The Queen, Prince Charles and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have all shared well-wishes to Meghan Markle on her 40th birthday.
The Royal Family Instagram account, run by the Queen’s Buckingham Palace staff, was the first to post on Instagram and Twitter, sharing three photos of Meghan along with the message: ‘Wishing the Duchess of Sussex a very happy birthday today!’
One of the photos shows the Queen, 95, and Meghan smiling on their first and only joint engagement in June 2018.
Within minutes, Prince William and Kate Middleton and Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall added their own birthday messages.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge chose a photo of Meghan from her and Harry’s royal tour of Australia in October 2018.
The Queen shared this trio of photos of the Duchess of Sussex to mark the milestone birthday
Prince William and Kate Middleton have wished Meghan Markle a happy 40th birthday
Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cambridge shared this Instagram Story post
The photo has been interpreted by royal fans as a signal of the Cambridges’ desire to repair their relationship with the Sussexes.
Prince William and Prince Harry, who were once inseparable, have grown apart in the 18 months since Harry and Meghan’s decision to quit the royal family and move to the US.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s public criticism of the Royal Family in a string of recent high-profile TV and podcast interviews has put the relationship under further strain.
Prince William and Prince Harry were last seen together last month at the unveiling of the Princess Diana memorial statue in the gardens of Kensington Palace. The intimate ceremony marked what would have been Diana’s 60th birthday.
Before that the brothers had last come face-to-face at the funeral of their grandfather Prince Philip, which took place just weeks after Harry and Meghan’s explosive Oprah Winfrey interview.
There had been speculation that Meghan, who welcomed daughter Lilibet Diana in June, was planning to celebrate her milestone birthday with a lavish party for 65 guests.
However yesterday Page Six dismissed the plan and suggested Prince Harry will instead whisk his wife off on an ‘intimate getaway’.
The photo has been interpreted by royal fans as a signal of the Cambridges’ desire to repair their relationship with the Sussexes. Pictured, William, Kate, Harry and Meghan in March 2020
Royal experts have also speculated that the Sussexes may choose to release an eagerly-anticipated family photo to mark the special occasion. Fans are still waiting to catch a glimpse of Lilibet.
Royal commentator Phil Dampier told The Sun Online: ‘I think it’s likely we will see a picture of the family. It wouldn’t surprise me, if Meghan does release a pic of her with Lilibet to mark her 40th birthday, as they’ll will want to emphasise what a happy family unit they are.
‘And it will be interesting to see what messages she gets from the royals – I suspect they will post messages, even though in private they are very upset about was has happened,’ – presumably a nod to their explosive Oprah Winfrey interview.’
According to The Mirror, Prince Harry has reportedly ordered a cake for his wife from a local bakery, Posies & Sugar, which creates cakes in a simple semi-naked icing look and decorated with flowers.
The couple are not planning to attend the grand birthday party of former President Obama – who turns 60 on the same day – which is believed to be taking place at his Martha’s Vineyard home over the weekend.
Last year Meghan enjoyed a quiet birthday at home amid the Covid-19 pandemic, five months after she and Harry sensationally quit the Royal Family and moved to the US.
Her 40th is five months before her sister-in-law Kate Middleton’s, while Prince William also hits the milestone in June next year.
Since they got together, Harry and Meghan have enjoyed intimate birthday celebrations. For the Duchess’ 36th, the prince took her away to Botswana where they carried out conservation work with the charity Elephants Without Borders.
She marked her 37th – her first birthday as an official member of the Royal Family – at the wedding of Harry’s friend Charlie van Straubenzee and Daisy Jenks in Surrey.
On her 38th, which was Meghan’s first as a mother, having given birth to son Archie in May 2019, the couple held a private celebration at their Frogmore Cottage home in Windsor before flying to Ibiza.
Last month it was reported Prince Harry has clinched a lucrative four-book deal – with the second due out only after the Queen has died.