If you're planning on getting married next spring, cancel your wedding. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding is the only one that matters. We can't get enough of the new royal couple. Women are asking plastic surgeons for "Meghan Markle noses". A forensic artist created images of what their children will look like. Meghan's half-sister is writing a book about their childhood called "The Diary of Princess Push's Sister." The world officially has royal fever. I'm going out to get my "Prince Harry nose" tomorrow. However, there's one person we haven't heard from yet: Vladimir Putin. Also, Meghan Markle's dad. What does he think of his daughter becoming a princess? Every father wants the best for his daughter, and you can't do much better than a Prince. But maybe Megan's father isn't thrilled about her joining the royal family. All of a sudden, the Markles are thrust into the international spotlight, and not everyone craves that kind of attention attention. Also, British people call soccer "football." What a bunch of weirds. Well, wonder no more! British tabloid The Mirror tracked down Meghan Markle's reclusive father. Thomas Markle, 73, is a retired Hollywood lighting technician who lives in Mexico, near Rosarito Beach. When reporters tracked him down, he was at a store buying a "four-pack of Heineken and cigarettes," so you know he's down for having a good time. It's pretty impressive the reporters found him. According to Meghan's brother, Tom Jr., their dad "loves her but hates the idea of being in the spotlight." Hope you like this article, Thomas! To smooth over the J.D. Salinger of the Markle family, the Mirror reporter brought Thomas a present: champagne and tea. Then they got down to business, asking him what he thinks of his daughter marrying Prince Harry. "I hate it. I wish she would have married Kanye West," said the angry father. Just kidding. Thomas Markle did not say that. He said, "I'm very pleased. I'm delighted." Then, when asked if he would walk his daughter down the aisle to give her away, the proud father said, "I'd love to."   [[instagramwidget||https://www.instagram.com/p/BG2Ev79GBH3/]] As you can tell from Meghan's adorable Father's Day post on Instagram, the two have a great relationship. In the caption, Meghan thanks for her father for everything he's given her. "Thanks for my work ethic, my love of Busby Berkeley films & club sandwiches, for teaching me the importance of handwritten thank you notes, and for giving me that signature Markle nose." Well, you better thank him for that nose, Meghan! Right now a lot of women are paying a lot of money to get that nose, and you got it for free! Unfortunately, Meghan's father didn't give up any juicy information. “I’m sorry," Thomas told the reporter. "You know I can’t talk." Well, we don't blame him. Not everyone is prepared for the whirlwind of fame that comes with joining the royal family. But if every interview comes with a gift of champagne and tea, it can't be that bad.

In case you missed it, or just hadn't heard about it, the royal wedding took place yesterday. The glorious day, which saw Prince Harry tie the knot with his American bride Meghan Markle, was filled to the brim with downright adorable moments, celebrity A-listers and fantastically bizarre wedding memorabilia.

However, unfortunately, the lead-up to the big day wasn't nearly as fun, with certain members of Meghan Markle's family leading a media circus and smearing her name in the newspapers on a regular basis, the big culprits being her half-sister, Samantha Grant, and her half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr. However, now that the wedding is over, Meghan's father has put out a warning to his family, asking them to "shut up".

Thomas Markle was sadly unable to make it to the ceremony as he was recovering from heart surgery. However, that didn't stop him reportedly talking to the press about his feelings on the nuptials. Revealing that he had sent his daughter a simple text on the day, telling her that he loved her, the 73-year-old reportedly told TMZ: "Now I pray that Harry and Meghan can go on a nice honeymoon and rest and relax, and all of my relatives will just shut up about everything."

He added: "The service was beautiful and it’s history. I will always regret not being able to be there and not being able to hold my daughter’s hand. My baby girl is a duchess and I love her so much. When you watch your child get married, every thought goes through your mind, every memory from the first day she was born, the first time I held her."

