Meghan Markle was still living with her chef then-boyfriend Corey Vitiello when she went on her first date with Prince Harry, a new book claims.
According to “Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsors,” out now in the UK, Meghan — then an actress on the USA Network drama “Suits” — in 2016 put into action a plan to befriend a group of well-connected Brits.
Among them were Harry’s childhood friend Violet von Westenholz, who was working as a publicist for Ralph Lauren. Meghan had been hired to wear the designer’s clothing during the Wimbledon tennis tournament in the summer of 2016.
According to the new book “Revenge” by Tom Bower, Meghan Markle was still living with Cory Vitiello when she was set up with Prince Harry
In a conversation with Westenholz at Wimbledon, author Tom Bower writes, Meghan persuaded “sensitive soul” von Westenholz to set her up on a blind date with the prince.
“Her problems were familiar to all unknown, unmarried actors in their mid-thirties — fear of loneliness and personal and financial insecurity,” Bower writes. “Unsurprisingly, Meghan was preoccupied by her own financial security — and finding a husband.”
The book claims Meghan Markle asked Violet von Westenholz (above) to set her up with Prince Harry
Before agreeing to the set-up, the book claims, von Westenholz sent Harry photos of the dark-haired actress.
Von Westenholz’s father, Piers, is an interior decorator and antique dealer and an old chum of Prince Charles’ wife, Camilla. During weekend visits to the von Westenholzes’ Hertfordshire country estate and during joint family holidays, Princes Harry and William played with Violet as children.
Meghan still shared a home with chef boyfriend Cory Vitiello when she went on a date with Harry, according to Bower’s book
Although Bower writes that Meghan’s two-year romance with Vitiello, a Toronto-based chef, was in its last throes when she met Harry, they still shared a home together.
The book also claims that, two weeks after their first date on July 1, 2016, “Harry secretly flew to Toronto. He stayed for about one week in the house of a friend of Meghan’s, probably Jessica Mulroney. With Cory still sharing [Meghan’s] home, the situation for Meghan was tricky but manageable.
Only after meeting Harry did Meghan tell Vitiello their affair was over, Bower writes
“At the end of the week, after he returned to London, Meghan was convinced that her spell was cast and the relationship with Harry would be sealed. She told Cory that their affair was over,” Bower writes.
According to the book, Vitiello “was relieved. The final months had been unpleasant.”
