Meghan Markle's Pal Slams 'Ridiculous Double Standards' Within Royal Family as He Declares Actress Is 'Vilified and Trolled'

An insider close to Meghan Markle is speaking out on “ridiculous double standards” the Duchess of Sussex has experienced within the royal family.

“Can you blame the couple for wanting to escape the peculiar prison of royal life, especially given the ridiculous double standards applied to the Duchess of Sussex and Prince Andrew?” Bryony Gordon, who has been friends with the Suits star since 2018, told a news outlet on Thursday, August 7.

Gordon went on to criticize Prince Andrew, 65, the disgraced royal embroiled in scandal, highlighting how much more effort has been made to “protect” him compared to Markle, 44.

“With each sordid allegation I have become more and more furious that so little was done to help Meghan as she struggled with life in the royal family, while so much was done to protect Prince Andrew,” she wrote. “Somehow, Andrew got away with it for decades, while Meghan was branded ‘Duchess Difficult’ the moment she so much as asked the Queen if she might be able to borrow a tiara for her wedding.”

Gordon touched on speculation that Meghan was known for “occasionally emailing her employees at 5 a.m.,” but pointed out that this paled in comparison to the serious accusations surrounding Prince Andrew, 65, and his close ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

“Why is it that people will tolerate all manner of misbehavior from the likes of powerful men like Prince Andrew, but not a woman who, according to critics, has a habit of occasionally emailing her staff at 5 a.m.?” she explained.

The podcaster also shared her experience of meeting Meghan at a 2018 Royal Foundation event, where the actress chaired a mental health panel.

“She gave me a big old bear hug, the kind that makes you feel at ease — particularly when you are being presented to assorted royals in front of a bank of baying photographers,” she wrote, adding that Meghan's “down-to-earth demeanor worked like a charm” to remove “all the anxiety felt by myself and the other attendees.”

Gordon and Meghan have kept in contact over the years, even after the former actress and her husband, Prince Harry, decided to leave the royal family and move to California in 2020.

“Each time we meet, or exchange texts about life, I wonder what it says about the world that she could be so vilified and trolled, while other members of the royal family seem to have been given a free pass to behave as badly as they want,” Gordon concluded.