Thomas Markle programme

A Father who truly loves his daughter would stay away from the press and all other media.

Oh dear. Harry is going to be completely screwed up once this woman has chewed him up and spat him out.

I watched paint dry instead.

Gaga there is not one shred of evidence that MM was ever married to JG. The lie appears on some of the most stomach churning, vomit inducing, filthy blogs the internet has ever spawned.

He’s a POS, along with her half sister.

He obviously feels a great sense of injustice, which is why he has continued to speak out and not go quietly. Can’t say I blame him for that. I felt very sorry for him, he’s so remorseful about the staged photos and the subsequent estrangement, it’s hard not to. I too wondered why Meghan went to live with him at age 11 - pretty unusual for a girl of that age to choose to live with Dad rather than Mum - but no reason was given. And fair play to him for being honest about taking payment for interviews etc, makes a refreshing change! Hope Meghan and Harry get to see this and decide to reach out as, when he eventually passes away, it can never be made right.

Like father like daughter.
Has to be seen and heard.

Schnackie Meghan's first wedding was not the one to Trevor Engleson in Jamaica. Her first, to Joe Giulianio was annulled and maybe Thomas did not attend that one (it was a Catholic one) which could be causing some confusion.

I read that Her Majesty was unimpressed about MM having the white dress and very long veil when marrying Harry given that this was her third wedding. It's all a real mess for the Royal Family and I hope they are ready to catch Harry when he returns to the UK after she dumps him, which I feel certain she will. She is a bolter.

Washerwoman I agree with all you say. What a very sad scenario. Meghan appears to have had some lovely times with her father, and according to her speech, was very proud of him. Can't think why the men in suits or Harry didn't send over a PR person to handle the press intrusion, her dad was obviously well out of his depth and struggling. I can't really see why posing for those pictures in the internet cafe was seen as such a heinous crime - stupid, naive and worst of all for Meghan, embarrassing, yes, but surely not enough of a sin to cut off all contact? Since then things appear to have gone from bad to worse - with both sides feeling aggrieved and upset; I do hope that they can all get together some day and sort it out, but I doubt it.

It's just a sorry mess for all of them really isn't it? wasn't going to watch and actually felt 'oh no ,don't do that' on hearing he was doing an interview.But I did watch and the one thing that struck me was Meghan's extremely warm tribute to his in that speech in 2013 -or was it 15?.Either way as an extremely competent speaker and already successful she praised him.Credited him with encouraging her to be an empowered woman.
Just a few years later,even more successful in her career and now very high profile, she and Harry can't meet him in person just once ?Affording a flight is hardly a problem.And to suddenly face press on your door with no back up or advice.And actually in retrospect that comment of Harry's about Meghan now having the family she never had seems awful .To Doria,let alone him.It seems through her teenage years she was a real daddy's girl and he did indulge her.To the detriment of her half siblings I would suspect,and maybe that's where all their bile comes from.Not saying that's right by the way.
I took the 'they owe me'to mean less about money and more about emotional support.However he's now so upset about not seeing Archie etc he's thought sod it .She will never forgive me so why not talk.Maybe that's wrong of him.But hearing Meghan complain that she was struggling and nobody asked her if she was ok.Who knows ?It's bizarre and sad in equal measure.
I actually had more sympathy for him than I expected.And also felt he was been foolish ,but essentially genuine in what he said.

I don't understand why Harry never met him before the wedding. Surely that would have been the time to establish a relationship? He has been very much sidelined and this mess is the result.

I just watched the programme about Thomas Markle. There was much evidence of a loving, proud and supportive Dad. It was also good to see that although divorced, he and Doria seem to have continued to have a good parental relationship, both being there at the end of school celebration etc. Also he still seems concerned about Doria when she was shown sitting alone at the wedding.

When Harry made that comment about "the family she never had", that might be what he believed was true, from what Meghan told him. I think she can be quite manipulative. She must have put Harry off meeting her Dad by some means. It would be normal behaviour for someone like Harry to want to meet his future father in law. We just do not know what he was told.

I wonder what Meghan will say to Harry when he sees the programme with all the happy videos and photos. I'm sure she'll have some story ready.

I liked Thomas more than I expected to. I had thought the heart attack was not true too. He has been stupid at times, but I can understand his point of view. There have been lies on both sides. I suspect he's right, and sadly he'll never meet Archie.

If he clearly loves/ed his daughter he would have kept his own counsel and his mouth firmly shut!

