Meghan's dad Thomas Markle will miss birth of royal baby due to family rift

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex are expecting any time now. Photo / Getty Images

Thomas Markle won't be travelling to the UK for the birth of his grandchild.

The retired lighting director hasn't seen his daughter, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex since before she married Prince Harry last May and it seems that won't be changing soon because he's staying in the US for the forseeable future, even though the former actress is due to give birth this month.

Sources told TMZ that Thomas - who missed the couple's wedding due to health issues - has decided not to visit because he still hasn't reconciled with the former 'Suits' star and believes she is in a "cone of silence", but he is hopeful their relationship can be repaired after she has her baby.

Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, arrived in the UK a few days ago and Thomas is said to be "glad" that she'll be by their daughter's side.

In February, Thomas made public a five-page letter which he'd received from his daughter last August, in which she told him she had "broken [her] heart into a million pieces" for causing her "unnecessary and unwarranted pain".

The note also complained he had made no attempt to contact her, rebuked him for giving interviews claiming he had been shunned, turning down their help and siding with her half-sister Samantha Markle with her "vicious lies", who she "barely knows".

In one extract, Meghan questioned why he told the media he had been in touch to tell her wouldn't be attending her and Harry's wedding after suffering a heart attack, because she didn't receive a call from him.

But he said: "I sent Meg and Harry a text telling them I wasn't coming. It was too dangerous after my heart attacks."

Meghan also hit out at her father for publicly criticising Harry, despite the prince being "nothing but patient, kind and understanding" and begged him to stop "exploiting" their relationship and "fabricating" stories.

And she insisted Thomas had done nothing to try and get in touch with her, despite his public claims she had rejected his attempts.

She wrote: "You haven't reached out to me since the week of our wedding, and while you claim you have no way of contacting me, my phone number has remained the same.

"This you know. No texts, no missed calls, no outreach from you - just more interviews you're being paid to do to say hurtful and harmful things that are untrue."

Thomas, 74, branded Meghan's lengthy letter a "dagger to the heart" and dismissed her claims, showing texts he believes prove he'd made attempts to communicate with his pregnant daughter and her spouse.

He said: "I thought it would be an olive branch. Instead, it was a dagger to the heart."

-Bang! Showbiz