Why Wasn't Meghan Markle At Pippa Middleton's Wedding?

meghan markle wedding dress — (Image credit: Rex)

Despite reports she was allowed to the ceremony, the Suits actress was missing from the church on Saturday

Unless you've been laying under a rock the whole weekend, you'll know that Saturday was Pippa Middleton's wedding to hedge fund manager, James Matthews.

All of her friends and family were in attendance, including members of the Royal family and the groom's brother Made in Chelsea star Spencer Matthews, and Prince George and Princess Charlotte looked adorable as page boy and flower girl respectively.

Pippa opted for Giles Deacon as her designer of choice, while the bride's sister, Kate Middleton, relied on one of her favourite brands and wore a McQueen dress you can actually buy now.

However, one presumed guest who was not at St Mark's Church in Englefield over the weekend was Prince Harry's girlfriend, Meghan Markle.

There was a lot of confusion over whether the actress would be present in the run up to Pippa's big day. One minute she wouldn't be attending the ceremony because of the apparent 'no bling, no bring' rule, then most recently it was reported she was allowed as an exception, after all.

But when Prince Harry arrived with his brother, Prince William, rather than his girlfriend, naturally the world began to wonder where Meghan was – especially as The Queen has apparently given her blessing for Harry to propose to her.

Well in the end, it looks like she only went to the reception.

It's thought that the Suits actress stayed away from the church on Saturday so as not to detract attention from the bride, but was spotted arriving at the reception by car with Prince Harry later that day.

The prince reportedly drove 100 miles to bring her to the evening celebrations, leaving the day festivities 'early' to go and collect her. Awww.

While it's a shame she wasn't at the ceremony, we're glad Meghan was able to keep Prince Harry company at the reception.

Lucy is a freelance beauty editor and contributor at Marie Claire, and has also written for titles including Cosmopolitan, Refinery29, Glamour and woman&home. She was previously Marie Claire’s junior beauty editor. During her career, she’s covered everything from backstage beauty at fashion week to interviews with famous faces like Drag Race royalty and Little Mix. As for her beauty ethos, she’s a big advocate for not having to spend a fortune on beauty products to get good results. When she’s not got beauty on the brain you’ll probably find her reading or Netflix-ing.