Meghan Markle made no secret of her apparent disdain for royal duties ahead of ‘Megxit’, even complaining out loud once that she should have been paid for her 2018 tour of Australia, during which she dealt staff members “horribly”, according to a new book.
The Duchess of Sussex reveled in her reception Down Under as Prince Harry’s ‘inspiring’ new wife, but privately Markle sang a different tune, The Sun reported, citing the book ‘In Courtiers: the Hidden Power Behind the Crown” by Valentin Low.
“Although she enjoyed the attention, Meghan failed to understand the purpose of all these walks, shaking hands with countless strangers,” Low reportedly wrote.
“According to several staff members, she was overheard saying on at least one occasion, ‘I can’t believe I don’t get paid for this.'”
The divorced, biracial American actress also bullied courtiers even before she was a royal, and continued to treat them harshly until she and Harry announced they were parting ways with the palace in 2020 , according to the book.
She lashed out at one of Harry’s advisers six months before their 2017 engagement, saying: ‘I think we both know I’m going to be one of your bosses soon,’ according to the report.
When a senior assistant told the couple that staff bristled at the way they were treated, Meghan retorted that it was not her “job to pamper people”, Low reportedly wrote.
Markle, 41, also spoke “particularly harshly to a young woman,” the book says.
“After Meghan tore a plan she had come up with to pieces, the woman told Meghan how difficult it would be to implement a new one. “Don’t worry,” Meghan reportedly told her. “If there was literally anyone else I could ask to do this, I would ask them for you.”
The incident prompted Prince William to step in and reassure the woman she was doing a great job – bringing her to tears, according to the tome, which will be released in England next week.
On another occasion, Markle called another member of staff every five minutes during a Friday night dinner. The nuisance calls continued the next morning and lasted “for days”, the book reportedly said.
Markle and her assistant also argued over her desire to keep the clothes the designers would send her – which is against royal policy, Low wrote, according to The Sun.
Sussex press chief Jason Knauf filed a bullying complaint against his boss in 2018 before quitting and being hired by William and Kate Middleton.
Buckingham Palace launched an investigation into allegations of Markle’s misbehavior 18 months ago, but said this summer it would not publish the findings.
Markle has denied all allegations of bullying and harassment, but the book revealed that she was allegedly bullied by her future husband when the two were dating.
Before they were linked in the press as a couple, Meghan gave Harry a bold ultimatum, according to the report.
“She was like, ‘If you don’t release a statement confirming I’m your girlfriend, I’m going to break up with you,'” a source told Low.
The threat “freaked out” the prince, who frantically told the others, “She’s going to dump me,” the book says.
After the relationship went public in 2016, Markle turned her anger on courtiers, according to the newspaper’s book summary.
“She told Harry’s staff, ‘I know how the Palace works. I know how it’s going to be. You don’t care about the girlfriend,’ a source told Low.
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