Archive May 12, 2025

As Thomas Markle starts a new life in the Philippines in a bid to find ‘peace’, the Mirror looks back at Meghan’s revealing blog entry that detailed her feelings about her father before their relationship tragically broke down

The breakdown between Meghan Markle and her father, Thomas Markle Senior, has been well documented, and the distance between them has now reached new heights. Thomas recently moved to the Philippines in search of a fresh start, with the hope of living the rest of his life “in peace.”

Meghan’s half-brother Thomas Junior is living with their father in a $500-a-month high-rise apartment in Cebu, which is over 7,000 miles away from the Sussex family home in California and the pair are said to be “firmly supporting” each other in this new chapter. Thomas Sr was recently pictured outside his new home where he was seen to be “struggling” with the heat.

“There are only two types of weather in Cebu: hot and humid, and hot and humid and raining. It’s brutal even for men half his age, but it’s still sad to see him looking as though he’s struggling,” a source told the Mirror, adding, “Thomas and his son only recently moved into the property and they are still finding their feet in Cebu after the big move abroad, but they’re here together and are firmly supporting each other.”

Meghan’s father – a former Hollywood lighting director – has undergone a series of health problems in recent years, including two heart attacks and a stroke, but he is seemingly no closer to making peace with the Duchess after their relationship swiftly broke down in the lead up to her wedding to Prince Harry back in 2018.

This also means he is reported to have never met his grandchildren, Prince Archie, six, and Princess Lilibet, three. When Meghan’s engagement to Prince Harry was announced, she was quickly catapulted to new heights of fame, despite already being a well-known actress in her own right.

Ahead of her wedding, Thomas Sr staged a series of paparazzi photos and Meghan later revealed he then lied to her about cooperating and being paid by the photographers, and that she found out he wasn’t coming to her wedding “through a tabloid”.

In Harry and Meghan’s self-titled Netflix documentary series, Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland, 68, said she was left “absolutely stunned” at her ex’s actions, adding that “as a parent, that’s not what you do. That’s not parenting.”

Whilst the Duchess hasn’t spoken to her father in a very long time, heartbreaking posts written by Meghan many years before their estrangement on her now-defunct lifestyle blog The Tig, detailed that they used to share a seriously sweet bond, and that for a long time she held her father in the highest esteem – making the breakdown of their relationship in recent years even more tragic.

In one post written to mark Father’s Day, Meghan absolutely gushed over her “inspiring” father, even sharing some sweet childhood memories of him.

“Our club sandwich and fruit smoothie tradition post my tap and ballet class – classes, which by the way, he religiously took me to on Saturday mornings after working 75+ hours a week as a lighting director,” Meghan wrote, adding that he made sure to use his professional lighting expertise to help elevate her theatrical performances when she was a schoolgirl, making them “as grand as a Broadway show”.

Meghan ended the emotional post by writing: “To my dad – my thoughtful, inspiring, hardworking Daddy – Happy Father’s Day. ‘If I had all the water in the world, I’d give all the water to you…’ (You won’t get that quote, but he will. And for Father’s Day, that’s all that matters).”

In another post, she described how one year for Christmas, Thomas Sr went above and beyond to make sure that the family of dolls he was buying his daughter reflected her biracial family and heritage, and that he “broke the rules” to do so and ensure she was pleased with her gift.

“On Christmas morning, swathed in glitter-flecked wrapping paper, there I found my Heart Family: a black mom doll, a white dad doll, and a child in each color. My dad had taken the sets apart and customized my family,” Meghan explained.

“I picture him standing there in Toys R Us, moms glaring at him for taking the toys apart, perhaps an employee saying ‘excuse me sir, you can’t do that’ — as my dad carefully separated the boxed sets to make one that echoed my reality. One that showed me that I should (and could) make my own box,” she wrote about the meaningful gift.

The dire extent of their relationship breakdown was revealed in the bombshell sit-down with Oprah back in 2021. Meghan opened up about the derailment of their bond, admitting, “I grieve a lot,” as she reflected on the loss of her relationship with her father. Prince Harry has called it “incredibly sad” that the pair are now estranged.

