Prince Philip's longstanding reservations about Meghan Markle's entry into the royal family are resurfacing through newly published biographies, adding fresh context to tensions surrounding Prince Harry and his wife years after their departure from royal duties. The accounts, citing private warnings Philip allegedly issued before the couple's 2018 wedding, describe a blunt assessment: "One steps out with actresses, one doesn't marry them." The revelations have intensified renewed scrutiny of the royal family's early reaction to Meghan Markle amid Prince Harry's rapid courtship and eventual exit from royal life.
According to royal biographer Andrew Lownie's book Entitled, the late Duke of Edinburgh cautioned his grandson about marrying the American actress, expressing doubts about the relationship's long-term stability. Philip, who died in 2021, reportedly viewed the pace of the romance-marked by a proposal after 16 months of dating-as a cause for concern. Lownie's account underscores that the remark was not an isolated observation but part of broader misgivings within the monarchy.
Additional reporting from royal biographer Ingrid Seward elaborates on Philip's stance, noting that he was "one of the very few wary" during the early stages of Meghan's relationship with Harry. In her book My Mother And I, Seward writes that Philip also found it "uncanny" how Meghan reminded him of Wallis Simpson, the American socialite whose marriage to King Edward VIII precipitated his abdication. Seward adds that Philip privately referred to Meghan as "DOW," referencing Simpson's title, the Duchess of Windsor.
Concerns extended beyond Philip. Prince Harry wrote in his memoir Spare that Prince William voiced early cautions about the pace of the relationship. Harry quoted his brother saying, "'It's too fast,' he'd told me. 'Too soon.'" Though Harry later clarified to ITV's Tom Bradby that William had not tried to stop the marriage-"No, he never tried to dissuade me... but he aired some concerns"-the exchange reflects broader family unease.
Royal author Tina Brown added further context, noting Harry felt pressure to wed because Meghan was 35 at the time and "biological clock was ticking." That urgency did little to ease longstanding generational expectations within the monarchy, where marriages often follow years of scrutiny and slow transitions into royal life.
Philip's disappointment reportedly deepened after Harry and Meghan stepped down as working royals in 2020. Seward said the senior royal believed Meghan struggled to adapt to the expectations he had accepted when he married Queen Elizabeth II, asserting Philip was "very, very disappointed because I think he feels he gave up his naval career in order to stand by the Queen and help the monarchy." Seward added, "And why can't Meghan just give up her acting career... He just cannot understand why she couldn't support Harry."
The couple, now living in California with their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, have maintained that their departure stemmed from pressures inside the institution and intense media scrutiny. The biographies offer a renewed glimpse into the private friction that shaped one of the royal family's most consequential breaks in modern history.
