Britain's Prince Harry, his US fiancee Meghan Markle. Photo / Getty
Britain's Prince Harry, his US fiancee Meghan Markle. Photo / Getty
They are the questions the world wants answers to.
Now Meghan Markle's half brother has shed some light on what her family is really like as the countdown to her royal wedding to Prince Harry continues.
In an interview with Channel 7's Sunday Night, Thomas Markle Jr, told Melissa Doyle that he would like to one day be an uncle to her children.
Until now, he said that he did not realise they had had a falling out. He is not invited to their lavish wedding at Windsor Castle on May 19.
When asked about getting an invitation, he said: "No. I don't know. When do they go out?
"I think an uncle is a pretty important role," he said.
"I didn't even know that we had a falling-out, so I would like to see her again, yeah. I want to give her a hug and tell her how proud I am of her, but, you know, I really have to travel a really long way to do that."
Meghan Markle pictured with her father Thomas Markle when she was a child. Photo / Instagram
When asked if she was "embarrassed" by her family, Markle Jr, 50, confirmed that would be a fair conclusion to make. Meghan grew up in Los Angeles, California. Her dad is an Emmy-Award-Winning lighting director. Her mother, Doria Raglan, is a makeup artist and yoga teacher.
"She's probably embarrassed at some of the stories and accusations and, you know ...," he said, before Doyle asked him if their family was "fractured".
"I think my family's always been fractured," he said.
"I think now, more than ever, it should be the time for everybody to put their differences aside and just, you know, be a family. We have a small family. It may be broken up, but it's still a family."
Markle Jr told Doyle that no matter what Meghan does, her family are always going to exist.
"She can't forget about her family, because... ..we're never gonna go away. We're always gonna be her family," he said.
Markle Jr also spoke about the effect the family friction would be having on Meghan's father, Thomas Markle.
"You know, my dad bent over backwards and really, really just paved the way for her and gave her every single thing she needed to get where she's at today. It would hurt. It wouldn't irritate me, but it would just hurt," he said.
Meghan Markle's half brother Thomas Markle Jr. Photo / Sunday Night
Doyle asked him how their father copes with it being aired publicly, and Markle Jr answered with unease.
"He's probably not happy. (LAUGHS) Well, you see the look on his face in those pictures that they finally got of him. So doesn't look very happy. And he's a really private person, so ..."
Markle Jr also said he was not sure if her father would walk her down the aisle, but thought he should do it. He is currently living in Mexico.
"My dad just wants to be left alone. He doesn't like spotlight. He doesn't like anything ... interviews. You know, and that's why he moved down there, to just be alone. But he's gotta come out now, though," he said.
"I mean, he's gotta step up to the plate... ..and walk his daughter down that aisle."
Royal biographer Andrew Morton also told Sunday Night that his concern was that their marriage may not last.
He said that she had to make a good attempt at making it work.
"There's no doubt about it. They're both birds with a broken wing. stable families, and... ..I find the one worrying thing about Meghan's family is that on both sides, the marriages have lasted for two or three years, then they've split up," he said.
"So marriage and abandonment are part of family lore, and with this family, she's got to make a real go of it. There's no walking away."
Meghan Markle is marrying Prince Harry in less than a month. Photo / AP
Morton also spoke of 'the Meghan chill', a phrase he uses to describe how Meghan's rise to fame has meant that she has left friends.
He said that for her, as a Royal Family member, there won't be time for 'faux friendship'.
"Well, the Meghan chill is where once you're no longer part of her circle, The reality is that she moved on in her career and moved on in her life. And those people who she's still friendly with will remain, but there's no time for faux friendship," he said.
Morton also speculated that Meghan will change Harry with her healthy ways.
"Harry's fridge will be totally changed. I mean, you know, (CHUCKLES) she's into avocados," he said.
"She's into seeds. She's into nuts. I mean, forget the pizza. That's out. Harry will eating healthier, and he'll be even trying a few yoga moves, 'cause, I have to say, Meghan is a pretty ... a real star at yoga, and she'll be desperately looking for a decent class."
Royal family expert Emily Nash added: "I'd love to see Prince Harry do yoga."
Morton also said he thought the royal couple would be talking about babies fairly quickly.
"Meghan's gonna be 37 in August. Prince Harry has talked about wanting to start a family pretty sharpish," he said.
"So I think we'll be talking about baby names and people will be trying to work out what will an African-American child with a ginger-haired kid look like."
In defining the difference between Meghan and Harry's mother, the late Diana Spencer, he said: "The big difference between Meghan and Diana is that Diana's vulnerability was what attracted people to her.
"With Meghan, you already have an independent, self-confident woman who is camera ready and not camera shy."
