Did meghan markle know prince andrew before she met Prince harry
Executive summary
Available reporting contains no credible evidence that Meghan Markle knew Prince Andrew before she met Prince Harry; Harry’s own account — reported in multiple outlets — says Meghan did not recognize Andrew when introduced to him, and tabloids’ contrary suggestions rest on misidentified photos and speculative reporting rather than documented meetings [1] [2] [3].
1. What the direct reporting actually says
The clearest contemporaneous thread in the sources is Prince Harry’s claim that Meghan did not know who Andrew was and initially mistook him for a member of staff, a detail repeated in tabloid and feature coverage summarizing Harry’s recollections [1]; none of the provided pieces presents verifiable documentation or first‑person evidence that Meghan and Andrew had a prior social relationship before Harry and Meghan’s courtship [2].
2. Where the “they knew each other” idea comes from
Speculation has been circulated by royal commentators and some entertainment outlets suggesting “mysterious ties” between Meghan and Andrew, with one report framing the question as a new line for a royal biographer to probe — language that signals curiosity rather than established fact in the reporting supplied [3]. Other outlets amplify sensational lines without producing corroborating contemporaneous evidence of meetings or travel together [4] [5].
3. Misidentified images and corrective reporting
At least one concrete example driving the rumor mill — photographs circulated online from around 2010 — has been rebutted in reporting that identifies the person in the images as a model, Alexandra Escat, not Meghan Markle, and which concludes there is no documented vacation or social tie between Markle and Andrew prior to her relationship with Harry [2]. That corrective reporting undercuts the primary visual “evidence” some stories rely on.
4. Motives, agendas and why the story persists
The persistence of the claim owes as much to tabloid incentives and the sensational value of linking two high‑profile figures as it does to any fresh documentary proof: outlets and commentators stand to gain clicks and attention by hinting at “mysteries” in royal networks, and discussion about Andrew’s wider scandals also creates a fertile environment for associational gossip — dynamics visible in the entertainment and opinion pieces collected here [3] [4] [5]. Reporting that leans on rumor often omits the null finding (no prior relationship), so the impression of secrecy can outlast the factual record.
5. Limitations of the reporting and alternate readings
None of the supplied sources offers a contemporaneous eyewitness, travel records, or verified communications proving a prior Meghan–Andrew acquaintance; reporting alternates between Harry’s account that Meghan didn’t know Andrew and tabloid speculation that she did, and the documented rebuttal of the photo evidence favors the conclusion that there was no pre‑existing social relationship [1] [2] [3]. If other, primary evidence exists outside these cited pieces, it is not reflected in the set of sources provided here.
6. Bottom line — direct answer
Based on the available reporting, there is no credible evidence Meghan Markle knew Prince Andrew before she met Prince Harry; primary contemporary claims (Harry’s account that she didn’t recognize Andrew) and corrective work on misidentified photos support the conclusion that the “they knew each other” narrative is speculative and unsupported by verifiable documentation in the cited sources [1] [2] [3].