Meghan Markle Is Still Friends With This Royal Family Member
As many people know by now, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made the surprising decision to step back from senior royal duties in January 2020. The pair scooped up their son and left the UK entirely, decamping first to Canada before settling outside Los Angeles, California. Since then, there has been a ton of speculation about what their relationships are like with the rest of the royals, with Meghan bearing the brunt of the scrutiny.
Us Weekly is reporting that of all the members of the royal family, Meghan is only close to one: Princess Eugenie, the daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson. The magazine notes, "Eugenie is really the only member of the royal family that Meghan is still close to. They are sort of an unlikely pair, but remain in contact." It seems that Meghan and Eugenie grew especially close once they were both pregnant at the same time. Princess Eugenie gave birth to her first son, August, in early February 2021, while Meghan Markle is currently pregnant with her second child.
Prince Harry is also close with Princess Eugenie
The connection between Meghan Markle and Princess Eugenie makes sense, especially when you consider that Prince Harry has always been close to his cousin. In their book Finding Freedom, authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand write, "Out of all the Queen's grand-children, Harry and Eugenie have one of the most natural connections. Like Harry, Eugenie is loyal, honest and great fun. The two had many nights out together in London" (via Us Weekly).
However, the book notes that the relationship has seen its own strain. In 2018, Meghan Markle reportedly used Eugenie's wedding to reveal a surprise of her own: She and Harry were expecting their first child, Archie. While some have claimed that Meghan tried to upstage Eugenie — The Daily Express' headline on the matter read "Meghan and Harry 'overshadow' Eugenie for second time with royal baby news" — not everyone sees it that way. According to royal editor at the Evening Standard, Robert Jobson, "The coverage in my view has been a little mean-spirited," via Insider.