Five of Meghan Markle's closest friends have anonymously spoken out to defend the Duchess of Sussex after months of backlash. From her messy extended family constantly talking to the press and persistent rumors about a viscous feud between her and Kate Middleton, Meghan has endured endless scrutiny in the two years since her relationship with Prince Harry became public. The freshman royal has handled the unfortunate situation as gracefully as possible and staying mum on all the drama.
Now, though, People has spoken to five women who make up "an essential part of Meghan’s inner circle” to set the record straight. Meghan's BFFs asked to remain anonymous in order to protect their relationships with the Duchess. The reason these five women have decided to come forward is because they want to “stand up against the global bullying we are seeing and speak the truth about our friend,” a longtime friend and former co-star explained.
“Meg has silently sat back and endured the lies and untruths,” her former costar continued. "We worry about what this is doing to her and the baby,” she said. “It’s wrong to put anyone under this level of emotional trauma, let alone when they’re pregnant.”
They also shut down reports that Meghan had a huge falling out with her paternal half-siblings, Samantha Markle and Thomas Markle, Jr. According to her friends, Meghan was never close with her much older half-siblings. “They have been made to appear as siblings who had this falling out, and that’s not the truth at all,” another longtime friend saids.“They were not a part of her life.”
Meghan's friends addressed her father's claims that he isn't able to get in touch with his daughter. “He knows how to get in touch with her. Her telephone number hasn’t changed,” one friend told People. “He’s never called; he’s never texted. It’s super painful, because Meg was always so dutiful. I think she will always feel genuinely devastated by what he’s done. And at the same time, because she’s a daughter, she has a lot of sympathy for him.”
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According to Meg's inner circle, she really hasn't changed at all since becoming royalty. “When you see her at walkabouts, when she crouches down to talk to the kids and genuinely has real conversations with people, that’s Meg,” her former costar said. “That’s how she crouches down with our kids at home. That’s how she plays with them. That’s how she engages with people and how she always has.”
"If I’m thrown some kind of curveball, I always think, ‘I gotta talk to Meg,’ ” another friend added. “We talk daily. And the first thing out of her mouth is, ‘How are the kids? How are you?’ I’m not even allowed to ask about her until she finds out about me.”
One of Meghan's friends friend from L.A., where she grew up, detailed a recent visit to Harry and Meghan's Kensington Palace cottage. “We had a couple of days together recently. Her husband was out of town on work. In the room she made up for me, there was a candle lit by the bed, slippers and a robe. We were the only two in the house. It was our time," she recalled. "She made the most lovely meals. She made tea every day. It was raining and muddy outside, so the dogs got all dirty, and she’s wiping them off with towels. How much she loves her animals, how much she loves her friends, how much she loves feeding you, taking care of you — none of that has changed.”
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