Meghan Markle is reportedly willing to speak to her father Thomas Markle, but she has some conditions.
The Duchess of Sussex and her father have reportedly not spoken since Markle married Prince Harry in May. Since then, Thomas has made headlines criticizing both his daughter and the royal family in paid interviews with the press.
Videos by PopCulture.com
According to The Mirror, Markle wants her dad to make contact with her in a “respectful manner” and for him to stop airing their dirty laundry in interviews.
The rift in their relationship came after Thomas staged a series of paparazzi shots for cash days before the ceremony, as well as missed walking her down the aisle due to his poor health.
The retired TV lighting director claims Harry called him to ask him about the photos and berated him as he recovered in the hospital from a heart condition. He has been doing interviews ever since from his home in Mexico, claiming Kensington Palace cut him off from his 37-year-old daughter and is unable to contact her.
A friend of Markle’s told the outlet that Thomas can communicate with her, however, only through her mother Doria Ragland.
“The only reason Meghan hasn’t spoken to her father yet is because she’s yet to hear from him in a respectful manner,” the source said. “Thomas is speaking to the press more than he’s reached out and spoken to his own daughter.”
The friend, who wasn’t named in the report, added that “if Thomas truly wanted to speak with Meghan, he could easily have sent a letter to her mother and asked her to pass it along.”
Thomas recently told press he is convinced he will be “locked out” forever following a number of interviews he gave about her marriage.
But he was unrepentant about his decision to ยญpublicly speak out about the former Suits star.
“All I was doing was saying things I wanted to say,” he said. “I now want to go on vacation somewhere and try to get some peace.”
Markle is said to be “hurt” by her father’s actions, with a source telling Entertainment Tonight that there are no plans for Meghan or Prince Harry to see Markle, who has continued to do paid interviews despite his daughter’s frustrations.
“She has gone through periods of difficulty with her father in the past, but she does love him,” the source says. “That’s what’s been so difficult about this.”