Her father's words about his relatives are certainly no over-reaction. In the weeks building up to the ceremony, both Grant and Markle Jr. appeared in the headlines regularly, with shot after shot being fired at the soon-to-be-bride. Perhaps one the worst instances was when 51-year-old Thomas Markle Jr. wrote a letter to Harry, imploring him to call off the big day.

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His letter read:  "As more time passes to your royal wedding, it became very clear that this is the biggest mistake in royal wedding history. Meghan Markle is obviously not the right woman for you. I'm confused why you don't see the real Meghan that the whole world now sees."

After releasing the letter, Markle Jr. backtracked, admitting that he felt like "an a**" and saying: "...my true feelings are I couldn't be happier for her. I mean, what are the odds? 'This is every woman's dream come true, to marry a prince. So I couldn't be more happy and proud of my sister. She's incredible." However, many agreed that the damage was done.

In addition, there was Samantha Grant, who slammed her half-sister for "inviting 2,000 complete strangers" to the royal wedding while ignoring her family. She also made several other angry swipes at Meghan, including when she tagged an unofficial account for Prince Harry and wrote in a tweet that it was time for him to "man up."

Here's hoping that Harry and Meghan can now relax, knowing that they had a truly perfect day, in spite of the antics of Meghan's extended family. Congratulations to the royal couple!

It's fair to say that the wedding of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry was the most important social event of the year. In fact, it still feels like we're reeling from the grandeur of that magical ceremony. Everything went perfectly ... well, almost perfectly. There was one cloud that managed to darken that special day: namely the blushing bride's father, former lighting director Thomas Markle.

Indeed, before the wedding took place there was a lot of media speculation as to whether or not Thomas Markle was fit to walk his daughter down the aisle, since he was recovering from heart surgery at the time the wedding had been scheduled, and thus was too unwell to perform his paternal duty. As a result, Prince Charles himself was forced to intervene and fill his shoes.

But then another twist. It was then revealed that Markle had actually staged a number of photographs for the benefit of the paparazzi, for which he had been paid a hefty fee. In the aftermath of the controversy, Meghan's half-sister Samantha was forced to defend him, claiming that it was her idea and that her father wanted "to show the world that [he's] getting in shape and doing great healthy things."

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The whole fiasco has managed to deal some considerable damage to Meghan and her father's already-strained relationship, and the two are reportedly now no longer on speaking terms. Markle claims that he has been shunned and snubbed by the royals, and now, in a marathon nine-hour interview with The Daily Mail, Markle has even gone so far as to insult the royals and Prince Harry's mother, the late Princess Diana.

Markle stated: "They have Meghan treating her father in a way that Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, would have loathed. That’s not what Diana stood for ... Princess Diana is credited with changing the Royal Family, but she wasn’t perfect. She was still very much one of them. I think Meghan’s the one who’ll bring them into the 21st Century, if they’ll let her... I refuse to stay quiet. What riles me is Meghan's sense of superiority. She'd be nothing without me. I made her the Duchess she is today. Everything that Meghan is, I made her."

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He added: "I'd spoken to Harry and Meghan and offered to make a public apology for the posed photos, but they said it wasn't necessary... Then suddenly I'm being told that I needed help apologising, as if there's a special way to apologise to the Royal Family. Perhaps you do it with gravy and flowers on the side? I was taken aback to be asked if I needed help apologising, like I was a child. That wasn't going to happen... I don’t care if Harry never speaks to me again, I’ll survive."

Thus far, neither Meghan nor Buckingham Palace as responded to Markle's statements, but suffice to say, his words haven't made him any more popular. Here's hoping that he and his daughter will be able to patch things up eventually.

The build-up to the marriage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was a joyous affair, with the world being gripped by royal fever and a feeling of celebration and enjoyment. However, for all the positivity, it was slightly marred by the antics of Meghan's family who appeared hellbent on embarrassing the new dutchess of Sussex.

In the weeks building up to the ceremony, Megan's half-sister, Samantha Grant was appearing in the headlines regularly, with her continuously firing shots at her sibling. However, speaking about her decisions to speak out against her sister in the build-up to the wedding, Grant defended her right to speak out.

