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By Jack Royston
Chief Royal Correspondent
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Daily Mail journalist Caroline Graham said "we both had tears in our eyes" as she discussed with Meghan Markle's father the prospect they might need to end their friendship.
The Duchess of Sussex has not spoken to her father since 2018, when he was caught staging paparazzi photos for money in the run up to her May wedding to Prince Harry.
Now though, he has been in hospital in the Philippines after a leg was amputated to remove a 14 inch blood clot which had caused necrosis, or tissue death, in his foot.
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Why It Matters
The health crisis led to calls for Meghan to end the seven year feud and speak to her father. Instead of a call, she opted for a letter, while her spokesperson issued a public statement denouncing Graham for "breaching clear ethical boundaries."
What to Know
Graham responded to the swipe in a first person piece for The Mail on Sunday headlined: "My tears with Meghan's dad as I told him to choose her over our friendship: The Sussexes have accused CAROLINE GRAHAM of 'crossing ethical lines' by being at his hospital bedside. Now she tells her side of the story…"
In the article, Graham wrote: "Her father and I have discussed many times what would happen if she did reach out to him.
"I have always said I would walk away from our friendship if it meant he could reconcile with her. Painful as that would be—and we both had tears in our eyes as we discussed it again last week—it would be impossible for him to reconcile with her while having a friend in the media, particularly one in the British Press, for which Prince Harry has repeatedly expressed his hatred."
A source familiar with Meghan’s position, whom Newsweek has granted anonymity so they could speak freely, said: "Her piece this weekend only served to reinforce the Duchess’ point. Caroline, and the Mail more broadly, have been determined to conduct this entire matter in full public view. Any suggestion of respecting privacy—such as her claim that she would leave the room to take a call—is difficult to take seriously when it is followed by a double-page spread just days later.
"As for calling out her, and the paper’s, unethical approach to storytelling, I’m content to let Newsweek’s readers judge for themselves whether publishing every intimate detail of an 81-year-old man’s most serious medical issues, and using that as a vehicle for a hit piece against his daughter simply because you dislike her, is anything other than ethically bankrupt and morally repugnant."
Newsweek has emailed the newspaper's press team for comment.
In her first person piece, Graham also described the moment Meghan's letter to her father was delivered to him in hospital: "On Wednesday, Tom was in the middle of a physiotherapy session when the president of the hospital walked into the room with her lawyer with no warning.
"I covered his amputated leg with a sheet to preserve his dignity. He was asked to sign yet another legal document to confirm that he was about to receive a letter from his daughter and that the letter was sealed and personally handed to him. The lawyer said the handover would be videoed so that the video could be sent to Meghan.
"The whole thing felt surreal. I offered to leave the room. Tom asked me to stay. Once the handover was complete—and duly taped for the Sussexes—he and I sat staring at each other.
"The letter in its glaringly white envelope lay on his hospital bed. Tom was physically trembling at the sight of the letter, so I asked Tom whether I should move it."
Graham wrote that she watched him open the letter and read it several times but "he shared nothing about the contents."
They became friends, she wrote, after she initially got in touch about the prospect of interviewing him in 2018: "In the early days he would drive up to Los Angeles [from his home in Mexico] once a month to pick up mail and go to the bank. We’d meet for dinner and chat about all sorts of things."
They discussed Meghan but also movies: "I knew little about ‘old’ Hollywood but Tom has an encyclopedic knowledge and took delight in introducing me to the classic movies of Busby Berkeley, Spencer Tracy and Jimmy Stewart. He would ring me up and say: ‘I’ve just seen this and you’d love it.’ I kept a notebook by my bedside simply to jot down his recommendations.
"As a Brit I never liked country music. Tom got me into Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson. We share a passion for cats, too. Tom spent a fortune feeding the strays which gathered nightly on his patio. Once, I stopped counting at 50 animals."
What People Are Saying
One long term fan of Meghan wrote on X: "Journalists are supposed to report—it's a job. They're not supposed to cast themselves as the lead in a frickin' toxic soap opera of their own making. Caroline Graham has lost the b***** plot and so has journalism in this country when it comes to Meghan (Duchess of) Sussex."
Another wrote: "The Daily Mail made a business out of humiliating Meghan Sussex. Now they want credit for 'humanity' because one of their reporters exploited her father’s hospital bed instead of her directly. Miss me with that b*******. This is unethical journalism hiding behind tears."
Meghan's spokesperson said in a statement last week: "Given that a Daily Mail reporter has remained at her father’s bedside throughout, broadcasting each interaction and breaching clear ethical boundaries, it has been exceedingly difficult for the duchess to contact her father privately, despite her efforts over the past several days.
"With the support of reliable and trusted contacts, her correspondence is now safely in his hands."
The Daily Mail's press team responded: "When Thomas Markle was taken ill in the Philippines he contacted Caroline Graham and asked her to travel from LA to be with him.
"As well as being a journalist, Caroline has been friends with Mr Markle since 2018. She has been with Mr Markle in hospital every day, providing him with care and support.
"As soon as Mr Markle gave consent for his contact details, the name of his hospital and his room number to be provided to his daughter’s spokesman, Caroline shared them.
"It is entirely untrue that each interaction has been broadcast, and the suggestion that Caroline has breached ethical boundaries is demonstrably false and vehemently denied."
What Happens Next
Thomas Markle was last week moved out of ICU as he continues his recovery from surgery.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry is preparing in January for a trial in the lawsuit he filed against the publisher of the Daily Mail on historic allegations of phone hacking and other illegal practices.
The newspaper denies his allegations and has indicated it will vigorously contest the case.
Do you have a question about King Charles III and Queen Camilla, Prince William and Princess Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
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