Lies, tears, and a whole lotta hurt: The royal rift is getting
worse every day — could Prince Harry's text message revelations make things even worse?
Rumors that Catherine, Princess of Wales, and Meghan Markle had some kind of falling out began
circulating back in 2018 ahead of Meghan and Prince Harry's wedding. At the time,
it was unclear what exactly might have happened between the two women,
but the dominant story insisted that Meghan had done something to make Catherine cry.
Author Tom Bower wrote in his book Revenge that a disagreement happened over Princess Charlotte's
bridesmaid outfit, including the hem, fit, and absence of tights. He claimed that Catherine
"burst into tears" because Meghan had compared Catherine's daughter Charlotte to the daughter
of her friend, Jessica Mulroney. The story persisted for years until Harry and Meghan
addressed the rumor in their 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey. While speaking to the talk show
host and author, Meghan was asked directly if the rumor was true. She replied simply:
"The reverse happened."
Meghan then took the opportunity to explain her side of the story.
After noting that her goal wasn't to take Catherine down, she said:
"It was a really hard week of the wedding, and she was upset about something. But
she owned it, and she apologized."
However, the story persisted in the months that followed,
and Harry attempted to shut down the rumors once and for all when
he shared texts exchanged between the sisters-in-law in his book, Spare.
In his 2023 memoir, Prince Harry makes it abundantly clear that he intends to defend
his wife against the ongoing rumor that she made Catherine cry. In the end, Harry shares
the exact text messages reportedly exchanged between the two women. According to his account,
Catherine initiated the disagreement. She texted Meghan about the bridesmaid dresses, writing:
"Charlotte's dress is too big, too long, too baggy. She cried when she tried it on at home."
Meghan reportedly agreed, but reminded Catherine that a tailor had been available since early that
morning to adjust the dresses. After asking if Catherine would take Charlotte to the tailor,
where the rest of the mothers were having their daughters' dresses adjusted, Catherine replied:
"No, all the dresses need to be remade."
Harry went on to explain that Catherine sought the opinion of her wedding dress designer,
who apparently agreed that the dress needed to be remade. Meghan then asked her future
sister-in-law if she was aware of the additional stress she was under surrounding her wedding,
including her father not attending. Although Catherine acknowledged this, Harry added:
"Kate had other problems with the way Meg was planning her wedding.
Something about a party for the page boys? [...] It went back and
forth. [...] A short time later I arrived home and found Meg on the floor. Sobbing."
Catherine and Meghan aren't the only members of the royal family who have
battled things out via text messages, either. In their 2022 docuseries, Harry & Meghan,
Prince Harry and Meghan share that the younger royal and his brother Prince
William have exchanged more than their fair share of heated texts.
In a scene that was filmed soon after Harry and Meghan's 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey aired,
Harry is seen showing his phone to Meghan, who pauses to read what's on the screen.
"What am I looking at? Wow."
The text came through as Meghan was on the phone with the couple's friend, actor and producer
Tyler Perry. Meghan is also shown reading an official statement from Buckingham Palace.
"While some recollections may vary,
they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately."
Meghan Markle's troubled and dramatic relationship with her father Thomas
Markle has been subjected to scrutiny for almost as long as she has been with
Prince Harry. Thomas famously backed out of attending Meghan and Harry's 2018 wedding at
the last minute, telling his daughter and son-in-law that he was in the hospital.
A letter that Meghan wrote to Thomas about their relationship was published by MailOnline and The
Mail on Sunday; as a result, Meghan sued the publisher of the outlets,
Associated Newspapers Limited, and eventually won her case. However, text messages that she and her
father exchanged were also released during the court battle. In the messages, Meghan explains to
her former press chief Jason Knauf that she wants to write a letter to her father. As she puts it:
"The catalyst for my doing this is seeing how much pain this is causing H. Even after
a week with his dad and endlessly explaining the situation, his family seem to forget the
context — and revert to 'can't she just go and see him and make this stop?'"
Thomas Markle has also shared text messages he sent to Meghan following the announcement
that he would not be present at her wedding. He explained, in part:
"The doctor will not allow me to fly so of course I'm sorry but I
can't come love you and wish you the best of everything."
In a separate text, he wrote:
"Who will be giving you away? If you really need me? I will come I'm sorry about all this."
In one message from May 2018, Meghan wrote to her father:
"Please can I ask that you stop talking to any press... You haven't returned any of our
20+ calls since we all spoke on Saturday morning; which only adds to the hurt you've been causing."
Thomas replied, explaining to his daughter that he wasn't aware of the phone calls and that he
believes he hasn't done anything to hurt her or Harry. The two continued their back and forth,
and Meghan admitted in her Netflix docuseries that the style of texting
didn't resemble her father's — she could only conclude someone else had his phone. However,
Thomas later denied that claim. He told the Daily Mail:
"I wrote every word that I sent from that phone which is still in my possession."