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EXCLUSIVE: One royal author doesn’t expect Meghan Markle to revisit the U.K. anytime soon.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped away from royal duties last year and moved to California, saying they wanted to escape racist coverage and unwanted intrusions on their privacy by the British media.
Markle's husband Prince Harry is expected to reunite with his older brother Prince William at Kensington Palace for what would have been their mother Princess Diana’s 60th birthday. The statue of the late princess was commissioned by the brothers in 2017 and will be unveiled on July 1st.
The former American actress, 39, is expecting a girl due this summer.
WHY OPRAH WINFREY PROBABLY DIDN’T ASK MEGHAN MARKLE, PRINCE HARRY ABOUT PRINCE ANDREW: ROYAL AUTHOR
Prince Harry (left) and Prince William are expected to reunite this summer. (Getty)
"Will Meghan Markle return to the U.K.? My speculative answer would be no, not if she can help it," royal author Anna Pasternak told Fox News.
"Sadly, I cannot see her ever becoming a loved and cherished member of the royal family with the unified respect and adoration of the British people" Pasternak shared. "I think that ship has sailed."
Pasternak has previously written about the other American divorcee who married a royal for a book titled "The Real Wallis Simpson." The British writer tracked down Simpson’s last remaining circle of intimate friends who wanted to set the record straight about her controversial life.
Pasternak said she isn’t surprised by the recent backlash that the former "Suits" star has faced in the U.K.
This image provided by Harpo Productions shows Prince Harry, from left, and Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, in conversation with Oprah Winfrey. (AP)
On March 7, CBS aired a two-hour interview that the couple did with Oprah Winfrey. During the televised sit-down, the Duke of Sussex, 36, revealed that his relationships with his father Prince Charles, 72, and older brother William, 38, have ruptured.
Markle described feeling so isolated and miserable inside the royal family that she had suicidal thoughts. When she asked for mental health assistance from the palace’s human resources staff, Markle was told they couldn’t help because she wasn’t a paid employee. The Duchess of Sussex also alleged that a member of the royal family had "concerns" about the color of her unborn child’s skin.
The family member was not Queen Elizabeth II, 94, or Prince Philip, 99, according to Harry, sparking a flurry of speculation about who it could be.
Harry also told the media mogul, 67, the royal family cut him off financially at the start of 2020 after announcing plans to step back from his roles. But he was able to afford security for his family because of the money Diana left behind.
MEGHAN MARKLE, PRINCE HARRY'S TELL-ALL INTERVIEW 'DID BOTHER' PRINCE ALBERT II OF MONACO
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (seen here with Prince William) spoke out about the mistreatment they endured as working royals. (Photo by Eddie Mulholland - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
"Many people feel the interview was a total lack of respect for the monarchy and in a sense, for the British," Pasternak explained. "Because the monarchy is part of the British psyche. So this monarchy bashing can also be viewed as British bashing. And from personal knowledge, it is understood that Prince Charles, Prince William, Duchess Kate Middleton and the queen – they were just so shocked and saddened by [the allegations]."
According to Pasternak, despite the ruthless U.K. tabloids targeting Markle during her relationship with Harry, the British people were eager to embrace the television star. In the early days of their marriage, the couple was seen as the fresh young face of the monarchy for an increasingly multicultural nation.
"We absolutely embraced her," said Pasternak. "We embraced this incredible wedding. We were thrilled with the 'Markle Sparkle.' And we were thrilled for Harry, who was our nation’s son in a way. We all watched him walk behind his mother’s coffin and all of our hearts went out to him.
"We loved Harry and we were thrilled for him when he found this beautiful American actress for a wife. We genuinely were. But they didn’t stay long enough and kind of went into this self-imposed exile. Not only that, but they criticized the whole thing, which felt like they were throwing it back into our faces."
Prince Charles with Meghan Markle on her wedding day. (Getty Images)
"In the beginning, we really took to Meghan because she wasn’t an aristocrat," Pasternak continued. "She was actually this really ambitious, wonderful woman. So I think in some ways, many people in Britain do feel betrayed by her."
During the interview, Harry told Winfrey he felt his family did not support Markle, who acknowledged her naiveté about royal life before marrying the prince, as she endured media attacks and false stories.
In response to a question from Winfrey, Harry said he wouldn’t have left royal life if he hadn’t married Markle. However, their relationship revealed the strictures of royal life.
Markle also admitted she was naïve about the ground rules of royal life before marrying her husband nearly three years ago.
Meghan Markle admitted to Oprah Winfrey that she "didn't fully understand what the job was." (Getty)
"I didn’t fully understand what the job was," said Markle. "I will say I went into it naively because I didn’t grow up knowing much about the royal family. It wasn’t something that was part of conversations at home. It wasn’t something that we followed."
Pasternak said she believed Markle truly had no idea what she got herself into by joining the royal family.
"Nobody’s going to go in and completely shake up the house of Windsor," said Pasternak. "It’s just not going to happen because the very reason it’s endured for so long, it’s actually because very little has changed. Powerful women who marry into the house of Windsor don’t fare well. If they’re emotional and speak out, they certainly don’t fare well. It’s those who are stoic, go on with their heads down and do their duty like Kate and Camilla that endure."
"Look at Camilla, who at one point had the worst press ever," Pasternak shared. "She’s never spoken out and put duty first when she joined the family. Since then, she’s achieved this national treasure status by the people… The one thing you cannot do as a member of the royal family is to have an opinion. You have to remain impartial, apolitical and just smile. In many ways, Meghan was too bright for that and too animated and sharp."
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Britain's Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (left) and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge. (Photo by Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
According to Pasternak, the biggest mistake one can make when joining "The Firm" is to confuse celebrity with royalty.
"Joining the family comes with a lot of restrictions that Meghan clearly didn’t want," she said. "You cannot confuse celebrity with royalty. Duty always comes first."
When asked what she believes the future holds for the couple, Pasternak replied, "That’s the million-dollar question."
"I can see Meghan being backed by powerful people and eventually trying for political office," she said. "I think she has an ambition that knows no bounds. So I wouldn’t be all that surprised if that was part of her agenda. All power to her, if that’s what she really wants."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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