A timeline of Meghan Markle's relationship with her father, Thomas Markle

Thomas Markle was arrested in November 2026. MEGA/Getty Images/Jonathan Brady/AP Thomas Markle was arrested and charged with one count of possession of child pornography, the Department of Justice confirmed on Friday.The news comes less than a month after Thomas Markle Jr., Meghan Markle's half-brother, told The Sun he had reported finding child sex abuse images at their father's home in the Philippines to the Philippine police and the FBI.Markle Sr., 82, denied the allegations to the Daily Mail on October 23 before his arrest, describing them as the "worst thing anyone could accuse" him of.Markle Sr. and Markle Jr. did not respond to requests for comment.Meghan said she was "deeply distressed" by the allegations against her father in a statement made before his arrest.The Duchess of Sussex, 45, has had a publicly strained relationship with her father since 2018, when he posed for paparazzi photos for money ahead of her wedding to Prince Harry.Here's a timeline of their relationship. Meghan Markle has said she and her father had a close relationship in her childhood. Meghan Markle in Melbourne, Australia, in April 2026. Jonathan Brady/AP Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, and her dad divorced in 1987 when she was 6 years old.In her December 2022 Netflix series, "Harry & Meghan," the Duchess of Sussex said she was with her mom during the week and her dad on the weekends after their split. She said her parents "co-parented well" and that she was close with her dad, describing herself as a "daddy's girl my whole life."She also said in the series that she would spend time with her dad after school, joining him on sets when he worked as a lighting director on shows like "Married…With Children."He also helped with lighting at her school plays, as a friend of Meghan's shared in "Harry & Meghan." May 2018: Markle accepted money for paparazzi photos and didn't attend his daughter's wedding. Charles walked Meghan down the aisle at her and Harry's wedding in May 2018. Jonathan Brady - WPA Pool/Getty Images Days before Meghan's wedding on May 19, 2018, tabloids including TMZ and the Daily Mail reported that Markle had sat for staged paparazzi photos — which showed him preparing for the event, reading articles about it, and looking at a book about England — in exchange for money. The Daily Mail's reporting included a video that appeared to show the photo shoot.TMZ also reported Markle's back-and-forth decisions on whether he would attend his daughter's wedding ahead of the event. He ultimately said he would not be there because he needed urgent heart surgery.On May 17, 2018, Meghan confirmed in a statement shared by the royal family that her father wouldn't be in attendance."Sadly, my father will not be attending our wedding," the statement said. "I have always cared for my father and hope he can be given the space he needs to focus on his health."In episode three of their Netflix series, Meghan said her dad did not return her phone calls after the story broke, even though she called him over 20 times. She also said she learned he wasn't attending the wedding from the tabloids.Harry's father, then known as Prince Charles, walked Meghan down the aisle in her dad's absence. Summer of 2018: Markle began doing public interviews about Meghan and the royal family. Meghan Markle in July 2018. Anwar Hussein/Getty Images After he didn't attend her wedding, Markle began speaking to the British press about Meghan more frequently, including making an appearance on "Good Morning Britain" in June 2018.He said in the interview that making a deal with the paparazzi was "a serious mistake," though he hoped it would change his image, as other paparazzi photos showed him in ways he found unflattering. He also said that he regretted not being able to walk Meghan down the aisle.On July 15, 2018, he told The Sun that Meghan wasn't speaking to him. He said the same thing to the Daily Mail about two weeks later.He also took aim at Harry in an August 2018 interview with the Mail on Sunday, saying he hung up on the prince when he called about the paparazzi incident and that Harry was "rude" to speak to him about the matter after his heart attack. Kensington Palace declined to comment on the phone call at the time. February 2019: The Mail on Sunday published excerpts from a letter Meghan wrote Markle. Meghan Markle in February 2019. Gotham/Getty Images In February 2019, Markle gave the Mail on Sunday a letter Meghan wrote to him in August 2018, three months after her wedding.The Mail on Sunday published excerpts of the letter, in which the Duchess of Sussex said her father had "broken my heart into a million pieces" by speaking to tabloids about her and Harry. She also