Schofield said.
Due to Harry’s history of addressing private family matters with the media, Schofield believes Charles would be hesitant to speak with his youngest son about Thomas Sr.’s scandal.
“The King would be reluctant to discuss such a sensitive matter without reassurance that their conversations would remain private,” she said.
Schofield expects that Prince William will also “not engage” with his estranged brother and sister-in-law.
“This is not his fight,” Schofield said, adding, “William has his own family to protect and his own responsibilities to the Crown. He has little appetite for becoming involved in another Sussex crisis.”
Shofield told Page Six that she touched base with more than 40 Palace sources and found that not one insider had heard anything about allegations against Thomas Sr. before the story broke last week.
“I have found no indication from those conversations that the Palace was previously aware of allegations of this nature,” Schofield said, adding, “Given their seriousness, I would have expected such concerns to be raised through the appropriate channels if they were known during Meghan’s time as a working royal.”
The “Kinsey Schofield Unfiltered” podcast host believes Meghan, 45, and Harry, 42, had a “responsibility” to inform the institution about the allegations against her father when they became aware of them to prepare the royal family for a “potential fallout.”
“Based on my conversations, I have seen no evidence that such a warning was given,” Schofield said.
Last week, Page Six confirmed that Thomas Sr., 82, is being investigated in the Philippines for possessing child sexual abuse material.
Meghan’s half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr., claimed he found “hundreds, if not thousands” of child sexual abuse images and videos among his father’s belongings at his home in Cebu City.
Thomas Sr. denied the accusations, calling them “sick lies.” His daughter, Samantha Markle, responded by accusing Thomas Jr. of lying about the allegations for “revenge.”
Meghan reacted to the news by sharing that she has known about the “deeply distressing” accusations against her father for several years.
“I hope it can now be understood that, despite certain media publications’ distortion over the years, any distance from my father and my choice to not allow him to have contact with our children was for one reason: to protect them,” Markle said in part. “I trusted that the authorities were doing the same for other families.”
The As Ever founder — who shares son Prince Archie, 7, and daughter Princess Lilibet, 5, with Harry — has been estranged from her father since 2018.