‘She was talking about it’: Meghan caught discussing royal reunion at party
The Duchess of Sussex has been caught speaking about her family’s recent reunion with King Charles at a party in California, potentially putting Prince Harry’s hopes for a wider reconciliation at risk.
Lifestyle guru Martha Stewart said she was at an event recently where Meghan was one of the other invited guests.
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, pictured with her daughter Princess Lilibet at home in California earlier this year. @meghan
Stewart, 85, said: “We were both guests at a dinner party in California. And she had just gotten back from the palace [Highgrove House].
“I didn’t talk to her really more than to say a couple words, but I know she was talking about it,” she told People magazine this week.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, and their two children Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, recently returned to the US from Europe where they had been holidaying in Portugal and the UK.
The Sussexes met with King Charles and Queen Camilla at Highgrove House on July 10 in what Buckingham Palace described as a “private” family event.
No photos or further details would be released following the occasion, the palace added.
Little is known about the meeting and it’s likely to be on purpose so as not to anger the king or the royal household.
According to The Times, there is “existential mistrust” when it comes to the Sussexes and the palace, mainly on Prince Harry and Meghan’s motives.
The couple have become known for spilling family secrets for financial gain since leaving the monarchy in 2020 through various interviews, including their infamous tell-all with Oprah Winfrey, a Netflix docu-series and Harry’s book Spare.
The Sussexes recently returned from the UK where they had lunch with King Charles at Highgrove House and stayed at Althorp (pictured here), the childhood home of Princess Diana. @meghan
According to the publication, palace courtiers had been bracing for any potential fallout from Harry’s family reunion with the king at his private home, not knowing if the duke would make a statement following the lunch.
“Would it create peace in our time or discord and constitutional controversy?” a royal aid told The Times.
“We are always trying to think about what is best not just for a grandfather but for a sovereign and a head of state.”
While the king was meeting with his US-based grandchildren at Highgrove, Prince William was nearby at a charity polo match in Windsor, with the Princess of Wales watching on.
The brothers remain estranged and have not spoken since the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022. They were both at the king’s coronation in May, 2023, but had no contact with Harry returning to California immediately after the historic ceremony at Westminster Abbey.
Prince William and Catherine’s three children Prince George, 13, Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, eight, have no relationship with their cousins in California.
Prince Harry is due back in the UK in September for the WellChild Awards, a charity he has supported as royal patron since 2007.
Prince Harry, pictured outside London’s High Court in January, was told he had lost his privacy case against the publishers of the Daily Mail during his most recent visit to the UK. AP
It is unknown if Meghan and their children will accompany Harry to the UK then but the duke has made it clear he wants a wider family reunion.
“I would love a reconciliation with my family,” he told the BBC last year.
While King Charles will be staying at Balmoral Castle, in Scotland, when Harry is in town next month, there is a possibility father and son will meet again.
According to The Sun, King Charles has once again offered Prince Harry accommodation inside Buckingham Palace, which the duke’s team will accept well in advance.
King Charles was pictured at the Mey Highland Games on August 1 in Scotland and will officially begin his summer stay at Balmoral this weekend. Martin Grimes/Getty Images
Currently, Prince Harry must give the royal household, and the government, 28 days’ notice of his plans to travel to the UK.
He is said to have formally invited the king to the Invictus Games, which will be held in Birmingham next year.
‘A princess [to] a homemaking guru’
Stewart also gave her thoughts on Meghan’s growing career in the lifestyle arena following the launch of her brand As ever and television series, which has since been cancelled.
“If you’re an actress, it’s hard to then transition to a princess and then from a princess into a homemaking guru on a television show,” Stewart told People.
“It doesn’t sort of follow. So go from there.”
Stewart has previously questioned the duchess’ lifestyle credentials.
Martha Stewart has appeared to criticise Meghan’s lifestyle credentials, saying it was “hard to transition” from a “princess into a homemaking guru”. @aseverofficial
In 2025, she said: “Authenticity, to me, is everything. To be authentic and knowledgeable about your subject matter is extremely important.”
And a year before the said: “Authenticity matters a lot... Does Meghan Markle really design her products? Has she used those products? Can she speak nicely about her own products? That’s all she has to do.
“And she’s extremely well-known. Extremely famous, and I’m anxious to see what she comes up with.”
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