keeping up with the royals

Why Isn’t Meghan Markle’s Mom Spending Christmas With Her?

Meghan Markle and Doria Ragland.
Meghan Markle and Doria Ragland. Photo: Steve Parsons/AFP/Getty Images

Despite Queen Elizabeth’s reported invitation, Meghan Markle’s mom will not be spending Christmas with her daughter’s shiny new royal family, People has confirmed.

While it’s unclear how Doria Ragland will be spending her holidays, she will not be with Meghan, Prince Harry, Prince William, Kate Middleton, and other royals at the queen’s Sandringham Estate. This news comes a little over a month after Daily Mail reported that the queen had invited the Los Angeles–based yoga instructor to spend the holidays with the royals, which was a somewhat unexpected move, given that it’s rare for non-royals to celebrate with the queen on Christmas Day. But as a source told the Daily Mail, the fact that Ragland was invited was a “very thoughtful gesture” from the queen, as Meghan is very close with her mom. She was the only one of her family members who attended the royal wedding.

So why is Ragland skipping out on the celebrations? While British tabloids may attempt to fit this into their current narrative that there’s “tension” between the royal families, it’s unlikely that’s why Ragland isn’t hopping across the pond this month. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Ragland was just in England this past September with Meghan for the launch of her charity cookbook; maybe it’s because she plans to be with her daughter in just a few months for the birth of her first royal baby.

Or, perhaps it’s because she’s uninterested in entangling herself in this nonstop royal drama.

Why Isn’t Meghan Markle’s Mom Spending Christmas With Her?