Royal family fails to send Meghan Markle happy 42nd birthday wishes in public

The Duchess of Sussex appeared to have been rejected by the royal family as she celebrated her 42nd birthday today.

Their social media silence came in contrast to previous years as they shared posts wishing Meghan Markle luck on her big day with their millions of followers.

Royal watchers will no doubt see it as evidence of the even more strained relations between the Sussexes and Harry’s brother William, sister-in-law Kate, father Charles and stepmother Camilla in recent months.

But tonight royal aides said they only marked the birthdays of working members of the royal family on their official social media accounts.

However, this seemed to conflict with messages wishing the Duchess a happy birthday in previous years.

In previous years, the Royals have sent the public their best wishes on Meghan’s birthday (Pictured: The King, The Prince and Princess of Wales, Meghan and Prince Harry after a service at Sandringham on Christmas Day, 2018)

There was sharp criticism of the royals in Harry’s controversial tell-all autobiography Spare, published in January, and in his and Meghan’s bombshell Netflix documentary series, broadcast in December.

It is also Meghan’s first birthday since the death of Queen Elizabeth II last September and the dawn of the new Carolean era under King Charles III. Meghan was not present at the King’s coronation in May and Harry was away from senior members of the family.

There was also a dearth of social media posts yesterday from Meghan’s closest celebrity friends, including Serena Williams who appeared on her now-cancelled Spotify podcast Archetypes shortly after Meghan’s birthday last year. However, retired tennis player Miss Williams also did not use Twitter to send Meghan birthday wishes last year.

On August 4 last year, William and Kate sent a message to Meghan on Twitter from their official account, saying, “Happy Birthday to the Duchess of Sussex!”

Their message, posted at 9:01am UK time, also included a photo of Meghan in a white outfit and hat, taken during her visit to the UK a few months earlier to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s platinum anniversary.

Today the first – and until 5pm only – post on The Prince and Princess of Wales account on X, as Twitter is now called, was a message of congratulations to the makers of the documentary Rhino Man, who has been shortlisted for a Jackson Wild Media Awards. The pair are longstanding advocates of conservation.

Charles, then the Prince of Wales, and Camilla, then the Duchess of Cornwall, also sent a message to mark Meghan’s 41st birthday on Twitter last year, saying “Happy Birthday to the Duchess of Sussex!” with a red balloon emoji.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were spotted leaving Tre Lune’s trendy Montecito restaurant with their boyfriend Matt Cohen (right), on the eve of the Duchess’s 42nd birthday

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are said to have felt they had been ‘repeatedly unlucky’ in their endeavors due to world events after their Spotify deal was dropped

Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex arrive at City Hall during the Invictus Games Dusseldorf 2023

Harry and Meghan are facing growing speculation about their future in Hollywood after their Spotify deal was scrapped and the Netflix show canceled.

But Meghan, dressed in a strapless, black and white hoop dress from Posse for £188, was still all smiles after dining at an Italian restaurant with Harry, 38, in Montecito on the eve of her birthday on Wednesday night.

Dressed in an open-neck blue linen shirt and white slacks, she and Harry appeared to be in good spirits as they were pictured leaving the fashionable Tre Lune Italian restaurant, a favorite among celebrities like Kourtney Kardashian and Ellen DeGeneres.

The Sussexes were joined by their friend Matt Cohen, husband of Meghan’s friend of many years and Pilates instructor Heather Dorak.

The manager of the restaurant told HELLO! “They loved their experience.”

This year’s apparent silence by members of the royal family breaks the tradition of wishing Meghan a happy birthday on social media.

In 2019, Clarence House sent warm wishes and a slew of photos of the Duchess giggling with Charles and Camilla at public events.

The late Queen was also celebrating, with her Twitter account posting a photo of Meghan holding hands with Harry at the London Stadium as the pair attended a baseball game.

Even after Harry and Meghan left working royals in 2020 and moved to America, the Firm continued to send Meghan birthday wishes.

William and Kate wished Meghan a happy 40th birthday on Twitter in 2021, and the royal family’s Twitter account shared photos of Meghan with Harry and snaps of her with the Queen.