Meghan Markle’s dad ‘will be extremely hurt by Prince Harry saying Royals are ‘family she never had’
Thomas Markle, 73, is said to have 'dedicated all his time' to Meghan and given her 'what she needed to be successful'
MEGHAN Markle’s dad will be “extremely hurt” by Prince Harry saying the Royals are like “the family she never had”, it’s reported.
Thomas Markle, 73, who is yet to meet his daughter’s fiance, is said to have “dedicated all his time” to Meghan and given her “what she needed to be successful”.
The actress’s 51-year-old brother Thomas Jr said her family has “smothered her with love” and get together on all occasions, no matter where in the world they are.
It comes after Prince Harry told Radio 4 listeners that The Firm loved having Meghan at their traditional bash and that “it’s the family I suppose that she’s never had.”
In an interview with , Thomas Jr, of Grants Pass, Oregon, said: “We were as close as we could be, as tight as we could be, that’s what we were.
“We’d get together on Christmases, on holidays, on birthdays, on Thanksgivings… It was always somewhere, even though we lived in different parts of the city [Los Angeles] – we still all got together.”
He added that their retired lighting director dad “will be extremely hurt” by the comments.
Thomas said: “He dedicated the majority of all his time and everything to her. He made sure she had what she needed to be successful and get to where she’s at today.”
During Harry’s guest-editing stint on the Today programme, he was asked by presenter Sarah Montague whether there were any family traditions which needed to be explained to the American.
He replied: “Oh plenty. I think we’ve got one of the biggest families that I know of, and every family is complex as well.
“No look, she’s done an absolutely amazing job. She’s getting in there and it’s the family I suppose that she’s never had.”
Meghan’s mum and dad Doria and Thomas divorced when she was six and she once revealed to pals she was “not on the best of terms” with her reclusive father.
Meghan’s sister Samantha Grant, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, was also left upset by the interview.
She wrote on Twitter: “Actually she has a large family who were always there with her and for her.
“Our household was very normal and when dad and Doria divorced, we all made it so it was like she had two houses.
“No one was estranged, she was just too busy. Meg’s family (our family) is complete with sister, brother, aunts, uncles, cousins and the glue of our family, our amazing completely self-sacrificing father.
“She always had this family, marrying merely extends it.”
While acting as guest editor of BBC’s Radio 4 programme this morning, he opened up about Christmas Day, saying the couple had spent the day with his brother William and sister-in-law Kate, adding they had been “running around with the kids”.
He said that Meghan, who was at his side for the Christmas service at Sandringham, had fit right in, and that his family had “loved having her there”.
The fifth-in-line to the throne had managed to pull off an exclusive interview with Barack Obama for the morning radio show, with the pair discussing charities and their hopes for the future.
It comes despite government mandarins urging Prince Harry not to invite the Obamas to his wedding for fear of infuriating Donald Trump.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368 . We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours.