Meghan Markle Does NOT Have “Baby On The Way Already,” Despite Report

Truth rating: 0

(OK Magazine)

Meghan Markle does not have a “baby on the way already,” despite a new tabloid cover story. The gossip magazine is trying to dupe readers into thinking Prince Harry’s fiancée is pregnant. She is not, and Gossip Cop can bust this misleading report.

The new cover of OK! exclaims, “Meghan’s Family Confirms: Baby On The Way Already!” The front of the issue further teases that Buckingham Palace has been “stunned” by the “scandal.” The implication, of course, is that Markle and Prince Harry are expecting a child out of wedlock. Even inside the edition, under the headline “Harry & Meghan’s Big Baby News,” the outlet asserts that with their wedding “right around the corner,” the spouses-to-be are “wasting no time starting a family.”

But after baiting readers, there’s a switch: Rather than explicitly claiming Markle is for sure pregnant, the tabloid vaguely contends she wants to become a mom sooner than later. This contention doesn’t actually come from Markle’s “family,” contrary to the line on the cover. It’s actually based on comments from Erin Specht, who is the former girlfriend of Markle’s estranged half-brother. That’s right: Someone who used to be in a relationship with Markle’s brother is the source for this tale.

This woman maintains Markle is “desperate” to have kids and “getting pregnant is her priority.” To back up those assertions, the publication points to Prince Harry and Markle’s engagement interview, in which he said they’ll “start a family in the near future.” The publication goes as far as alleging there’s “buzz in the palace that Meghan could be pregnant already,” and that Kate Middleton and Prince William are “eagerly awaiting baby news… [but] if it comes before the wedding,” a purported “palace source” claims “the palace will be stunned.” Adds the tabloid, “If Meghan is indeed already pregnant, Harry would likely confirm it with a surprise toast at their rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding.”

But Markle is not pregnant, and Specht is hardly an insider with intimate knowledge of the bride’s family plans. What’s more is that this tabloid cover story is a copycat. Just over two weeks ago, New Idea similarly announced Prince Harry and Markle were “having a baby already,” all based on remarks from Specht. Now OK!, the same magazine that falsely claimed Markle was pregnant last fall, is pulling the same stunt.

But if the outlet really had a “palace source,” or any genuine insight at all, it wouldn’t have been wrong about a pregnancy last September and it wouldn’t be relying now on someone tangentially related to Markle for this faux scoop. Furthermore, as seen in the transcript of the aforementioned interview with Markle, Prince Harry actually dismissed the possibility of kids before marriage, insisting there were “no” plans for children yet because they’re focusing on “one step at a time.” Suffice it to say, when the couple really does have a baby “on the way,” the real news won’t come from Specht or a tabloid.