I am all for H&M doing their own thing we do not know what has gone on behind the scenes. I imagine that Court circles move in a time honoured way. However I would have thought Harry given how he feels about the media and how his Mother was left to fend for herself before marrying Charles would have offered some advice or protection for her Father. I am still curious about the press intrusion complaints because I haven’t seen any apologies if I missed this. I do not recall any coverage of her walking her dogs while here? I wonder at the comments made by “friends” just saying ....

I’ve just watched the programme on catch up, how decadent in the middle of the day!
I thought TM came across as quite genuine in what he said. He admitted he’s been foolish and naive, and that on occasions has lied.
He should have been given much more guidance from the Palace and yes, from Harry, about how to deal with press interest and intrusion after the engagement was announced.
I always felt the heart attack before the wedding was a convenient excuse for him not to attend, I feel ashamed now to think I didn’t really believe it had occurred.
I think TM doesn’t fit the image Meghan wanted portrayed of her background. For some reason, her mum is ok but not Thomas.
It’s all rather sad, and no one comes out of it very well, including H&M.

This is again a discussion full of people surmising. Nobody knows the actual truth or has evidence of what has happened. It is all about what has been said by the media...

If you met my father you would think he was absolutely charming, completely open and the life and soul of the party. He refers to us as his wonderful daughters and makes out that we are the world to him. If you didn't know him, you would think he is wonderful although once you got to know him, you'd probably raise your eyebrows a few times at how often the conversation revolves around him. You wouldn't recognise that man who had the family dog put down after an argument with his wife and came back swinging the lead, whistling cheerfully. You wouldn't recognise the man who took the children from their beds one night, kept them from their mother for a year and then abandoned them for 14 years when the courts ordered their return. You wouldn't recognise the man who begged you to keep your relationship a secret from his second family because he didn't want his new children upset. You wouldn't recognise the man who had to have his son's eulogy returned 4 times because it was supposed to be about his son, not him. Actually, nor would his friends because nobody is allowed to know. Appearances can be deceptive especially when family work to keep things quiet.

It is getting strange to hear nothing from Doria......who was not living with M from M age 11 til 19.
We don't know why.

Also I don't really care....but I am not happy we are still paying for M&H security,
They are wealthy they should pay for it.
They are big scroungers.
They should let the Met Police force use that money to put more police back on the street to deter all the crime going on.... That would be very caring, for others, not really a RF thing though is it.
What is involved in being a Patron?
Does it actually involve any work?

Yes that phrase "they owe me" did have an underlying threat to it.

It's no wonder no one knows the real story. In these GN's comments, one person said that TM said that Meghan had a C-Section. He did not - he said SHE was born by C-Sec and so he got to be the first person to hold her. Someone else has said he wasn't at her first wedding! According to many news sources, he and Doria both walked her down the aisle at her first wedding in Jamaica! None of us can distinguish facts from opinions or hearsay. Personally my opinion is that he is just trying to tell his own (version) side of the story. The idea of 'ghosting' such a close family member is abhorrent to me.

As an afterthought where now will this intended family appear from? The one Harry would give Meghan after claiming 'she never had one'?
Hasn't he just walked away from his own family?.

In all the various threads, and there have been many, over the past months opinion is so evenly and diametrically divided, that I am amazed.
No- one has been swayed by the posts and remain as opposed and steadfast as they started out.
Love them or hate them, no middle way and now it extends to her father.

I thought the video clips and photos of Meghan which TM allowed to be shown, portrayed a loving father/daughter relationship and a strong bond between them. In one of Meghan's speeches she praises her father highly for his advice and encouragement. It's my belief he (TM) wanted people to see for themselves that he and Meghan have had a lot of happy family memories together in the past after all he is her father. They should have visited her father personally to be introduced to each other not just a phone call saying I have a new boyfriend ...and he's a prince, then putting him on the phone to speak to each other ,not an easy conversation to be introduced in such a way. I feel he's been treated shoddily from watching this programme and I don't blame him for having his say.

Yennifer.

This all kicked off the Christmas Meghan spent with the Royals

Harry was doing an interview about how marvellous it had been for Meghan. Her first Christmas with the family she never had. Really?

Meghan must have told him that.

Blatantly untrue of course

H&M made no effort to meet her father

I think I'd feel a bit hurt if my daughter and her fiance couldn't be bothered to meet me before the big day

There's wrong on both parts

But Meghan must make her mind up

Her family isn't what is required

And now Harry's family's been given the boot as well!

He is an elderly man, not in good health who had such a wonderfully close relationship with his daughter growing up, so the programme made very sad viewing to see how he has been callously cast aside.

It still amazes me that Harry has never met him.

He should have done so before they got engaged which would have been before the disastrous photo shoot. If Thomas had been given proper support I am sure the photo debacle would never have happened.

I do wish the documentary had explained how he lost the large lottery win.