Meghan Markle ‘Won’t Be Silenced,’ Plans Tell-All Interview After Dad’s Arrest, Source Claims
Meghan Markle wants to share her side of the story following her father’s recent arrest.
The Duchess of Sussex is seriously considering booking an interview with a major British broadcaster, an anonymous source claimed to Closer U.K. If the sit-down happens, it would be her first big broadcast interview since she and Prince Harry spoke candidly to Oprah Winfrey about her time in the royal family in 2021.
“It’s been a really tough and frustrating time for Meghan. She wants the opportunity to talk about what happened in her own words, rather than have others tell the story for her. She won’t be silenced,” the source said.
Meghan’s father, Thomas Markle Sr., 82, was arrested on November 6 in Florida. The U.S. Attorney’s Office alleges that he kept child abuse material (CSAM), including photos of himself, in two Los Angeles-area storage units he rented for nearly two decades. If convicted, Markle Sr. would face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. He has not yet entered a plea but in a previous statement denied possessing any such material.
Meghan’s half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr., initially accused their father of possessing the illegal material in October. Soon after, the Duchess released a statement saying that she had been made aware of some allegations against Markle Sr. in 2018, but that she had been advised not to speak publicly about the matter. Now that the arrest has happened, she wants to get her story out there.
An interview has “been discussed seriously,” the source told Closer. “She knows that if it does go ahead, it needs to be the right program, the right interviewer, and the right setting. [U.K. broadcaster] Channel 4 has been a strong front runner.”
“It’s also significant because it would represent Meghan’s first major sit-down television interview since the Oprah conversation, which was watched around the world and became one of the defining television moments of her life,” the person continued. “A return to that format, particularly in Britain, would inevitably attract enormous interest.”
The arrest of Meghan’s father has also raised questions about how much other members of the royal family knew about the allegations against him years ago. If Meghan speaks out about those issues, it could further embroil the royals in scandal, especially after their handling of abuse and assault allegations against former Prince Andrew, who many critics feel was protected by The Firm for too long.
“Meghan insists she wanted to come clean but was advised everything would be taken care of,” the source told Closer. “Now, it’s deepened the rift between the royals and the Sussexes—who feel Meghan was silenced and left to deal with something incredibly upsetting on her own. They believe the Palace knew far more than it’s prepared to admit.”