contradicted his claims that she did not reach out to him about his heart attack in May 2018, saying he ignored her calls and texts in the lead-up to her wedding.She beseeched him in the letter to stop speaking to the press, a request he ignored by sharing the letter with the Mail on Sunday.In 2019, Meghan sued Associated Newspapers, which owns the Mail on Sunday, for publishing the excerpt, alleging breach of the Data Protection Act 2018, copyright infringement, and misuse of private information."The Mail on Sunday stands by the story it published and will be defending this case vigorously," a spokesperson for the newspaper told Business Insider at the time. "Specifically, we categorically deny that the Duchess's letter was edited in any way that changed its meaning."Meghan won her case in December 2021, and the Mail on Sunday had to publish a statement acknowledging that it had infringed her copyright and had to pay her £1. March 2021: Meghan opens up about her fractured relationship with Markle in her interview with Oprah Winfrey. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex speak to Oprah Winfrey for their March 2021 CBS interview. CBS During the interview, Winfrey asked Meghan "if it felt like betrayal" when she discovered her father had accepted money for paparazzi photos.Meghan responded that her father had lied to her when she confronted him about the photos. She said she had learned that a story would be coming out about the pictures from the royals' "comms team," and she and Harry then called her dad to ask him about it. Meghan said her father denied the story, even after she and Harry offered to try to prevent its publication."I look at Archie, and I think about this child, and I go, 'I genuinely can't imagine doing anything to intentionally cause pain to my child,'" she said, referring to her son and daughter Lilibet, whom she was pregnant with at the time. December 2022: Harry, Meghan, and her mom spoke about Markle's deal with the paparazzi in "Harry & Meghan." Meghan Markle and Doria Ragland in May 2018. Steve Parsons - Pool / Getty Images Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, commented on the incident in the docuseries, saying she was "absolutely stunned that Tom would become part of this circus" and was shocked "that he would capitalize" on the media attention.Harry, on the other hand, sounded less surprised."It's amazing what people will do when offered a huge amount of money," he said. "Fifty thousand, a hundred thousand, to hand over photographs, to create a story."Harry also described the situation between Meghan and her father as "sad" and said that he "shouldered" the burden of their strain."She had a father before this, and now she doesn't have a father," he said. "And I shouldered that because if Meg wasn't with me, then her dad would still be her dad."Markle attempted to contact Meghan in the years after the docuseries aired. She did not respond publicly. October 2026: The Sun reported Markle was being investigated for possession of child sex abuse images. Thomas Markle Sr. in August 2018. MEGA/Getty Images On October 22, The Sun reported that Thomas Markle Jr., Meghan's half-brother, had reported their father to authorities in the Philippines after he said he found child sex abuse images in Markle's home there.Markle Jr. did not respond to a request for comment.Markle Jr. said he also contacted the FBI. In a statement to outlets like People and The Guardian on October 23, the federal agency said, "The FBI is aware of the allegations and will provide support, as appropriate, to the Philippine authorities. We will also investigate any related allegations of federal violations of US law."Markle denied the allegations to the Daily Mail on October 23."I'm shocked, I'm hurt, and I'm very upset that my son is making these accusations against me," he said. "I could never do what I'm being accused of. It's the worst thing anyone could accuse me of."He went on to say that the allegations are "a bunch of lies" and "sick." October 2026: Meghan says she is "deeply distressed" about the allegations, which she was first made aware of in 2019. Meghan Markle at Queen Elizabeth II's funeral in September 2022. Chris Jackson/Getty Images In a statement shared on October 23, the Duchess of Sussex said she had distanced herself from her father after becoming aware of "troubling and disturbing allegations" made against him."I am deeply distressed at the news that has come to light in the last 24 hours, and my thoughts are with any children who may have been harmed," she said. "In 2018, a letter was sent to the Metropolitan Police and Royalty and Specialist Protection. That letter was subsequently shared with me. It made troubling and disturbing allegations against my father, and I was given