Meghan Markle reportedly dedicates as much energy to erasing her digital past as she does to maintaining her public image.
In Tom Bower's book Revenge, one of the most sensational claims is that Meghan allegedly made it her mission to erase every trace of her first marriage to film producer Trevor Engelson. According to Bower, Meghan wanted no remnants of that chapter in her life to surface. This included allegedly confiscating cameras from wedding guests, ensuring no photos or videos would slip into the public eye. If true, her actions suggest a deep investment in controlling the narrative of her life, to the point of erasing public records of her past.
Despite this, Trevor has reportedly remained silent all these years, exhibiting a restraint rarely seen in the entertainment industry. His silence has only fueled public curiosity, prompting many to question why Meghan would go to such lengths to erase a part of her personal history. Some speculate she sought a clean slate when she entered her role as the Duchess of Sussex, while others argue this could reflect a broader pattern in Meghan’s life: removing any elements that no longer align with her ambitions. Bower reveals that Meghan and Trevor had two wedding ceremonies—a courthouse marriage in Los Angeles, followed by a tropical celebration in Jamaica. It’s rumored that this first marriage was kept so low-key that uncovering details might require legal intervention, despite neither Meghan nor Trevor being particularly famous at the time.
Perhaps Meghan harbored aspirations of a future as a royal, a scenario in which a prior marriage might complicate her image. There are even claims suggesting Meghan’s motives in her first marriage were more about securing stability than romance. Reportedly, she returned her wedding and engagement rings to Trevor with a cold indifference, mailing them without a note, as casually as if she were returning a retail item. This final gesture supposedly left Trevor’s family deeply saddened, suggesting to them that her approach to marriage might have been more transactional than sentimental.
Adding to the intrigue, Meghan’s father, Thomas Markle, is said to have preserved some wedding photos, despite Meghan's attempts to erase her first marriage from her narrative entirely. Because of this, glimpses of her past relationship with Trevor remain available to anyone curious enough to seek them out. Their Jamaican wedding reportedly had around 100 guests, including several members of the Suits cast, some of whom remain friends with Meghan, while others have since distanced themselves.
The public’s fascination with Meghan’s past has only grown stronger, despite her efforts to cultivate a fairy-tale image. While she may have succeeded in erasing photographs, witness accounts, court records, and her father's photos still tell their own story. Meghan's desire to craft an image of herself as an international humanitarian and royal outsider sometimes comes across as a bit too meticulously planned. Her attempt to rewrite or obscure her past marriage to Trevor has been perceived by some as a calculated move rather than an honest one, leaving traces of her former life embedded in the public's memory, no matter how hard she tries to brush them away.
