Meghan Markle's Dad Accused Of Staging Pictures Before Daughter's Royal Wedding

Meghan Markle Suits

As the Royal Wedding approaches, there might already be some royal trouble. Specifically, Meghan Markle's father, Thomas Markle, allegedly collaborated with a British photographer to stage some fancy photos of himself preparing for his famous daughter's much-anticipated wedding. If Thomas Markle is still expected to give his celebrity daughter away at the Windsor Castle on May 19th, his attendance at the royal shindig might've gotten a whole lot more awkward. Here's what we know about the scandal involving Meghan Markle's red-handed pops.

It was recently revealed that Thomas Markle was reportedly caught on CCTV posing for fake photos, which were then sold to newspapers around the world. Even though Prince Harry requested that the media not bother his future family members, including his future father-in-law, before the forthcoming wedding, Thomas Markle seems to have gone ahead and made himself into a headline, anyway. The Daily Mail alleges that the eldest Markle was recently photographed at an Internet cafe with photographer Jeff Rayner. It was shortly after they arrived at the cafe that Raynor and Thomas Markle were preparing snapshots of Meghan's father looking at a news story about his daughter and her future royal husband. Other photos scored by the team included Thomas Markle being fitted into a suit for the weekend wedding, as well as Thomas Markle reading a magazine about British landmarks. It is believed the photographer and proud father even netted somewhere around $135,000 for the staged stills.

It's unclear how much of the pie Thomas Markle received for these seemingly not-so-candid photography sessions, although one imagines that he wasn't doing it simply to help out a photographer in his time of need. In any case, the royal family and Thomas Markle have not spoken out about this incident at this time, and Jeff Raynor refused to comment when asked about the tabloid situation.

This incident is certainly not the only headline centered around the Royal Wedding. In addition to Meghan Markle's father (potentially) profiting from his daughter's upcoming Royal Wedding, Priyanka Chopra was recently put in the hotseat when she was expected to answer questions about her BFF on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. Chopra revealed Meghan's reaction when she finally said "yes" to the dress, and she also admitted that she didn't know what to give her best friend as a gift, because what do you give someone who is about to marry Prince Harry? It's quite a dilemma.

The Royal Wedding takes place in the Windsor Castle on May 19th. There are literally thousands of guests invited and it's set to be broadcasted live for the world to see. We'll have to keep an eye out for Thomas Markle when he walks his daughter down the aisle, and we'll have to look out to see how the royal family reactions to his attendance. If he's still invited, of course.

Will Ashton

Will is an entertainment writer based in Pittsburgh, PA. His writing can also be found in The Playlist, Cut Print Film, We Got This Covered, The Young Folks, Slate and other outlets. He also co-hosts the weekly film/TV podcast Cinemaholics with Jon Negroni and he likes to think he's a professional Garfield enthusiast.