All round

Meghan Markle drives herself to Canadian Airport to Pick Up Friend

Via

411 HQ

Updated on July 5, 2023

See more articles on:Meghan Markle, Prince Harry

get top stories via email

Meghan, 38, was seen at Victoria International Airport on Thursday afternoon, little over a week after she and husband Prince Harry declared that they are “stepping back as “senior” members of the Royal Family.”

The Duchess of Sussex was seen in a Land Rover Discovery parked outside Victoria International Airport in pictures acquired by DailyMail.

They are some of the first candid shots of the duchess since she and her husband, Prince Harry, announced their intention to leave the royal family.

Meghan is seen wearing a Soia & Kyo coat, black beanie, and dark sunglasses as she heads to the airport to pick up her close friend Heather Dorak, the founder of Pilates Platinum, a studio Meghan attended in Los Angeles. Dorak and her husband Matt Cohen also attended Meghan and Harry’s royal wedding in 2018.

Ms. Dorak, who was born in Texas but now resides in California, became Meghan’s pilates instructor. She is the founder of the Pilates Platinum brand, which the Duchess began attending while she was a star on Suits in Los Angeles.

Meghan returned to Canada only days after she and Prince Harry announced their plans to divide their time between the United Kingdom and North America. Harry, on the other hand, has stayed in London to attend a family meeting convened by the queen to discuss the Sussexes’ upcoming retirement and to complete already planned royal duties.

Meghan has had a number of close pals visit her in Canada in recent months. Meghan’s former Suits co-star Abigail Spencer was seen hiking with Meghan and Harry on New Year’s Day. The beautiful picture of Archie that featured on the Duke and Duchess’ Christmas card was taken by actress Janina Gavankar. Jessica Mulroney, Meghan’s Toronto-based pal, was also on hand to look for Archie when Meghan and Harry went to the United Kingdom to make their big announcement.

And Harry and Meghan’s Frogmore Cottage employees are allegedly being ‘let go,’ in the clearest indication yet that the pair will stay in Canada permanently, with the Duchess believed to never return.

Last week, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex issued an Instagram post declaring their intention to “carve out a progressive new role within this institution.”

Meghan is said to have driven herself to the airport from her opulent £10.7 million [$14 million] Canadian home on Vancouver Island, where she’s been mostly locked up with Archie and his babysitter since Thanksgiving.

Meghan and Harry “knew they were going to hit the nuclear button” on their royal departure as soon as their baby Archie, now 8 months old, was born, a source tells PEOPLE in this week’s cover story.

It’s still unknown where the trio was going as they departed the airport, but Meghan’s wide smile suggested she was looking forward to it.