7 days ago
Revealed: How Meghan Markle's 'warm, friendly, hug-everyone approach' caused tension in the 'rather awkward' royal household
Once upon a time, the so-called 'fab four' - comprising Prince Harry, Meghan, Prince William and Kate - were the Royal Family 's dream team.
Indeed when Harry and Meghan started dating, Kate and William reportedly found the former actress 'delightful' - with the young royals appearing at a number of engagements together.
Fast forward to the present and, while the so-called 'peace summit' in July 2025 suggests that relations between the Sussexes and the Prince and Princess of Wales could be thawing, both camps appear to be a long way from a reconciliation.
It has been widely established that Meghan was at the centre of the tension between Harry and William in particular. But one royal author has claimed the falling out was to do with how the Duchess of Sussex acted, not what she said.
Meghan's 'warm, friendly, hug-everyone approach' ruffled feathers, according to Tom Quinn's history of royal servants, titled Yes, Ma'am.
He wrote: 'It made William uncomfortable because [Meghan] hugged him virtually every time they bumped into each other.'
The prince's opposition to the displays of affection was not due to a dislike of Meghan but concern for what courtiers might think.
'The hugging and cheek kissing fuelled gossip among the staff that Meghan was flirting with William, which she was obviously not. But the tense atmosphere caused by all the touchy-feeliness (and the resultant gossip) deepened the rift between the brothers,' Quinn said.
Likewise, Meghan clashed with William's 'rather awkward, even inhibited personality' - which she reportedly found 'baffling'.
Quinn wrote: 'A member of staff recalled Meghan asking, "Why do William and Charles sound so serious all the time?"
'She used to make jokes about Harry not having the same parents as William, as she insisted, "Harry isn't pompous at all. He's chill".'
But it was Meghan's treatment of staff while working as a royal that put the most strain on the princes' relationship.
Concerns were raised to the Sussexes about their alleged behaviour towards staff as early as 2017, it was reported in Robert Lacey's Battle of Brothers book.
Meghan would send emails as early as 5am, leaving staff with a 'barrage' of messages in their inboxes, a Kensington Palace source claimed.
The couple reigned over a 'really toxic environment' which saw colleagues shaking before meetings alongside allegations of bullying, they added. There was even a claim the encounters left one employee with PTSD.
While Meghan brushed off a complaint about her conduct from a senior aide, claiming 'it's not my job to coddle people', Prince William did not respond so flippantly to the issue.
When Jason Knauf – a royal aide who worked with the Sussexes – presented William with a 'dossier of distress' about their behaviour he 'went ballistic' and was left 'astonished' and 'horrified' by what he heard, according to Lacey.
William's anger stemmed from the fact that a tradition of treating the staff 'like family' had been broken and that he personally knew many of those named, Lacey wrote.
Harry and his brother then allegedly had a testy phone call, in which the Duke of Sussex 'flared up in a fierce defence of his wife'.
Lacey added: 'The moment the prince heard the bullying allegations, he got straight on the phone to talk to Harry – and when Harry flared up in furious defence of his wife, the elder brother persisted.
'Harry shut off his phone angrily, so William went straight round to find his brother on the Kensington campus.'
As early as 2019, rumours of a falling out between the brothers began circulating.
It was first addressed by Harry in the documentary Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, with him saying: 'You have good days, you have bad days.'
By 2020, tensions appeared to have deepened when Harry and Meghan announced their plans to step back as senior royals.
Harry later claimed in his Netflix series with Meghan that William shouted at him during the Sandringham summit.
The brothers were last publicly together at Queen Elizabeth II's funeral in September 2022, though they both attended the private funeral for their uncle Robert Fellowes last summer.
The estrangement between the two princes had been 'hard and sad ', Knauf revealed in an Australian documentary this year.
He said: 'We have ups and downs in family. Even when you really love someone, you can have times when you don't want to spend that much time with them.
'It's very difficult to have this stuff play out in the public eye, but [William's] chosen to keep his thoughts on it private and I think all of us who know him really have to respect that.
'We should do the same, but I will say of course it's been hard and sad - especially for all of us who know both of them.'
Meghan's 'touchy-feely' style does have some fans. Producer Jane Marie, who worked with Harry and Meghan during the development of Archewell Audio projects, insisted to Vanity Fair that Meghan is 'just a lovely, genuine person'.
Other staff members have claimed that she would send her employees gifts ranging from dog leashes to skincare products.