assurances that these were being investigated.""I hope it can now be understood that, despite certain media publications' distortion over the years, any distance from my father and my choice to not allow him to have contact with our children was for one reason: to protect them," Meghan's statement went on to say. "I trusted that the authorities were doing the same for other families.""Although the breadth of what has now been uncovered is more sickening than one could ever imagine, my sincerest hope is that justice will be fully served and that the priority remains the safety and protection of innocent children," the statement said.On October 29, the Metropolitan Police released a statement clarifying it received the letter in January 2019, not 2018. The statement said the letter was "passed to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for their awareness."The Met also announced that the Independent Office for Police Conduct would investigate why the letter was given to Harry and Meghan's office and not given to any other law enforcement agencies. November 2026: Thomas Markle Sr. is arrested and charged with one count of possession of child pornography. Thomas Markle Sr. in August 2018. MEGA/Getty Images On November 6, Markle was arrested and charged with one count of possession of child pornography.The Department of Justice said Markle was arrested in Florida after suspected child sexual abuse material was found in two storage units in Los Angeles that he has rented since 2008."Mr. Markle is accused of possessing child sexual abuse material, including photographs depicting himself with minor girls," Bill Essayli, the first assistant US Attorney for the Central District of California, said in a press release. "These allegations are extremely serious, and we will prosecute Mr. Markle to the fullest extent of federal law."Markle appeared in US District Court in Tampa on Friday, according to another statement shared by the Department of Justice and the US Attorney's Office, Central District of California.No plea was taken, and he was released on personal recognizance.The court ruled that he would have to "submit to home detention and electronic monitoring" and could not travel outside the Central District of California and the Middle District of Florida. He will be arraigned at a later date, though that date has yet to be set, and was ordered to undergo a competency evaluation.Outlets including The Times and The Telegraph reported in the days after his arrest that Ragland had assisted the FBI by identifying Markle in photos and that Meghan would also help authorities if needed.Ragland and representatives for Meghan did not respond to a request for comment on Markle's arrest and the ongoing investigation.On November 10, Meghan made her first public appearance following her father's arrest, opening the Lost Screen Memorial in Brussels with Harry.The same day, a judge revoked Markle's home detention, saying he "violated the conditions of his pretrial release" by tampering with his ankle monitor, according to court documents.A lawyer for Markle did not respond to a request for comment on the judge's order. If you are a survivor of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline (1-800-656-4673) or visit its website to receive confidential support. If you are a survivor of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline (1-800-656-4673) or visit its website to receive confidential support. Read next Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Samantha Grindell Pettyjohn is a Senior Lifestyle Reporter at Business Insider with more than eight years of experience in the lifestyle space.At Business Insider, Samantha's coverage focuses on unique living situations, interior design, celebrity style, and books. Her work includes features on multigenerational living and one-of-a-kind houses, timely articles on celebrity fashion, live coverage of award shows and pageants, and fun pieces about popular book series. Samantha also loves reporting on celebrities on her beats, from HGTV stars Christina Haack and Tarek El Moussa to authors such as Sarah J. Maas and Rebecca Yarros.Samantha appeared on Scripps News and CBS in 2022 to discuss the royal family, and in 2023, she won an Anthem Award for her work on Business Insider's package "Better Me."Samantha received her B.A. in English from Birmingham-Southern College in 2017, graduating Summa Cum Laude. She later earned her M.S. in Publishing from New York University in 2019. Samantha was previously a staff writer at Romper, and her writing has appeared in Cosmopolitan, Mic, and Oprah.com. Today, Samantha lives in Atlanta with her husband and dog.Email her at sgrindell@businessinsider.com and follow her on X. 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