One awkward situation was uncovered on camera as The Duchess of Sussex surprised onlookers as she arrived for a surprise visit to Paris Fashion Week. Now that the “cringe” exchange has been decoded, an expert has.
Meghan Markle was the picture of elegance as she stepped out at Paris Fashion Week this weekend, stunning fans with her surprise trip to the French capital.
It’s the first time the duchess has been in Europe for three years but the visit appears to be a solo one, with Prince Harry nowhere to be seen.
Meghan dazzled in a chic all-white ensemble at Saturday night’s Balenciaga’s Spring/Summer 2026 womenswear presentation, making her debut at one of the fashion world’s biggest annual events.
The former actress also reunited with formidable fashion queen Anna Wintour at last night’s show and was all smiles as the Vogue chief complimented her outfit.
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However, one encounter was slightly awkward because Meghan accidentally hit her head on Italian designer Pier Paolo Piccioli’s sunglasses, leading to a harmless air kiss.
The duchess, who had “long admired” Balenciaga’s newly appointed creative director, made a beeline for his “classic” and “modern elegance.”
But as she leaned in to say hello to Pier and say congratulations on his new collection, it appeared to be hitting his dark sunglasses.
Pier appeared to laugh off the disjointed encounter and invited her in for a photo when she realized the cameras had captured their awkward embrace. As she handled it smoothly, Meghan was all smiles.
And now an expert has revealed how the awkward incident occurred, claiming that Piccioli was responsible for Meghan’s unintentional butthead with him.
Judi James, a leading communication and body language expert, tells The Mirror: “It was Piccioli who created the ‘cringe’ moment for poor Meghan, getting way too close to greet and speak to her, leading to a lack of reading her non-verbal cues when they air-kissed, leading in turn to a nose-clunk when they each aimed in the wrong direction.”
He attempted to control Meghan by turning her in front of the cameras, but he also kept his sunglasses on, which wouldn’t have helped. She quickly regained control of her own, putting her arm in his direction, she continued.
When Piccioli moved in for a close-quarters hug with Meghan after the photos were over, according to Judi, who was analyzing the footage of their interaction.
The body language expert said Meghan’s greeting with Wintour “was much more like a top-drawer fashionista ritual.”
Although everyone in the industry is aware that a fashionista air-kiss ritual will be used on friends and foes alike, Ms. Meghan’s round cheeks and her small gasp of fond recognition should have dispelled any rumors of a fight between the two women, according to Judi.
“Like the word ‘darling’ it means not one jot in terms of genuine affection or even liking in the fashion business. But at least they both looked keen to announce a friendship to the world here.”
After alleged drama behind the scenes at Vogue over Meghan’s “demands,” Judi’s expert insight makes reference to a long-reported feud between the pair.
The duchess served as guest editor for a 2019 issue of British Vogue, which sold out in just ten days, making it the magazine’s top-selling issue ever.
Meghan reportedly spent seven months working with Edward Enninful, the former editor-in-chief of Vogue, to produce an issue honoring inspiring, pioneering women for the Forces for Change issue.
Meghan’s “demands” to the Vogue editorial team allegedly caused a rift between the duchess and Enninful, with claims that Meghan even approached Wintour about them after being told by Enniful that they simply couldn’t be met at the time.
Meghan had been given “extensive features” that included coverage of her one-world summit speech in Manchester across the magazine and its digital editions.
However, Page Six claims Meghan sent Enninful a list of six requirements in order to complete the planned articles. A source told the outlet that “Meghan requested control over [the] photographer, writer, final edit, photos, cover lines, and wanted a global issue.” Nobody understands that. Not even Beyonce.
Meghan is alleged to have requested to appear on the US and UK editions of September, but Vogue editors on both sides of the pond had already secured cover stars, making it impossible to grant her request.
Linda Evangelista was scheduled to appear on the UK edition of the magazine while Serena Williams, Meghan’s close friend, was scheduled to grace the US cover.
The duchess is said to have bypassed him completely by approaching formidable Wintour, the inspiration behind the legendary film The Devil Wears Prada, in a bid to secure dual covers across both the US and UK, despite Enninful reportedly telling Meghan that her six demands couldn’t be accommodated.
A source told Page Six that “Anna wasn’t interested.” Anna responded politely by asking for a Zoom with her to think about it.
Although there are conflicting reports as to the extent of the rift, Enninful’s refusal to grant the duchess’ requests is said to have caused it.
After Enninful or Wintour failed to fulfill Meghan’s demands, Enninful is said to have pulled the plug on the feature’s entire production.
According to a source quoted by The Daily Mail, “The duchess and her team had high expectations, and they were hoping she might get a print or at least a digital cover out of it,” Enninful was unable to fulfill those expectations.
He already had the magazine cover that month in his bag. Both Edward and the Condé Nast power brokers were furious that they had lost the project.
The process “came across very challenging,” the source continued. Although Edward was only able to promise her a significant, outrageous feature in both the magazine and online, she turned it down.
The duchess and her former friend are no longer speaking with one another, according to them, and the incident has caused a significant rift between them.
