The father of the Duchess of Sussex has said he was not fazed by his daughter marrying into the monarchy.
Thomas Markle told Good Morning Britain he had held phone calls with the Duke of Sussex, adding: He’s great, he’s an interesting guy.
When asked how he felt about the former Suits star’s nuptials, he said: My daughter has been a princess since the day she was born.
He added: She made a good pick, didn’t she.
I absolutely wanted to walk my daughter down the aisle, said Mr Markle, who did not travel to Windsor for the wedding due to health reasons.
I’m recovering from a heart operation but I’m doing much better, he told GMB.
Mr Markle spoke of the moment the Duke of Sussex asked for permission to marry the then Ms Markle.
He told the programme: Harry asked for her hand on the phone and I said: You are a gentleman, promise me you will never raise your hand against my daughter and of course I will grant you my permission.
Speaking of the controversy after allegedly being caught staging photographs with the paparazzi, Mr Markle said: I spoke to them both and I apologised. I realised it was a serious mistake. It’s hard to take it back.
Speaking about the moment when he told the couple he would not make the wedding, Mr Markle told the programme: They were disappointed.
Meghan cried, I’m sure, and they both said, Take care of yourself, we are really worried about you.
On Prince Charles walking his daughter down the aisle, he said: I was honoured, I can’t think of a better replacement than someone like Prince Charles.
Mr Markle said he and the Duke of Sussex had spoken about politics, including holding exchanges about Donald Trump and Brexit. He told the programme:
Our conversation was I was complaining about not liking Donald Trump, he said give Donald Trump a chance.
I sort of disagreed with that.
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When asked about details of the Brexit conversation, he said: It was just a loose conversation… I think he (the Duke of Sussex) was open to the experiment.
Mr Markle said he watched the wedding from an apartment where he was recovering after leaving hospital.
He told the programme: “She was beautiful. It was incredible watching her. I cried a little bit about it.
I was very proud. I was very upset that it wasn’t me (walking her down the aisle) but the whole world was watching my daughter. I was very happy about that.
The unfortunate thing for me now is I’m a footnote in one of the greatest moments in history rather than the dad walking her down the aisle. That upsets me somewhat.