There was a time when Meghan Markle and Jessica Mulroney had the ultimate power friendship. From curating Meghan’s royal wardrobe to planning her baby shower, Jessica quickly became the Duchess’s right hand-woman and confidante after they met in 2011.
However, Meghan and Jessica were rumoured to have drifted apart after Jessica was called out for her ‘white privilege’ by influencer Sasha Exeter in 2020. The row that ensued led to Jessica being dropped by her production company and her friendship with Meghan seemed to tail off – in the public eye, at least.
Jessica hasn’t commented on her relationship with Meghan since the incident, but her followers did spot a cryptic Instagram story she shared this week about practising ‘detachment.’ Some people have speculated that it could be a reference to Meghan, but this remains unconfirmed.
As the interest around their friendship rises, here’s everything we know about Meghan and Jessica.
What did Jessica Mulroney post about Meghan Markle on Instagram?
Firstly, it’s important to note that there is no confirmation that Jessica Mulroney’s post is related to Meghan. The post read ‘As loving as I am, my detachment game is strong too’, with no other reference to what she might be referring to.
How did Jessica Mulroney and Meghan Markle meet?
It’s believed that Jessica and Meghan met when she moved to Toronto to film Suits in 2011. Apparently, the pair bonded over a shared love of yoga and Pilates, and soon became a constant fixture on each other’s Instagram accounts. Jessica also helped introduce Meghan to some of her famous friends, including singer Michael Bublé.
The pair regularly jetted off on holiday together, including a trip to Italy in September 2016, just months after Meghan announced she was dating Prince Harry. It’s also thought that Jessica was one of the first people to find out about Harry and Meghan’s engagement. A clip from the Harry & Meghan documentary featured Meghan’s voice on the phone to ‘Jess’ – believed to be Jessica Mulroney – telling her ‘It’s happening’ moments before he got down on one knee.
On several occasions, Jessica leapt to Meghan and Harry’s defence when they received criticism, including addressing ‘racist bullies’ who attacked them over their use of a private jet. ‘3 years of undeserved hate and abuse. It's enough,' she wrote on Instagram. She also reportedly helped Meghan to plan her baby shower in New York.
How old is Jessica Mulroney?
Jessica was born on 14 March 1980 making her 43 years old.
How tall is Jessica Mulroney?
Jessica is 5 foot 8.
Who is Jessica Mulroney married to?
Jessica married TV host Ben Mulroney - the son of former Prime Minister of Canada Brian Mulroney - on October 30, 2008. The couple share a daughter and twin boys - Isabel, Brian and John - who Jessica regularly styles in matching outfits.
In July 2020, Ben addressed the rumours that Meghan and Jessica were no longer friends on his Twitter. He reposted a news article on his Twitter account which claimed Jessica had been calling Meghan ‘non-stop’ in a bid to repair their friendship and was also planning to write a tell-all book. ‘FALSE,’ Ben simply captioned the post.
Was Jessica Mulroney pictured at Meghan Markle’s wedding?
Meghan didn’t have a maid of honour at her wedding, but Jessica became the closest thing to it. She was rumoured to have been an ‘unofficial’ wedding planner for Meghan and Harry, assisting with everything from the seating plan to the flowers. She even attended Meghan’s final dress fitting before the wedding. She also played a big role on the day, and her children were pageboys and flower girls for the Royal couple.
Jewellery designer Eve Hartling told PEOPLE magazine 'The children were officially her bridesmaids, but she [Meghan] made sure that Jessica was sitting in that first seat closest to where Harry and Meghan were standing. It was clear that she kept a special place for her close friends — even though they weren’t standing at the altar with her, they were in close proximity and I thought that was a very nice touch. The seating arrangement at the ceremony spoke volumes.’
