Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton had a falling out before the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s wedding, with various claims made after the disagreement became public. Prince Harry gave his account of the incident in his bestselling memoir, Spare.
Tabloid reports suggested that Meghan allegedly made Kate cry over a dispute about Princess Charlotte’s bridesmaid dress in the lead-up to the Sussexes’ wedding. However, during their landmark interview with Oprah Winfrey in early 2021, the Duchess of Sussex claimed that “the reverse happened”, implying it was Kate who made her cry before the wedding.
In Spare, Harry wrote that Kate had contacted Meghan four days before the wedding to say the dresses needed to be remade. He explained that Meghan couldn’t respond to Kate’s text immediately due to the “endless wedding-related texts” and the “chaos” surrounding her father, Thomas Markle, who had to undergo heart surgery before the big day.
The Duke stated: “So the next morning she (Meghan) texted Kate that our tailor was standing by. That wasn’t sufficient.”
According to Harry, Princess Kate complained that Charlotte’s dress was “too big, too long, too baggy”. The future queen said Charlotte “cried when she tried it on [at] home”
Meghan reportedly told Kate that the tailor, Ajay Mirpui, was on standby at Kensington Palace to fix any issues. Harry writes that Meghan texted Kate: “Can you take Charlotte to have it altered, as the other mums are doing? ” Kate’s alleged response was: “No, all the dresses need to be remade.”
Harry claims Meghan questioned if Kate understood the situation with her father, to which the Princess of Wales acknowledged she did, but reminded that the wedding was in four days. Meghan is said to have retorted: “Yes, Kate, I know.”
She then insisted to Kate: “I’m not sure what else to say. If the dress doesn’t fit then please take Charlotte to see Ajay. He’s been waiting all day”. Kate supposedly just answered: “Fine.”
Harry recounts coming home to find Meghan “sobbing on the floor”, and the next day, Kate came over with flowers and a card to apologise for the misunderstanding. The Duke reflects on the high emotions due to the stress of recent events, saying: “Emotions were running high, of course, after the stress of the last week, the last month, the last day. It was intolerable – but temporary. Kate hadn’t meant any harm, I told her.”
Neither Buckingham Palace nor Kensington Palace have commented on the accusations made by the Sussexes in Harry’s book ‘Spare’, their interviews, or their Netflix series ‘Harry and Meghan’.
Mr Mirpui later confessed to the Daily Mail his empathy for everyone involved, noting that nobody would appreciate children turning up to a wedding in badly fitting outfits. He understands weddings are tense occasions even without such mishaps, “especially one” of such significance.
The tailor added: “I can understand why anybody would be upset if the dresses weren’t fitting – it’s nerve-wracking.”
