Meghan thanks fans for 45th ‘birthday love’ but not everyone is sending her well-wishes

The Duchess of Sussex has thanked her 4.7 million followers on social media for an outpouring of “birthday love” as she celebrated turning 45.

Meghan’s latest post was accompanied by two new photos showing her clad in a black one-piece swimsuit and sunglass, holding a bunch of balloons, and jumping into a swimming pool.

“Thank you for the birthday love!” the duchess wrote alongside a red balloon emoji.

Meghan later shared two short clips on her Instagram stories, showing her dancing in the kitchen of her Montecito home, wearing t-shirt with the slogan “it’s giving Mrs”. A bunch of “happy birthday” balloons can be seen on the counter with a breakfast spread nearby. One of her dogs also featured in the video.

Meghan turned 45 yesterday (August 4) and is understood to have celebrated the occasion privately at home in Montecito with husband Prince Harry and their two children Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five.

A source close to the duchess’ told People the photo was taken by a friend in California during an early birthday celebration.

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A second birthday post was shared on the official social media page of Meghan’s lifestyle brand, As ever.

“Happy birthday to our founder, Meghan,” the caption read.

Along with a recent promotional photo of the duchess holding a cup of one of her tea blends, the post included a throwback snap from when Meghan was a child, showing her hair in pigtails and sitting on a bed with a school portrait in the background hanging on the wall.

Comments on both Meghan’s personal Instagram account, and the As ever page, are disabled.

While she is likely to have received well-wishes from around the world, a public “happy birthday” from the British royal family would not have been among them.

The last time the social media account for The Royal Family, the official page that represents King Charles and his relatives, acknowledged Meghan’s birthday was in August 2022 when the duchess turned 41.

One month later the change of throne happened and now, under the reign of King Charles III, only those working in service of the monarchy have their birthdays mentioned publicly.

Instead, King Charles is likely to have sent his best wishes to Meghan privately. The monarch recently saw his daughter-in-law when she and Prince Harry took their children to the king’s private home, Highgrove House, during their recent visit to the UK.

King Charles was able to see his two US-based grandchildren, in person, for the first time in four years. The Sussexes met with the king and Queen Camilla on July 10 in what Buckingham Palace described as a “private” event. No photos have been shared from the occasion.

The long-awaited reunion came during Prince Harry and Meghan’s summer holiday abroad which included a stay in Portugal.

“They love Portugal because Archie and Lilibet can simply be kids,” a source told People.

“It’s always very low-key with beach days, playing and spending time together as a family.”

The Sussexes are understood to have spent time with Prince Harry’s cousin Princess Eugenie, who gave birth to a daughter on Monday (August 3) in Lisbon.

Princess Eugenie, 36, and her husband Jack Brooksbank divide their time between Portugal, where they have lived since 2022, and Ivy Cottage on the grounds of Kensington Palace in London.

Meghan recently shared a bunch of family photos, taken during her travels, including some taken in Portugal showing her children at the beach.

Others showed the Sussexes in the UK including in the Scottish Highlands near Balmoral Castle and at Althorp House, visiting Harry’s uncle Earl Spencer. Prince Harry and Meghan stayed at the grand estate where the late Diana, Princess of Wales, was laid to rest following her death in 1997.

Last year on Meghan’s 44th birthday, she shared a photo of herself blowing out the candles on a cake after eating at Beverly Hills restaurant Funke with “my husband, friends and family”. The duchess described it as “a standout dining experience”, the food having been “in the top five meals of my life... Extraordinary”.