Meghan Markle’s constant hugging made Prince William ‘uncomfortable,’ fueled flirtation gossip around palace: staffers

Meghan Markle was reportedly very touchy-feely with members of the royal family when she and Prince Harry still lived in the UK — and it made Prince William “uncomfortable.”

Several palace insiders spoke to British journalist Tom Quinn for a piece published in the London Times on Thursday about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Prince and Princess of Wales.

A junior staffer recalled Markle, Harry, William and Kate Middleton — once affectionally called the “Fab Four” — getting along well in the “early days” after the Sussexes tied the knot in 2018.

The employee mentioned seeing Markle, 43, and William, 42, one playfully dancing the jive.

Meghan Markle’s “constant hugging” was allegedly off-putting to Prince William, according to the Times. Getty Images Journalist Tom Quinn claimed William felt “uncomfortable” due to Markle’s touchy-feely nature. Getty Images

However, tensions reportedly began to develop because of the “Suits” alum’s “warm, friendly, hug-everyone approach,” which caused William and even King Charles III to “flinch” at times.

“This tactile manner made William uncomfortable because Meghan hugged him virtually every time they bumped into each other,” the report claimed.

“The hugging and cheek-kissing fuelled gossip among the staff that Meghan was flirting with William,” Quinn alleged, citing insiders, before noting that the duchess was “obviously not” doing so.

The report also claimed Markle felt rejected by the dismissive attitude about her public displays of affection, stating she was “understandably hurt, as everyone apparently hugs everyone in California.”

Reps for the duchess declined Page Six’s request for comment on the Times story.

The Times report noted that Markle and Prince Harry and William and Kate Middleton were once very close in the “early days” of the Sussex’s relationship. Getty Images However, tensions reportedly grew in part because of Markle’s “warm, friendly, hug-everyone approach.” POOL/AFP via Getty Images Markle’s behavior allegedly sparked “gossip” that the duchess had been “flirting” with William. However, the report noted she “obviously” did not do so. Netflix

Quinn also claimed in the report that Markle once asked a staffer, “‘Why do William and Charles sound so serious all the time?’” and would allegedly also joke that Harry, 40, did not share the same parents as his older brother because he “isn’t pompous at all” and is “chill.”

The bubbling discord reportedly “deepened the rift” that already existed between Harry and William.

The royal brothers to this day remain estranged given conflicts that have occurred after the Sussexes quit their duties as senior members of the royal family in January 2020 and subsequently moved to the US.

Their feud worsened when Harry wrote a bombshell tell-all called “Spare,” in which he told family secrets, including that Middleton, 43, had made Markle cry in a fight over bridesmaid dresses and that William once physically attacked him during a scuffle.

Quinn claimed that perhaps Markle’s need to hug was a cultural difference. Getty Images for the Invictus Games Foundation The Times claimed Markle would praise her husband because — unlike his brother and father — he wasn’t “pompous at all.” YouTube/Netflix

Two years since the book came out, the siblings rarely have been seen in public together.

However, family illnesses have reportedly made them cross paths in recent months.

In March 2024, a palace source claimed that Harry reached out to William after he learned their father, Charles, 76, had been diagnosed with cancer. The Sussexes reportedly also reached out to Middleton when they learned she was also battling the disease.