Meghan Markle shared transcripts of never-before-seen text messages with her father, and they flip the narrative of their relationship on its head
- The Duchess of Sussex has shared previously unseen text messages sent by herself and Prince Harry to her estranged father Thomas Markle.
- The messages, shared in documents by the duchess' legal team ahead of the upcoming Mail on Sunday court case, changes much of what we thought we knew about their relationship.
- Contrasting with Thomas' account of the conversation, Meghan says Harry told her father that they were "not angry" after he staged paparazzi photos before the royal wedding.
- "If you love Meg and want to make it right please call me as there are two other options which don't involve you having to speak to the media," Harry texted Thomas.
- In text messages sent by Meghan, she said she had dispatched security guards to look out for Thomas after his heart again. She says he denied her help.
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The Duchess of Sussex has shared transcripts of text messages that she and Prince Harry sent to Thomas Markle in the lead up to their royal wedding in 2018.
The text messages were shared by Meghan Markle's legal team in court documents ahead of her upcoming remote hearing with the Mail on Sunday on Friday.
The former actress is suing the publication over the misuse of private information, infringement of copyright, and breach of the Data Protection Act 2008 after it published excerpts from a private letter that she wrote to her father shortly after her royal wedding.
Thomas, who initially shared the duchess' letter with the Mail on Sunday, has assisted the publication's defense team, previously providing information about text messages exchanged between himself, Meghan, and Harry.
Thomas accused the couple of "admonishing [him]" and not inquiring about his health in the text messages. However, the transcripts shared by the duchess tell a completely different story.
Harry warned Thomas that speaking to the media would 'backfire'
According to the Mail on Sunday, Thomas says he texted his daughter on May 14 — the day after the story about his staged paparazzi photos broke —"stating that he was sorry; that he loved her and that he would not be attending the wedding; and that he was going to make a public apology to the Claimant and Prince Harry."
However, Meghan says that Thomas' account of Prince Harry's text response — that he "did not need to apologize and that he should call" — is not accurate.
Several of Harry's text responses were shared by the duchess' legal team, as follows:
- "Tom, it's Harry and I'm going to call you right now."
- "Tom, it's Harry again! Really need to speak to u. U do not need to apologize, we understand the circumstances but 'going public' will only make the situation worse. If u love Meg and want to make it right please call me as there are two other options which don't involve u having to speak to the media, who incidentally created this whole situation. So please call me so I can explain. Meg and I are not angry, we just need just to speak to u. Thanks."
- "Oh any speaking to the press WILL backfire, trust me Tom. Only we can help you, as we have been trying from day 1."
The duchess says that instead of calling them back, her father issued a public statement through TMZ to announce he had suffered a heart attack, which was the first time Harry and Meghan would hear about it.
Meghan says she dispatched protection officers to look after her father when he left hospital, but he refused their help
In response to a text from her father the following day, the duchess says she texted him twice. Rather than just ask him to call her — as implied by the Mail on Sunday — she wrote the following:
- "I've been reaching out to you all weekend but you're not taking any of our calls or replying to our texts... Very concerned about your health and safety and have taken every measure to protect you but not sure what we can do if you don't respond... Do you need help? Can we send the security team down again? I'm very sorry to hear you're in the hospital but need you to please get in touch with us... What hospital are you at?"
- "Harry and I made the decision earlier today and are dispatching the same security guys you turned away this weekend to be a presence on the ground to make sure you're safe... they will be there at your disposal as soon as you need them. Please please call as soon as you can... all of this is incredibly concerning but your health is most important."
The duchess says he didn't respond until later in the evening, saying that "he appreciated the offer but did not feel in danger and would instead recover at a motel."
This comes after Thomas said in a Channel 5 documentary that Harry and Meghan "owe him" for everything he's been through since she became a member of the royal family.
"The royals owe me. Harry owes me. Meghan owes me. What I've been through I should be rewarded for," he said. "My daughter told me that when I reach my senior years she'll take care of me. I'm in my senior years now — I'm 75 years old — so it's time to look after daddy."
Thomas told Meghan he wouldn't come to the royal wedding before his heart attack
There appear to be inconsistencies with Thomas' account of his text messages with the duchess. In the Mail on Sunday's documents, Thomas recalls telling his daughter he wouldn't make it to the wedding the day after the paparazzi photos broke, because he wanted to spare her "any further embarrassment."
However, in the same documents he said that the following day, after being admitted to hospital, he texted to let Meghan know he "would not be able to attend the wedding because his doctors would not allow him to fly."
The duchess responded that Thomas had "already stated that he would not attend the wedding prior to his admission in hospital."
"His refusal to attend the wedding on 14 May was a result of being publicly shamed by the Defendant for having staged paparazzo photographs, a fact which the Defendant deliberately seeks to ignore in the defense," Thomas' legal team added.
The statement refers to the fact that the Mail on Sunday initially shared the photographs of Thomas staging paparazzi photos before he later shared the duchess' letter with the publication.
Read more:
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