Meghan Markle Wants To Privately Resolve Dinner Party Dispute With Martha Stewart

Meghan Markle is looking to resolve a brewing public dispute with lifestyle icon Martha Stewart directly and privately rather than let it escalate further, according to people familiar with the situation cited in recent celebrity media reports.

The disagreement traces back to a wide-ranging interview Stewart gave to PEOPLE magazine, published around her 85th birthday, in which she recounted attending a dinner party in California where Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, was also a guest. Describing the encounter, Stewart said the two exchanged only a few words but that she understood Meghan "had just gotten back from the palace" and had been discussing the trip with others at the gathering.

The comment drew immediate attention given the timing. Meghan, Prince Harry and their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, had recently traveled to the United Kingdom for a family visit with King Charles III at Highgrove House, his private residence in western England, marking the Sussexes' first UK family visit together since 2022. Buckingham Palace had described the reunion as strictly private at the time and said no further details would be released, making Stewart's account of Meghan discussing the visit at a social gathering notable to royal watchers.

That account was quickly disputed, however, by the person who hosted the California dinner. Speaking to PEOPLE, the unnamed host pushed back directly on Stewart's version of events, saying they had sat next to Meghan throughout the dinner and that the characterization of what happened was simply untrue. According to the host, Meghan did not go into detail about the European trip and instead only remarked in passing that her family had a great time, a far more limited account than the impression left by Stewart's original remarks.

Sources close to Meghan echoed that pushback in subsequent reporting, with one insider telling PEOPLE that Stewart appeared to be "confused" about what had actually been said at the dinner. Despite the dispute, another source close to Meghan reportedly stressed that she remains a fan of Stewart's despite the friction created by the interview.

For her part, Stewart has shown no indication of backing away from her original account. According to the celebrity outlet Naughty But Nice, a source close to Stewart indicated she has no plans to retract or revise her comments and continues to stand by her recollection of the conversation.

That has reportedly left Meghan weighing how best to handle the disagreement without letting it spiral into a larger public controversy. According to an insider cited by Naughty But Nice, Meghan would rather talk to Stewart directly than let this become a bigger thing, with the source adding that Meghan wants to clear the air and does not want the disagreement to linger publicly.

The dispute follows other recent comments from Stewart about Meghan that have drawn attention in entertainment media. In the same PEOPLE interview, Stewart also weighed in on Meghan's now-canceled Netflix lifestyle series, "With Love, Meghan," suggesting the transition from actress to member of the royal family to television lifestyle host didn't naturally follow. That remark came after separate comments Stewart made in a 2025 interview with Yahoo News Australia, in which she said she did not know Meghan well and hoped she "knows what she's talking about" when it comes to authenticity in her lifestyle brand.

Some reports have suggested the comments landed particularly hard given the contrast in how Stewart discussed Meghan compared with how she has spoken about other celebrities, including Gwyneth Paltrow, whom Stewart has praised in prior interviews. According to one source, the shift in tone between Stewart's comments about Paltrow and her comments about Meghan felt calculated and struck a nerve that Meghan has had difficulty shaking since the interview's publication.

Meghan and Stewart are not strangers to each other's broader social and professional circles. According to PEOPLE's reporting, Stewart met King Charles herself in April, when both attended the King's Trust Global Gala in New York City, illustrating the overlapping social spheres the two women occasionally share despite their reported tension.

Coverage of the situation has also drawn comparisons to how Meghan has handled similar celebrity-related speculation in the past. In an earlier instance, actress Gwyneth Paltrow addressed rumors involving Meghan in a lighthearted moment captured on social media, with Meghan, who was reportedly seated nearby at the time, appearing unbothered and later sharing the clip herself. Commentary on the current situation has suggested Meghan may be hoping for a similarly low-key resolution with Stewart, though unlike the Paltrow episode, Stewart has so far continued to stand firmly behind her original account rather than walking it back.

As of now, neither Meghan nor Stewart has issued any public statement directly addressing the dispute, and the situation remains characterized largely through anonymous sourcing in celebrity media reports rather than on-the-record comments from either party. Whether the two women speak privately, as sources suggest Meghan hopes to do, remains unconfirmed, leaving open the question of how, or whether, the disagreement will ultimately be resolved