Meghan Markle banned her father Thomas from making a speech at her
royal wedding to
Prince Harry when the former recluse was exposed for staging fake pictures with the paparazzi for an eye-watering £100,000.
Thomas Markle, 74, has claimed in a shocking interview that his daughter, the
Duchess of Sussex, banished him from making the traditional father-of-the-bride speech at the royal wedding when the scandal hit.
After he was outed for pretending to get in shape for the wedding, being fitted for a suit and reading up on the royal family, for paparazzi pictures, he received a furious phone call from Prince Harry.
In the heated telephone exchange which led him to hang up the phone to the royal, Meghan, 37, called him back and dealt the blow.
Mr Markle said: “That hurt.
“I’m not mad at Harry. I’m not mad at Meghan. I love them.
“I wish them well.”
He added: “But as for the rest of it, f*** it. I’m done.”
Mr Markle said it was Prince Harry that had initially called him when the newspaper contacted Kensington Palace with the exposé while he was in hospital recovering from a heart attack.
According to Mr Markle, Harry, 33, who has warned his father-in-law about speaking to the press, told him: “If you had listened to me this would never have happened.”
Mr Markle told the Mail on Sunday he replied with: “Maybe it would be better for you guys if I was dead… then you could pretend to be sad.”
Then, he said he hung up.
When news broke he had staged the pictures for money, Mr Markle said he suffered a heart attack and was rushed to hospital.
He said he took calls from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex from the hospital bed.
Mr Markle pulled out of the May 19 wedding last-minute and instead of Meghan being walked down the aisle by her father, Prince Charles stepped in as his replacement.
When her father did not make his speech, Meghan made her own and thanked the royals for welcoming her into their family.
Mr Markle has claimed his sensational new interview with the publication will be his last.
Kensington Palace has declined to comment on Mr Markle’s revelations.