Kate Middleton’s friends reject claims she sought to embarrass Meghan

Friends of Catherine, Princess of Wales, have rejected claims that her recent outing on London’s public transport with daughter Princess Charlotte was intended to embarrass Meghan Markle, according to a report by royal commentator Rob Shuter.

Friends of Catherine, Princess of Wales, have rejected claims that her recent outing on London’s public transport with daughter Princess Charlotte was intended to embarrass Meghan Markle, according to a report by royal commentator Rob Shuter.

Shuter, writing in his Naughty But Nice newsletter, cited an unnamed source as saying Meghan believed Catherine had deliberately chosen to take Charlotte on the Underground while Prince Harry and Meghan continue to raise concerns about security in Britain.

“Meghan believes Catherine knew exactly what she was doing,” the source told Shuter, according to the newsletter.

“Meghan sees that as a calculated slap in the face,” the source added.

The source also suggested Meghan interpreted the outing as an implicit challenge to the couple’s security concerns, asking: “If Catherine can take her daughter on public transport, why can’t you?”

However, a person described as a friend of Catherine rejected the suggestion that the outing was intended as a message to Meghan.

“Catherine doesn’t spend her days plotting ways to embarrass Meghan,” the friend told Shuter.

“She was enjoying time with Charlotte. Meghan wasn’t even part of the conversation. Catherine was being a mother, not sending a message,” the friend said, adding that “not everything revolves around” Meghan.

Catherine and Charlotte were recently seen travelling on London’s Elizabeth line, a railway service that forms part of the city’s public transport network. The outing attracted media attention amid continued public discussion of the Sussexes’ security arrangements in Britain.

The claims about Meghan’s reaction and Catherine’s intentions were based on comments from unnamed sources; neither woman’s account was independently established in the report.