In an interview with TMZ, Samantha said: "[Meghan is] not going to tell me I can't speak about my life or my father's where it's a matter of public self-defense because the media is disparaging us,” she said. “I'm not going to take it, she's not qualified to suggest that I don't."

But it wasn't only Samantha who was causing shockwaves in the media. Meghan's father, Thomas, has also been a hotly discussed subject, with him admitting to posing for staged paparazzi photos that showed him looking up who the Royal Family were - something which he apologised for shortly afterwards.

It was then reported that Thomas couldn't attend the ceremony due to having surgery on a heart condition caused by the stress of the whole affair. What followed was a will-he-won't-he that lasted for days until Meghan confirmed that her father wouldn't be attending.

"Sadly, my father will not be attending our wedding," she wrote in a statement, provided by Kensington Palace. "I have always cared for my father and hope he can be given the space he needs to focus on his health."

She continued, "I would like to thank everyone who has offered generous messages of support. Please know how much Harry and I look forward to sharing our special day with you on Saturday."

The wedding went ahead without Thomas, with Prince Charles walking Meghan half-way down the aisle after she did the first half on her own - something which Thomas said that he was "honored and grateful" for. She tied the knot with Prince Harry in a beautiful ceremony in Windsor Castle in front of a star-studded line up of guests that included the likes of Serena Williams, Oprah, David Beckham and George and Amal Clooney.

Like the rest of us, Thomas Markle ended up watching the ceremony on his TV, with the father telling TMZ: "My baby looks beautiful and she looks very happy. I wish I were there and I wish them all my love and all happiness."

While the build-up to the wedding contained lots of controversy in the Markle family, it's nice to see Meghan's father simply wishing a message of good-will and compassion. Good luck to Harry and Meghan in their new life with one another.

Meghan Markle's father will "not be attending" the royal wedding after reportedly admitting that he doesn't want to embarrass his daughter.

Thomas Markle allegedly told celebrity news website TMZ on Monday that he would not be flying to London to walk his daughter down the aisle, as planned, at the ceremony due to take place at St George's Chapel in Windsor this Saturday.

His decision comes after it was revealed that he had been paid to pose for paparazzi photos that were then sold to news outlets all over the world.  The widely circulated pictures showed him being measured for a wedding suit, as well as' looking at newspaper stories about his daughter.

In a statement issued on her behalf by Kensington Palace on Thursday, Markle herself confirmed the rumours that her father would not be coming to the wedding, claiming that he wouldn't make it due to bad health: "Sadly, my father will not be attending our wedding. I have always cared for my father and hope he can be given the space he needs to focus on his health. I would like to thank everyone who has offered generous messages of support. Please know how much Harry and I look forward to sharing our special day with you on Saturday." Her father has claimed that stress about his daughter's pending nuptials had brought on his heart attack.

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Markle- who revealed to TMZ that he had suffered from a heart attack this week - apparently told TMZ that since Meghan started dating Prince Harry back in 2016 he had been offered numerous photo and interview deals, worth anywhere between $50,000 and $100,000. He went on to say that he had rejected all of them.

However, when the paparazzi agency who later took the pictures of him in his suit approached him, he apparently thought there would be "no harm" in taking part, thinking that it would help him revamp his image.

This did not go to plan, with it soon being disclosed to the press that he had been paid for the images. Other reports alleged that the Queen was "angry" about the situation and planning to talk to him about "royal protocol".

On Monday, Kensington Palace spokesman responded to his decision not to attend, appealing for privacy for Meghan at this difficult time. They stated: "This is a deeply personal moment for Ms Markle in the days before her wedding. She and Prince Harry ask again for understanding and respect to be extended to Mr Markle in this difficult situation."

Samantha Markle, Ms Markle's half-sister from her father's first marriage, had said earlier in the week that she hoped her father would still attend the wedding. She told Good Morning Britain that the paparazzi photographs had been taken with "good intention" and that Mr Markle had suffered a heart attack due to stress.

