Meghan Markle has made her first high-profile appearance in central London in years, meeting Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai for afternoon tea at Claridge’s in an ensemble valued at approximately £28,000.
The Duchess of Sussex, 45, and Malala, 29, were photographed leaving the luxury Mayfair hotel yesterday afternoon before sharing a warm farewell hug outside the entrance.
Meghan’s outfit included a camel Tove Studio coat costing £1,695, a £526 beige sweater from Crew Company and Ralph Lauren’s white Charmaine trousers, priced at £1,900.
She paired the look with a black Chanel handbag worth about £7,000 and Yves Saint Laurent shoes priced at roughly £1,000. Her Logan Hollowell Lovers Duet Diamond and Emerald Chain necklace accounted for £16,200, bringing the total estimated value of the outfit to £28,321.
The women enjoyed a traditional British afternoon tea, with fellow diners saying they ordered cucumber sandwiches and scones served with jam and clotted cream. The scones were reportedly among Meghan’s favourites.
Meghan and Malala first collaborated in October 2020 during a virtual International Day of the Girl discussion focused on girls’ education.
The meeting is believed to mark Meghan’s first public appearance in London since Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral in September 2022.
Several months earlier, Meghan and Prince Harry were met with some boos as they arrived at St Paul’s Cathedral for a service of thanksgiving marking the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
Although the Duchess has passed through Heathrow on a number of occasions since then, she is understood to have avoided central London amid continuing concerns over her security.
Malala, who was born in Pakistan and now lives in Birmingham, was shot by the Taliban in 2012 after campaigning for girls’ access to education. She went on to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 at the age of 17, becoming its youngest-ever recipient, and later attended Oxford University.
Meghan’s attention over the past week has centred on the latest As Ever product launches. Her London meeting with Malala, however, may signal a renewed focus on philanthropic projects, potentially including girls’ education, during her return to the UK.
Meghan smiles at Malala as the pair share a warm embrace before saying goodbye outside Claridge’s at around 5pm
Meghan Markle and Malala Yousafzai smile as they part after afternoon tea
Meghan cuts a stylish figure in a Tove Studio coat and cream Ralph Lauren trousers
The friends hug goodbye after their afternoon tea at Claridge’s
Meghan and Malala were first connected in 2020 through a virtual International Day of the Girl discussion
The Duchess and Malala appear deep in conversation as they leave the restaurant
Meghan and Malala ate in Claridge’s renowned Foyer and Reading Room, where afternoon tea costs £95 per person. Champagne is available for an additional £30, but Malala, a Muslim who does not drink alcohol, and Meghan appeared to choose tea and mineral water instead.
The celebrated Mayfair dining room is known for its Art Deco setting and live piano music, making it one of the capital’s most exclusive afternoon tea destinations.
According to a hotel insider, fellow diners discreetly photographed the pair as they chatted throughout the meal. The women were described as polite but had little interaction with other guests, with protection officers nearby. The subject of their conversation remains unknown.
The source said they were accompanied by security throughout the visit. Police vehicles were spotted outside Claridge’s during their meet-up, identifiable by their distinctive number plate lights.
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The meeting comes amid Harry and Meghan’s ongoing battle to get taxpayer-funded police protection in Britain.
The couple previously mounted an unsuccessful legal challenge over Harry’s police security while he was visiting from the US. It is understood now that the committee overseeing royal and VIP security, known as Ravec, is to reconsider the level of police protection now the couple and their two children are full-time residents.
Meghan and Malala’s discussion in 2020 came during the Covid pandemic, with Harry also joining the virtual talk on barriers to education for young women.
Meghan said on the call: ‘When young girls have access to education, everyone wins, and everyone succeeds. It just opens the door for societal success at the highest level.
‘What I had realised very early on was that when women have a seat at the table, conversations in terms of policy change, conversations in terms of legislation and the dynamics of the community are all shifted.
‘And when you have to see how you get a woman to embrace her voice, you have to start with where she is a young girl.’
Meanwhile, Harry said he had taken his own access to education for granted. ‘We do take it for granted, and it is a privilege, but every single person, every single child, every single young person needs an education,’ he said.
Meghan puts her hand on Malala’s back as they speak after exiting the restaurant
Meghan smiles as she and Malala walk outside the restaurant after their catch-up
Meghan and Prince Harry join activist Malala for a virtual chat to celebrate International Day of the Girl in 2020
‘To know there’s over 130 million girls out of education right now, before the pandemic, and the numbers are only going to go up, it worries me, and it probably worries all of us, the effect that is going to have not just on the individual, but on the family, and community, for the country and the world at large.
‘I’m hugely grateful for the education I was lucky enough to have; at the time I certainly probably wasn’t as grateful, but looking back at it now, I’m very, very blessed with having such amazing options.’
Following their conversation, Malala said of the Duchess: ‘Meghan and I are on the same page: we both believe that when girls have access to education, everyone wins.’
The Sussexes unexpectedly moved back to the UK over the summer with their children, just in time for the start of the new school year.
Harry and Meghan were previously photographed holding hands as they headed inside the Falkland Arms pub in the Cotswolds on October 2, which marked their first public outing since their move from Montecito in California.
Meghan announced a festive range for As Ever last week, when she opened pre-orders for a £112 chocolate advent calendar that is only available to buy in the US.
The calendar, ‘inspired by her Montecito home and garden’, features a festive illustration of the £11million mansion she and Harry called home for six years.
A press release declared ‘every detail was considered with care, including countdown numbers hand-painted in Meghan’s own penmanship using edible gold lustre.’
One British vicar who politely criticised the product was forced to lock down his X account after being branded a ‘demon’ and a ‘disgrace to the cloth’ by Meghan’s supporters, known colloquially as the ‘Sussex Squad’.
Other products in Meghan’s ‘Holiday Collection’ include ‘botanical confection’ chocolates developed by Los Angeles brand Compartes as part of an ‘ongoing collaboration’ and ‘The Keepsake Double-Deck Parlour Card Set’ with the As Ever logo.