In September 2020, Jessica deleted pictures of Meghan’s wedding from her Instagram, one of which showed Brian smiling as he held Meghan’s veil in the chapel. Jessica shared her reason behind deleting the photos her Instagram story. ‘People often ask why I delete certain posts. The amount of bullying and hatred I’ve had to put up with for 3 years…I’m tired of looking at it. Be kind. Be gracious. We are grown ups…stop acting like teenagers. Real women don’t put down other women,’ the post reportedly read.
What happened between Jessica Mulroney and Meghan Markle?
Jessica and Meghan reportedly grew distant after Jessica became embroiled in a race row with Sasha Exeter, a lifestyle blogger**,** in June 2020**.** Jessica was accused of using her white privilege to threaten a Black influencer named Sasha Exeter.
Jessica later apologised for her behaviour and admitted to being ‘ignorant and insensitive.’ However, the friendship between Meghan and Jessica seemingly never recovered.
What did Jessica Mulroney say to Sasha Exeter?
Jessica reportedly privately responded to the call-to-action that Sasha posted on her Instagram stories about Black Lives Matter, in which she encouraged people with large followings to post about it too. Sasha shared a video post on Instagram where she details how Jessica ‘took offense’ at the post, believing it was aimed at her. Throughout the week, Sasha said she received many ‘offensive messages’ from Jessica, in which she explained why she hadn’t posted about BLM, including that she was busy promoting her show.
In the video, Exeter said that, at one point, Jessica threatened to talk to her sponsors. ‘Listen, I’m by no means calling Jess a racist but what I will say is this: She is very well aware of her wealth, her perceived power, and privilege because of the color of her skin,’ Exeter said in the video. ‘And that, my friend, gave her the momentary confidence to come for my livelihood in writing […] Textbook white privilege really, in my personal opinion.’
Jessica publicly apologised in a comment on Sasha’s post, which has since been deleted. The post read ‘@sashaexeterr, you are right when you say “this shit needs to stop”. As leaders, we need to join hands and call out wrongs. I know we have different experiences. And that is something that, even in the course of a heated argument, I need to acknowledge and understand. I am unequivocally sorry for not doing that with you, and for any hurt I caused. 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. I learned a lot from that. I promise to continue to learn and listen on how I can use my privilege to elevate and support black voices.’
The drama escalated even further when Sasha said on her Instagram story that Jessica tried to sue her and shared a screenshot of a DM from her.
What does Jessica Mulroney do for work?
Jessica started out in fashion PR, working in communications for the Canadian outpost of bridal salon Kleinfeld (which you'll know from guilty pleasure TV show Say Yes To The Dress) before side-stepping into styling. She teamed up with Sophie Gregoire-Trudeau ahead of husband Justin's inauguration as Canada's Prime Minister, dressing her in a white wrap coat by Canadian label Sentaler for the swearing-in ceremony. She's since dressed Sophie for plenty of high profile occasions, including the royal tour of Canada in 2016. She was also a contributor on Good Morning Britain and a wedding reality series I Do Redo, which aired on CTV.
However, the scandal caused a professional fallout. In June 2020, CTV released a statement on Twitter and Instagram, saying it would be pulling Mulroney’s upcoming bridal show from all properties. It wrote that her conduct ‘conflicts with [its] commitment to diversity and equality.’ A day later, Mulroney was dropped from her guest fashion-expert appearances on Cityline and ABC’sGood Morning America.
On Instagram, Exeter shared that she had been receiving ‘disturbing emails’ as a result of the events. ‘The comments on my post are getting quite vicious, and a lot of the comments have now left Instagram and gone over to my email,’ she said, adding that she has been responding to the emails, and “threats to [her] personal safety will not be tolerated.’
Are Jessica Mulroney and Meghan Markle still friends?
Jessica had remained silent on her relationship with Meghan since the incident. However, earlier this year she shared a picture on Instagram of her and other friends of Meghan taken at the Duchess of Sussex's wedding reception. She didn’t include a caption on the post and disabled comments. The picture had been shared in the Harry & Meghan documentary.