James Corden’s ‘dream’ £8.5million mansion remains untouched, despite plans being approved more than two years ago. The former Late Late Show host purchased Templecombe House in Oxfordshire in 2020 with plans to move back to the UK

Actor James Corden’s £8.5m ‘dream’ family home in the UK remains untouched, more than two years after he got the go-ahead for his plans. The Gavin and Stacey star snapped up Templecombe House in Oxfordshire back in 2020, with hopes of moving there with his family after eight years stateside.

In January 2023, he was given the green light to knock down the existing property and build a new six-bedroom mansion, subject to certain conditions. Before work could start, Corden’s team had to agree to a series of ‘obligations’ through a section 106 legal agreement with Wokingham Borough Council.

Despite initial pushback from the local council and English Heritage, an agreement was finally reached, clearing the way for James to start work on his dream home. However, recent aerial snaps show no visible progress has been made on the site, which remains empty with no signs of when work will begin.

Planning documents from the original application reveal that he initially wanted new leisure facilities including an indoor and outdoor pool, a sauna and steam room as part of the development. However, his proposal was only given the thumbs up once these elements were taken out of his plans.

Corden was required to make several adjustments during the planning process, including implementing lighting measures to safeguard bats, badgers, and glow worms. He was also instructed to carry out landscaping to preserve the 45 granite megalithic stones on the property, reports Gloucestershire Live.

Furthermore, Corden was directed to commission a series of test trenches across the site and permit archaeologists to work there. English Heritage had expressed concerns that the pool house was too close to the historic collection of 45 vertical granite megalithic stones that form a circle in the Grade II listed grounds.

The Mont de la Ville ‘dolmen’ was first unearthed on the island in the 18th century and gifted to then Jersey governor Henry Seymour Conway in 1788. Field Marshal Conway, as he later became known, had the dolmen transported to his Henley-on-Thames estate, where it still stands today.

Jersey officials had previously expressed their hopes to return the monument back to the island and were seeking support from the TV star. Corden came into possession of the Mont de la Ville dolmen when he bought Templecombe House in Berkshire.

Mr Corden and his wife, Julia, shelled out £8.5million for the property near Henley-on-Thames, a sprawling 43-acre estate that includes the dolmen.

The original country house, constructed in 1869, is thought to have served as a boarding school from 1948 until its demolition in 1961, when it was replaced with the current house. The decision to approve the rebuild came as Templecombe House had fallen into disrepair and was attracting urban explorers.

Corden has been granted planning permission to replace the existing home with a two-storey, six-bedroom property featuring a basement, a spacious internal courtyard, kitchen, living room, dining room and a breakfast room that opens onto a large terrace area with a playroom. The new home will also boast two study areas, three bathrooms and a boot room.

The first floor will house five ensuite bedrooms and a main bedroom with two ensuites, opening onto a balcony. Documents reveal that the existing tennis court will be retained, but extensive landscaping work will be undertaken across the site.

Detailed construction plans for the new building were approved by the council in March of last year. These included measures for the protection of wildlife and trees, as well as flood mitigation strategies prior to construction.

It was previously reported that James, his wife Julia and their three children planned to move into the Henley-on-Thames house, located on the border of Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire, as soon as possible.

David and Victoria Beckham are hoping to ‘put the fire out’ after tensions grew within the family. Their eldest son, Brooklyn, and his wife Nicola Peltz even snubbed David’s 50th birthday celebrations

David and Victoria Beckham are reportedly extremely ‘keen to heal the rift’ between the family and Brooklyn Beckham and his wife, Nicola Peltz. The famous family have been hitting headlines in recent weeks as the aspiring chef and his socialite wife snubbed David Beckham’s 50th birthday celebrations.

Not only did they fail to show up to the many parties, they also didn’t publicly acknowledge the milestone birthday on social media. Just weeks before, Victoria celebrated her 51st birthday but her eldest son did share any posts on his Instagram page and instead opted to attend Coachella Festival with his Bates Motel actress wife.

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However, the feud has reportedly been festering since Brooklyn and Nicola’s wedding in 2022. While at first there were tales of tension between Nicola and former Spice Girl mother-in-law Victoria Beckham – which they later appeared to try to silence by supporting each other both online and at events and fashion shows in real life – things took a turn in recent weeks when it was implied Brooklyn had clashed with younger brother Romeo Beckham, 22, and his choice of girlfriend; Kim Turnbull, 24.

There have also been claims Nicola must be behind” the family fallout. Around the time Nicola and Brooklyn wed, rumours of a feud between the American actress and fashion designer Victoria have been swirling.

