Meghan biography paints her as a social climber who wants to be Princess Diana 2.0
Meghan Markle is a few weeks away from becoming a member of Britain’s royal family but a new book by Andrew Morton, the royal biographer, states that the American actress always wanted to be another Princess Diana and is a "social climber."
Shedding light on the royal-to-be's life before meeting Prince Harry, the book, “Meghan: A Hollywood Princess,” claims Markle’s divorce from her first husband, producer Trevor Engelson, was so abrupt that Markle sent her ring back through the mail.
With a series of interviews with her childhood friends, the biographer writes; “A networker to her fingertips, she seemed to be recalibrating her life, forging new friendships with those who could develop her career."
The 36-year-old California native who ended her seven-season run as an actress on the TV show 'Suits' when her engagement to Harry, 33, was announced last November, was quoted in an engagement interview saying, “Because I’m from the states, we don’t grow up with the same understanding of the royal family. And so, while I now understand very clearly that there’s a global interest there, I didn’t know very much about him.”
However, in the biography, a person Morton identifies as a childhood friend of Markle’s is quoted saying the former actress was in fact “always fascinated by the royal family.”
The friend is also quoted as saying Markle “wants to be Princess Diana 2.0,” Harry’s late mother, who was a noted humanitarian.
Markle, who graduated from Northwestern University, is also a humanitarian who worked with the United Nations on women’s issues and was an ambassador for World Vision prior to meeting Harry.
Markles' teenage friends who claim Markle was crying as they watched the funeral for Diana in 1997 was also quoted by Andrew Morton.
“According to family and friends, she was intrigued by Diana not just for her style but for her independent humanitarian mission, seeing her as a role model,” Morton writes.
Markle now lives in London and has closely worked with Harry and Prince William and Princess Kate on The Royal Foundation, the royals’ charitable arm of which Markle will become a patron.
“Meghan: A Hollywood Princess” will be released in the US on April 17.