Meghan Markle seemingly attempted to overshadow the Princess of Wales's triumphant return to royal duties during Trooping the Colour.
Catherine made her public reappearance on Saturday, following a cancer diagnosis revealed months earlier. Coincidentally, Argentinian polo player Nacho Figueras, a friend of Meghan and Harry, posted photos on Instagram of Meghan's raspberry jam just as Catherine arrived at the King's Birthday parade. Later, Figueras shared another image on his Instagram Stories, showing his dog Nina Iggy next to a jar of dog treats labeled by Meghan.
The jam label read "two of two," implying exclusivity, similar to Meghan's previous batch of strawberry jam, which was limited to 50 jars given to celebrities.
Many speculated that Nacho was subtly mocking Meghan, as his post did not highlight the quality of the jam but instead showed it on the ground next to his dog, accompanied by a moralistic quote about patience. This was seen as ironic given Meghan's known impatience. Adding to the intrigue, Nacho's post was on Instagram Stories, meaning it would disappear after 24 hours unless highlighted, making it less permanent.
On Friday, the Princess of Wales made headlines by updating the public on her health, three months after announcing her cancer diagnosis. She shared that her chemotherapy was progressing but noted that she was not out of the woods yet and still had good and bad days. Catherine also announced her attendance at Trooping the Colour, the annual military parade celebrating King Charles III's birthday. She did appear at the event, creating an emotional moment for the crowd and viewers at home as she rode in a glass coach with her three children and later joined the senior royals on Buckingham Palace's balcony. Meghan once shared this balcony until she and Harry stepped back from royal duties in 2020 and moved to California.
In what critics perceived as a bid to compete with Catherine, Meghan seemingly hastily prepared her raspberry jam. Critics labeled Meghan's move as petty, tacky, and desperate, viewing it as a transparent attempt to steal the spotlight from Catherine and the royal family. "Always the need to try to upstage the royal family. It's tiring and really quite pitiable," commented one person on a People magazine post about the jam announcement. "It was predicted that Meghan would try and get some media attention at the same time as Catherine made her first public appearance, and everyone was right," said another.
However, Meghan's team argues that it was Nacho's fault, not Meghan's, for the poorly timed post. Meghan's team reportedly did not intend to sabotage Catherine. As one marketing expert told The Daily Beast, "While I'm sure the gift packages came with notes requesting social media coverage, you can't tell Nacho Figueras what to do. So I think it's certain the timing of his post was his own idea. The larger point here is that the American Riviera Orchard campaign has been phenomenally successful and cost Meghan nothing. The only problem is that there still seems to be nothing actually for sale, so what's it all for? I guess we'll find out."
It now seems that Nacho has been "markled," or thrown under the bus. Critics argue there is no way he posted that at 1:00 a.m. on the morning of Trooping the Colour by coincidence. "None, nada," said one critic. "Meghan, there's such a thing as too much or bad publicity. Launching two new products an hour before Trooping the Colour with no actual products to sell, no lifestyle to showcase, and no sign of this ever coming to fruition makes you look exactly like what you are: a petty, jealous, vindictive, self-centered, bitter loser. Your obsession with the British royal family and your attempts to upstage or undermine Catherine are painfully obvious and downright concerning."
