Meghan Markle’s father, Thomas Markle, continued his criticism of the British royal family in a new interview with The Sun on Sunday. Thomas, who did not attend his daughter’s wedding to Prince Harry, thinks she is “terrified” of the pressures put on a member of the royal family.
“My thing about my daughter right now is that I think she is terrified,” Markle told The Sun of the new Duchess of Sussex. “I see it in her eyes, I see it in her face and I see it in her smile. I’ve seen her smile for years. I know her smile. I don’t like the one I’m seeing now.”
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Thomas said it looks like his daughter flashes a “pained” smile.
“That might be just having a couple of bad days. I don’t know. It really worries me. I think she’s under too much pressure,” he continued. “There’s a high price to pay to be married to that family.”
Thomas also made it obvious he is no fan of the royal family’s “ridiculous” dress code. He does not blame Harry, but said the young couple is following rules “that don’t make sense to me.”
“They are no less human than anybody else. God knows, I feel sorry for them, for not being able to show emotion,” he said.
The 73-year-old, who now lives in Mexico, also believes he is still being kept from his daughter because of the staged photo scandal that emerged just days before the wedding. The scandal erupted after the Daily Mail discovered that photos of him walking around Rosarito Beach, Mexico were staged. He was reportedly paid about $130,000 for appearing in the photos. He later apologized.
“I have already apologised to the Royal Family. I honestly think that if the Queen took the time to think that she would not see me because I did some stupid photographs, that is ridiculous,” Thomas told The Sun. “I have had a fairly successful life. I’m fairly outspoken about certain things but I’m no different to any other father.”
Between the photo scandal and his daughter’s wedding on May 19, Thomas suffered a heart attack. Two days before the wedding, Markle and the royal family confirmed he would not be attending the wedding. Harry’s father, Prince Charles, walked her down the aisle instead. Markle’s mother, Doria Ragland, did attend the wedding.
Thomas said he was disappointed that Ragland was the only member of Meghan’s family at the wedding. Instead, celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Serena Williams filled out the church pews on the side opposite Harry’s family.
“I should have been there. Everyone was saying I was too terrified to walk her down the aisle, but I was ready to do it,” Thomas said. “I had a speech written. Meghan looked absolutely beautiful.”
Photo Credit: Karwai Tang/WireImage/Getty
