Meghan Markle asked to be ‘sneaked’ out of £300k baby shower ‘so she wouldn’t seem to be lapping up media attention’, says US State Department report
MEGHAN Markle was so concerned about being accused of lapping up media attention during her baby shower trip to New York that she asked US bodyguards to sneak her out of a hotel side entrance.
Documents from the US State Department show how the Duchess of Sussex wanted to change the “optics” of her departure from five-star The Mark Hotel in New York.
According to the report: “The VIP [Meghan] explained that her intent was to change the literal optics of the departure, making it appear that she was at least attempting to sneak out of the hotel in photos rather than exiting through the main entrance and giving the potential impression that she was enjoying the media attention.”
But her demand to leave the hotel out of a service entrance meant vehicles had to be moved to line up at that door – telegraphing the change – says the report.
However, the 38-year-old duchess was more concerned with the “literal optics” of her departure.
Former actress Meghan was criticised for her lavish baby shower – which saw her rubbing shoulders with a host of celebrities, including Amal Clooney and Serena Williams.
American TV anchor Gayle King and Meg’s best friend Jessica Mulroney also attended her whistle-stop tour of the Big Apple, which brought streets to a standstill.
Fans and press lined up at barriers on Manhattan’s Upper East side the star-studded celebration in February – the full cost of which was not revealed by the state department.
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Delivery men were seen bringing large flower arrangements and decorations into The Mark – where she was staying in the £60,000-a-night penthouse suite.
During the shower, Meghan left through an entrance around the side of the hotel to get in a State Department car and drive to the swanky ‘Polo Bar’ for dinner with pals.
Trying to evade the cameras, she then tried to change the route to the restaurant that was just 1.5 miles away, but details of her trip were leaked.
She was snapped going in and leaving the restaurant.
The files also show Meghan changed restaurants at the last minute at lunch to a location where she couldn’t be photographed.
She had wanted to eat at Flora Bar, the Met museum’s lavish restaurant that has a large glass ceiling where the public – and the paparazzi – can see inside.
But she diverted, and instead went to eat at Cafe Boulud at The Surrey Hotel.
The documents also revealed that diplomatic officials conducted a full terrorist and internet threat assessment of Meghan to determine if she was at risk for an attack.
The Office of Intelligence and Threat Analysis said the chance of an attack was low – but it didn’t rule out the possibility of harassment from an “emotionally disturbed person”.
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It read: “Many members of the royal family are very easily recognized personalities; therefore, they are attractive targets for those seeking notoriety.”
The Diplomatic Security Service also conducted a ‘Protective Intelligence Review’ assessing any threats that had been made online.
Meghan flew to New York and back in a £33million private jet owned by the Clooneys.
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