Meghan Markleโs estranged father, Thomas Markle, has not held back his criticism of her Netflix series With Love, Meghan.
The 80-year-old accused the Duchess of Sussex of being inauthentic, claiming she relies on “pre-planned” facial expressions to appear relatable.
“Meghan has never been authentic,” Thomas told the Daily Mail. “She has to think about everythingโnothing is spontaneous. Everything is pre-planned and rehearsed. It makes me laugh because I know all her looks and expressions. I can tell when sheโs faking it for the cameras.“
Thomas, a former Hollywood lighting director known for his work on Marriedโฆ with Children and General Hospital, also criticized Meghanโs approach to the cooking-focused series, arguing that such shows require passion and authenticity to engage an audience.
“Cooking shows are incredibly boring unless the presenter has a real love for it,” he stated. “The best ones are funny, they make mistakes, and theyโre human. But Meghan wants to be perfect all the time, and thatโs sad because sheโs trying so hard to stay in the spotlight.”
Challenging Meghanโs Childhood Narrative
One of the points Thomas Markle strongly contested was Meghanโs portrayal of her upbringing. In the series, the duchess described herself as a “latchkey kid” who often relied on fast food and TV dinners. Her father disputes this, saying he worked two jobs to ensure she never lacked financial security.
“We occasionally ate TV dinnersโwhat family doesnโt?” he said. “But we ate out at least three times a week and ordered in the rest of the time.
After school, Iโd either pick her up myself, and weโd go out to eat, or Iโd send a car to bring her to the set where I worked. She was never a latchkey kid.”
He recalled weekends spent taking Meghan to dance classes, followed by meals with her friends, and claimed she never showed much interest in cooking growing up.
Another issue that upset Thomas was Meghanโs statement that she now uses “Sussex” as a shared family name with her husband, Prince Harry, and their children. He believes his mother would have been “disappointed” that Meghan distanced herself from the Markle name.
“My mother was proud to be a Markleโso am I,” he said. “Meghan never had a problem with our last name until she met Prince Harry. Now I have to say, โI am Meghan Sussexโs dad,โ” he added with sarcasm.
Strained Relationship and Legal Battles
Thomas admitted that he has not watched With Love, Meghan in its entirety, only brief clips, as he finds it too painful. “I might sit down and watch it one day, but Iโm not sure,” he said.
His relationship with Meghan has been fractured since 2018, when he was cut off on the eve of her wedding to Prince Harry. He said he suffered two heart attacks that prevented him from attending the ceremony in the U.K. and believes Meghan has never forgiven him.
“I still donโt know why she cut me off,” he lamented.
The Mail on Sunday previously published excerpts from a private letter Meghan had written to her father after her wedding.
The duchess sued the newspaperโs publishers for privacy and copyright infringement and won her case in 2021. The letter had been described in court as “a heartfelt plea from an anguished daughter to her father.”
The publication had argued that Thomas was simply responding to claims made in People magazine, where five of Meghanโs friends alleged he had been “cruelly cold-shouldering” her leading up to the wedding.
Meanwhile, Meghanโs half-sister, Samantha Markle, took responsibility for arranging their fatherโs staged paparazzi photos ahead of the wedding, further complicating the family drama.
