Duchess accused of embarrassing monarchy with bold pre-engagement move
Meghan Markle’s 2017 Vanity Fair cover—released just weeks before her engagement to Prince Harry—continues to stir controversy, with royal experts claiming it disregarded established royal protocol and embarrassed the monarchy.
Titled “Wild About Harry,” the cover story focused on Meghan’s high-profile romance rather than her humanitarian work, leaving senior royal figures reportedly uneasy. According to British broadcaster Helena Chard, the interview created a “sense of dread and embarrassment” within the Palace.
Speaking to Fox News Digital, Chard criticised the move as highly unusual for someone poised to join the British royal family. “This editorial wasn’t usual protocol for someone joining the revered British royal family,” she said.
Chard suggested Meghan underestimated the ripple effect of the interview, noting that it marked the start of many challenges ahead. “As Prince Harry highlighted, ‘What Meghan wants, Meghan gets.’ But you can’t always get what you want. And in this case, Meghan didn’t secure her wishes,” she remarked.
The backlash resurfaced following revelations from former Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter, who told Page Six that he didn’t know Meghan or her legal drama Suits, but chose her for one of his final covers after learning about her royal relationship.
In his memoir, Carter wrote that Meghan was “adrift on the facts and reality” when she later expressed disappointment that the interview centred on Harry rather than her charity efforts.
The resurfacing of the story has reignited debate over Meghan’s early steps into royal life and the lasting impact of breaking with tradition before formally entering the fold.
