Meghan Markle's ex-pal 'splits with her husband after 16 years of marriage'

Former best friend of Meghan Markle, Jessica Mulroney, has split from her husband after 16 years of marriage, according to reports.

After a turbulent few years, the Canadian stylist and her husband Ben are said to have parted ways, after she also lost contact with her former friend Meghan.

The fallout with the Duchess of Sussex was allegedly prompted by a racism row that left branded her as “toxic” in the Toronto social scene, and no longer in touch with one of her closest friends. As news of the couple’s separation broke, a Toronto source said that Jessica was not keeping quiet about her newly single status. It comes after Prince Harry's devastating loss in royal rift was exposed as Meghan 'holds the cards'.

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The source told Page Sixthat Mulroney attended a wedding in recent weeks and was not wearing her wedding ring, and spoke freely about her separation to other wedding guests. In addition, her husband Ben didn’t attend the nuptials.

"They’ve split," a Canadian source told the publication, "Jessica seemed sad, but also relieved to have some clarity." Another insider in the know confirmed they have separated "some time ago".

One of the last times that Mulroney mentioned Ben, with whom she shares three children, on her Instagram was back in March 2024 when she joked about them both forgetting their wedding anniversary.

Jessica’s separation comes after her years-long friendship with Meghan came to a dramatic end several years ago. The women first bonded in Toronto when Meghan was working on the TV show Suits, years before she first met Prince Harry.

Meghan and Jessica quickly hit it off, and were spotted side-by-side through many monumental moments, including Meghan’s 2018 wedding to Prince Harry, where her three children had roles in the ceremony. Jess is even said to have come along on one of Meghan and Harry's official royal tours to New Zealand, Australia, and Tsonga.

However, during the early days of the Covid pandemic in 2020, an incident saw Jessica be accused of "problematic" behaviour, is reported to have caused a major falling out between Meghan and Jess.

Amid the Black Lives Matter protests, lifestyle blogger Sasha Exeter alleged in an 11-minute video that after she had posted a Black Lives Matter call to action post, the two women had got into a row over DM and claimed Jess had threatened the blogger's connections with brands and sponsors.

"If you go to the press over this nonsense and threaten to go to your followers, I won’t be afraid to go to brands and tell them what you are doing to me," Jess said in a message, which Sasha called "textbook white privilege" but said she didn't believe Jess was a "racist".

According to reports from the Daily Mail, Jessica made a point of Meghan's mixed race background in a comment on the video, saying to Sasha she was "unequivocally sorry", adding: "As I told you privately, I have lived a very public and personal experience with my closest friend where race was front and centre. It was deeply educational." Jessica issued a multitude of public apologies.

Page Six reported at the time that the controversy gave Meghan the "excuse" she had wanted for some time to cut her best pal off. A source was quoted as saying that Meghan had already felt like Jess was trying to boost her professional opportunities based on her close bond with the Duchess, and "'make a career out of the friendship".

The insider added: "The white privilege row has really given Meghan the excuse she was waiting for to cut Jess off for good...I don't know what the tipping point was, but Jess has been on the outs for some time."