Meghan Markle’s estranged
father, Thomas Markle, and half-sister, Samantha Markle, have been
outspoken about her since her relationship with Prince Harry started
in 2016.
Most recently, Thomas and
Samantha spoke out against Meghan after she addressed their regular public
comments about her in an interview with CBS in March 2021. During the
sit-down, the Suits alum said, “I grieve a lot. I mean, I’ve lost my
father. I lost a baby. I nearly lost my name. I mean, there’s the loss of
identity.”
Thomas responded in an
interview with Good Morning Britain, during which he said, “She’s pretty
much ghosted all of her family, on her mother’s side and my side. So, she
really had no one to reach out to. She would’ve had us if she’d kept us. We all
make mistakes.”
Samantha, for her part, spoke
with Inside Edition about her relationship with Meghan after
the former actress’ CBS tell-all. “Depression is not an excuse for treating
people like dishrags and disposing of them,” she said.
Meghan did not spend much time
during the CBS interview discussing her relationship with her father or
half-sister. In a bonus clip from the discussion, she praised mom Doria
Ragland, saying she “remained in silent dignity for four years watching me go
through this,” referring to attacks from the British media, Thomas, Samantha
and the public.
The former senior royal
claimed she was not protected from these attacks by the palace. In fact,
she accused the palace of “perpetuating falsehoods” about her and
Harry, 36, citing a story about her making Duchess Kate cry ahead
of her May 2018 wedding. Meghan alleged during the interview that the Duchess
of Cambridge actually made her cry, adding that Kate apologized afterward but
the palace didn’t set the record straight.
Thomas welcomed Samantha and
son Thomas Markle Jr. during his first marriage to Roslyn
Loveless, which ended in 1973. He wed Ragland in 1979, and the yoga instructor
gave birth to Meghan two years later. Thomas and Ragland divorced in 1987. The
Markles have been estranged from the Duchess of Sussex for years.
Meghan’s strained relationship
with her father deepened after she welcomed son Archie in May 2019 and daughter
Lili in June 2021 without informing him of her pregnancies.
