Thomas Markle Snr is estranged from his daughter Meghan Markle, with the pair not having seen each other since before the Duchess of Sussex married Prince Harry
Thomas Markle Snr has begged his daughter Meghan Markle to end their feud in time for his 80th birthday.
The 79-year-old will be celebrating his big birthday on July 18, but admitted he doesn’t expect to hear from his daughter. The pair haven’t spoken in six years following a dramatic fallout before Meghan’s wedding to Prince Harry.
Thomas has also not met his two grandchildren – Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet – because of the bitter feud. Now, he has pleaded with Meghan to let him meet the youngsters, or at the very least let him have a photograph of them.
Thomas admitted he “never expected to make it to 80” after his own father died aged 61. Speaking to the Daily Mail, he said he is proud of everything he’s accomplished in life, but admitted it has been “overshadowed by what has happened in the last six years”.
He said: “I’ve never been one for birthdays, but I know the one person I most want to hear from, Meghan, won’t be in touch. I would love to meet my grandchildren, but I would be happy with a photograph at this stage.”
He also said he doesn’t expect to hear from her husband Harry. Thomas added: “I wish we could have worked this situation out. I was always ready and willing to do that.”
Meghan has grown estranged from her father over the years and the last time they spoke was when he was in a hospital bed before her wedding. The pair stopped speaking after Thomas was caught staging paparazzi photos before Meghan and Harry’s wedding in 2018.
Meghan opened up about their broken relationship during her bombshell 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey. “I grieve a lot,” she said. She added: “I mean, I’ve lost my father. I lost a baby. I nearly lost my name. I mean, there’s the loss of identity. But I’m still standing, and my hope for people in the takeaway from this is to know that there’s another side.
“For over a year, the UK tabloids were trying to find my dad, offering people so much money to try to find his address. Once they did, I remember being told there was a huge headline like, ‘We Found Him!’ or ‘We Got Him!’. The whole thing brings us to where we are today.”