Nicola’s friends recently claimed “emotional abuse and toxic behaviour” are the reasons behind the fallout. However, David and Victoria reject the claims and are outraged by the suggestions.

And now, a source has insisted the Beckham family are “keen to heal the rift” as David reached out to his eldest son and will ‘fly out to see him’ if he has to.

“They are going to put this fire out; David has said that he wants the dust to settle and for everyone to talk when emotions have settled down,” the insider told Hello!.

Although Brooklyn “hurt them” by airing their “dirty laundry”, the former footballer wants everyone to ‘iron things out.’ The same insider claimed Nicola hasn’t show ‘respect towards the family’ since joining the family.

“Tensions rose at their wedding and that situation has continued; Victoria and Nicola don’t really get along. Over the past few months, Nicola has been causing things to fester and everyone to fall out,” they said.

After it was claimed “toxic behaviour” was the reason behind the family fallout, sources close to David and Victoria rejected the reports and slammed the ‘deeply unpleasant attack’.

A source close to the Beckhams recently told the Mirror: “I don’t think anyone who has ever seen David and Victoria with their children would recognise this deeply unpleasant attack. It doesn’t even warrant a response it’s so ludicrous and patently untrue.”

The Mirror have reached out to Nicola and David’s representatives for comment.

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Meghan Markle has cut all contact with her father, Thomas Markle Sr – and her estrangement from members of her family is said to have greatly concerned Princess Kate

It’s not only the royal family who are estranged from the Sussexes; Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have also cut all contact with her father Thomas Markle, as well as her half-siblings Samantha Markle and Thomas Markle Jr.

It was revealed this week that 80-year-old Thomas is ‘struggling’ with his new life in the Philippines, where he lives in a £500-a-month high-rise flat. The former Hollywood lighting director has settled on the densely populated island of Cebu, more than 7,000 miles from his daughter, son-in-law Prince Harry, and grandchildren Archie and Lilibet.

READ MORE: Meghan Markle’s half-brother Thomas set to spill memories in new book

Thomas has never met the children, nor has he met Harry—despite the fact that the couple has been married since 2018. Speaking earlier this year about his decision to move abroad, Thomas said: “At 80, it is time to go somewhere where the people are lovely and I can enjoy a quieter, friendlier existence.

“Mostly, I just want peace. At 80, none of us know how long we have left. I want whatever time I have to be peaceful with none of the awful drama of recent years.”

That “drama” includes his public fallout with Meghan, which began in the lead-up to her royal wedding in May 2018, and is said to have especially concerned Princess Kate. It was originally confirmed that Thomas would be at the nuptials to give Meghan away.

But things changed when he found himself at the centre of a media scandal. Thomas was caught staging paparazzi snaps of himself preparing for the wedding in exchange for payment, and then announced he would not be attending after the fallout from the scandal left him looking “stupid and hammy”.

The Palace, meanwhile, announced Thomas had suffered a heart attack, suggesting this was the reason for his absence. Over the years, Thomas has made public pleas to his daughter to reconcile and has said he is “desperate” for Meghan to forgive him.

In 2021, Meghan opened up about her estranged father as she sat down for the Sussexes’ bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey. “I grieve a lot,” she admitted before adding: “I mean, I’ve lost my father.”

Royal author Ingrid Seward said of the future Queen Catherine: “She could not understand why Harry had never met his future father-in-law, nor why Meghan, who Harry assured was The One and ‘ticked all his boxes’, appeared embarrassed about her family and unwilling to speak about them apart from her mother.”

According to Ingrid, Kate – who is incredibly close to her own family – found it “all a bit worrying”.

Harry, meanwhile, was accused of pouring fuel onto the fire in 2017 during a Radio 4 interview, when he was asked if there were family traditions he needed to explain to his future wife. “Plenty. We’ve got one of the biggest families that I know of and every family is complex as well,” he said. “She’s done an absolutely amazing job. She’s getting in there and it’s the family, I suppose, she’s never had.”

Writing in their book, Finding Freedom, Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, noted: “Harry’s comment only heightened the already tenuous family dynamic and foreshadowed what was to come.”

In response to Harry’s remarks, Meghan’s half-sister Samantha took to X (formerly Twitter ), writing: “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.”