She also added the media had "raked him over the coals" and "distorted his image", stating that "he had a moral right to set the record straight and defend himself."

Meghan's father's absence had broached the question: who will walk Meghan down the aisle? After much speculation, it was confirmed on Friday that Harry's father, Prince Charles, would be the one to escort her down the aisle at St George's Chapel in Windsor on Saturday.

The royal wedding was a truly beautiful day. But there was a cloud hanging over it, in the shape of Thomas Markle. In the months before the couple tied the knot, there was intense speculation over whether Meghan's father would be in attendance. Unfortunately for the Suits star, the answer was no.

After weeks of conjecture, family feuding and one rather large paparazzi scandal, Thomas revealed that he would be undergoing heart surgery in the days before the ceremony and was unable to fly to fly to London, leaving Prince Charles to walk his new daughter-in-law down the aisle.

However, now, almost exactly a month after the wedding, he has officially broken his silence in a world exclusive interview with ITV's Good Morning Britain. Speaking to hosts Susanna Reid and Piers Morgan, the 73-year-old revealed all about the staged photos, his feelings on missing the St George's Chapel ceremony and what he really thinks of Prince Harry - as well as some key information on Harry's feelings about Donald Trump and Brexit.

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When questioned on the May 19 nuptials, Thomas spoke of how upset he was that he was forced to watch from California, naming himself "a footnote in one of the greatest moments in history". He said: "It was incredible watching her. I was very proud. I was very upset that it wasn’t me (walking her down the aisle) but the whole world was watching my daughter. I was very happy about that. The unfortunate thing for me now is I’m a footnote in one of the greatest moments in history rather than the dad walking her down the aisle. That upsets me somewhat."

In addition, he revealed that Meghan cried when he told her that he wouldn't be able to come, saying: "They were disappointed. Meghan cried, I’m sure, and they both said, ‘Take care of yourself, we are really worried about you’."

Despite his dismay at his absence, the retired TV lighting director - who revealed he expects that his daughter will try for children soon - confessed that he was "honoured" that the Prince of Wales took on the job of walking Meghan down the aisle. He told the Good Morning Britain hosts: "I absolutely wanted to walk my daughter down the aisle. I can’t think of a better replacement than someone like Prince Charles."

The Suits' actress' father also commented further on the paparazzi photo scandal, naming the mishap a "serious mistake". "They'd take photos of me grabbing a beer, take photos of me getting into my car... they'd take photos of me making me look negative," he said. "I realised it was a serious mistake. It’s hard to take it back."

He continued to say that he spoke to the royal couple after and apologised for the images, claiming that both Harry and Meghan were "very forgiving" and said that everything was still ready for him to attend the wedding in Windsor. Nonetheless, despite all of the drama, Thomas still seemed somewhat unfazed by his daughter marrying into the royal family, stating his 36-year-old daughter had "been a princess since the day she was born" and adding: "He made a good pick, didn't he? ... Harry asked for her hand on the phone and I said: 'You are a gentleman, promise me you will never raise your hand against my daughter and of course I will grant you my permission'".

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He added: "The first phone calls were 'dad i have a new boyfriend' and I said that's really nice and she said 'He's British' and I said 'That's really nice,' and eventually the third time around was like 'He's a Prince.' And at that point, she said 'it's Harry' and I said 'oh, Harry okay!'" He also told Good Morning Britain that his daughter told him he had to call Prince Harry 'H' "so that nobody knows" she was dating him before their relationship was made "official."

Naming Harry as a "great" and "an interesting guy", Thomas revealed that the pair had spoken about politics on the phone, and gave some insight into the prince's feelings on Trump, saying: "Our conversation was I was complaining about not liking Donald Trump, he said 'give Donald Trump a chance'. I sort of disagreed with that." When asked about details of their conversation about Brexit, he said: "It was just a loose conversation... I think he was open to the experiment."

It's good to finally hear Thomas' side of the story, rather than the media storm surrounding him. We hope he gets to reunite with his daughter and meet her new husband soon!