Meghan Markle hasn’t hid her apparent disdain for royal duties before “Megxit,” even once vocally complaining that she should have been paid for her 2018 tour of Australia, during which she treated staff “terribly,” according to one new book.
The Duchess of Sussex reveled in her reception Down Under as Prince Harry’s new “inspirational” bride, but privately Markle sang a different tune, The Sun reported, citing the book In Courtiers: the Hidden Power Behind the Crown Valentine Low.
“Though enjoying the attention, Meghan didn’t get the point of all these walks and shook hands with countless strangers,” Low wrote.
“According to several employees, at least once she said, ‘I can’t believe I’m not getting paid for this.'”
The divorced multiracial American actress also bullied courtiers before she was even a member of the royal family and continued to treat them harshly until she and Harry announced they were parting ways with the palace in 2020, the book says.
Valentine Low’s “In Courtiers: the Hidden Power Behind the Crown” portrays Markle as rude and self-centered on her and Harry’s 2018 royal tour. Getty Images
She hit out at one of Harry’s advisors six months before their engagement in 2017, saying, “I think we both know I’m going to be one of your bosses soon,” the report said.
When a senior staffer told the couple that staff were pissed off at the way they were being treated, Meghan retorted that it’s not her “job to coddle people,” Low reportedly wrote.
Markle, 41, also spoke “particularly harshly to a young female” counselor, the book says.
“After Meghan ripped apart a plan she had designed, the woman told Meghan how difficult it would be to implement a new one. “Don’t worry,” Meghan is said to have said to her. ‘If there was literally someone else I could ask, I would ask them instead of you.'”
The incident prompted Prince William to step in and reassure the woman that she was doing a great job – causing her to burst into tears, according to the tome, which will be published in England next week.
Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex take part in the Jaguar Land Rover Driving Challenge at the Invictus Games on October 20, 2018 in Sydney, Australia. Samir Hussein/WireImage
On another occasion, during a Friday night dinner, Markle called a different employee every five minutes. The harassing calls continued into the next morning and lasted “for days,” the book says.
Markle and her assistant also had a falling out over her desire to keep clothes that designers would send her – which goes against royal policy, Low wrote, according to The Sun.
The Sussexes’ press chief Jason Knauf filed a bullying complaint against his boss in 2018 before resigning and being hired by William and Kate Middleton.
Buckingham Palace launched an inquiry into allegations of Markle’s misconduct 18 months ago but said it would not release the findings this summer.
Markle has denied all allegations of bullying and harassment, but the book revealed her alleged intimidation extended to her husband-to-be when the two were dating.
Meghan Markle attends a reception at Government House Victoria on October 18, 2018Samir Hussein/WireImage
Before being linked as a couple in the press, Meghan gave Harry a daring ultimatum, according to the report.
“She said, ‘If you don’t provide a statement confirming that I’m your girlfriend, I will break up with you,'” a source told Low.
The threat “freaked out” the prince, who desperately told others, “She’s going to dump me,” the book says.
After the relationship was made public in 2016, Markle turned her ire on courtiers, according to the paper’s summary of the book.
“She said to Harry’s staff, ‘I know how the palace works. I know how this will turn out. You don’t care about the girlfriend,'” a source told Low.