Thomas Markle defends releasing daughter Meghan Markle’s private letter

Meghan Markle‘s estranged father, Thomas Markle, said he released a private letter written by his daughter to “defend” himself following the February publication of a People story, in which the Duchess of Sussex’s friends spoke about the letter and discussed the pair’s tense relationship.

“I decided to release parts of the letter because of the article from Meghan’s friends in People magazine,” Thomas, 75, told the Mail on Sunday. “I have to defend myself. I only released parts of the letter because other parts were so painful. The letter didn’t seem loving to me. I found it hurtful.”

In a People article from February, close friends of Meghan, 38, said she had not cut Thomas out of her life, despite claims that the former Hollywood lighting director had been “frozen out” by the royal family. A pal later revealed the context of Meghan’s letter, which was written after her May 2018 nuptials to Prince Harry.

“She’s like, ‘Dad, I’m so heartbroken. I love you. I have one father. Please stop victimizing me through the media so we can repair our relationship.’ Because every time her team has to come to her and fact-check something [he has said], it’s an arrow to the heart,” the insider detailed.

Thomas, who famously skipped last year’s royal wedding amid fallout over a staged photo scandal, shared Meghan’s letter, which was published by The Mail on Sunday.

Last week, it was revealed Meghan is suing the owner of the Daily Mail for publishing the letter.

“My wife has become one of the latest victims of a British tabloid press that wages campaigns against individuals with no thought to the consequences — a ruthless campaign that has escalated over the past year, throughout her pregnancy and while raising our newborn son,” Prince Harry said in a statement.

He later added: “The contents of a private letter were published unlawfully in an intentionally destructive manner to manipulate you, the reader, and further the divisive agenda of the media group in question.”

For more on Meghan Markle’s media war, listen to this episode of the Page Six podcast, “We Hear”: