Chrissy Teigen, Abigail Spencer, Jessica Mulroney And More Speak Out In Defence Of Meghan Markle
Meghan Markle’s closest friends and supporters have spoken out following ongoing scrutiny of the Duchess of Sussex ahead of her televised interview with Oprah Winfrey.
On Sunday, the royal couple will appear in a pre-recorded interview on CBS with Winfrey, during which they will, according to the news network, discuss everything from ‘stepping into life as a royal, marriage, motherhood, philanthropic work to how she is handling life under intense public pressure’.
Watch: Meghan and Harry interview - Amanda Gorman and Serena Williams lead support for duchess after Oprah show
In the lead up to the interview, CBS has released several teasers of the trio's conversation. On Wednesday, Buckingham Palace issued a statement saying it was 'clearly very concerned' over allegations published in The Times that a bullying report against the Duchess of Sussex had been made by a staff member in 2018 and that their HR teams would be 'looking into the circumstances outlined in the article'.
Spokespersons and lawyers for Markle responded by saying the 39-year-old is 'saddened by the latest attack on her character, particularly as someone who has been the target of bullying herself and is deeply committed to supporting those who have experienced pain and trauma'. The Sussexes' lawyers added that The Times was 'being used by Buckingham Palace to peddle a wholly false narrative... based on misleading and harmful misinformation’ ahead of the couple’s interview.
On Saturday, Markle’s friend Jessica Mulroney took to Instagram to share a photograph of her and the royal – who is expecting her second child with her husband – on Instagram and wrote about the ‘pressure’ Markle has been under.
‘I don’t know that anyone has ever had to deal with the pressure, the politics and the press like this woman. In the face of it all, I have never seen her waver from kindness, empathy and love,’ she captioned the image.
Mulroney and Markle have been friends for several years during the former actor’s stay in Canada while she appeared in the hit series Suits. The stylist and TV personalities three children also formed part of the wedding party on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s wedding day in May 2018.
Markle’s former Suits co-star Abigail Spencer, who was a guest at the royal’s wedding, has also spoken in defence of her friend.
On Friday, the actor shared a photograph of the pair together and with a caption that delves into their friendship, noting on Instagram: ‘There are some people who are so bright and exude such deep purpose that they change the molecules in the air simply through their being. She was all of this from the moment I met her fourteen years ago. And remains so to this day.’
Speaking about how the Duchess has been a source of support for her over the years, she actor added: ‘She's taken my son in as her own. I can't tell you the value of having another working mother I can lean on when with the pressures of visibility & child-rearing woes become overwhelming. She's always been a safe harbor for me, someone I can fall apart in front of... and with.’
Markle’s friend and former Suits co-star Patrick J Adams also opened up in a Twitter thread on Friday about his friend former colleague, describing her as ‘enthusiastic, kind, cooperative, giving, joyful and supportive’.
‘She fell in love, moved to a new country, became a household name across the entire globe and began the difficult work of trying to find her place in a family dynamic that can at best be described as complicated and at worst, seemingly archaic and toxic,’ he said of Markle’s life since they worked together.
Meghan Markle and I spent the better part of a decade working together on Suits. From day one she was an enthusiastic, kind, cooperative, giving, joyful and supportive member of our television family. She remained that person and colleague as fame, prestige and power accrued.
— Patrick J Adams (@halfadams) March 5, 2021
Adams noted that he was ‘sickened’ by ‘the endless racist, slanderous, clickbaiting vitriol spewed in her direction from all manner of media across the UK and the world’.
It sickened me to read the endless racist, slanderous, clickbaiting vitriol spewed in her direction from all manner of media across the UK and the world but I also knew that Meghan was stronger than people realized or understood and they would regret underestimating her.
— Patrick J Adams (@halfadams) March 5, 2021
Chrissy Teigen later shared her thoughts on the treatment of Markle ahead of the interview, writing on Friday on Twitter: ‘This meghan markle sh*t is hitting too close to home for me. these people won’t stop until she miscarries. F*cking stop it [sic].’
this meghan markle shit is hitting too close to home for me. these people won’t stop until she miscarries. fucking stop it.
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) March 5, 2021
The 35-year-old’s son Jack died pre-term last October at 20 weeks – an experience the TV presenter and model has been open in speaking about in recent months.
After Markle shared her story of her miscarriage in an essay for the New York Times last November, Teigen shared her support for the mother-of-one and defended her against criticism she was receiving for speaking about a very personal experience.
‘Is anyone really questioning the pain and sheer awfulness of suffering a miscarriage, or are they perhaps criticising Meghan’s decision to write a 1,000 word op-Ed about herself?’ Teigen tweeted at the time in a now deleted post, according to JustJared.
The Duke and Duchess’ interview with Winfrey will air in the US on Sunday, and on ITV from 9pm on Monday March 8.
Watch: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Said Racism Was a "Large Part" of Why They Left the UK
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