EXCLUSIVE: Martha Stewart Leaves Meghan Markle 'Shaken' With Lifestyle Brand Criticism

Martha Stewart has raised doubts about Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex's pivot into televised homemaking – questioning whether the former actor and royal can convincingly reinvent herself as a lifestyle guru while revealing Meghan spoke about a recent palace visit at a California dinner party.

And RadarOnline.com can reveal her jibe has "shaken" Markle.

As our readers know, Markle, 45, and Prince Harry, 41, recently traveled to the UK with their children Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, as part of a wider European trip that included a private tea with King Charles, 77, and Queen Camilla, 79, at Highgrove.

After returning to the US, Markle attended a dinner in California where Stewart, the longtime lifestyle entrepreneur, was also a guest.

Stewart described their encounter to People, saying: "I had dinner with Meghan Markle the other night. We were both guests at a dinner party in California. And she had just gotten back from the palace. I didn't talk to her really more than to say a couple words, but I know she was talking about it."

Stewart was asked what she made of Markle's move into the lifestyle and homemaking space, following the launch of the Duchess's cooking and lifestyle series With Love, Meghan.

She replied: "If you're an actress, it's hard to then transition to a princess and then from a princess into a homemaking guru on a television show. It doesn't sort of follow. So go from there."

Her comments come as Markle continues to expand her lifestyle brand from Montecito, California, sharing staged glimpses of domestic life while building a media portfolio alongside Harry's work on the Invictus Games.

A source close to the pair told us: "Martha sees the lifestyle world as something you build over decades, not something you jump into because it fits your current image.

"For her, Meghan's path – Hollywood to monarchy to influencer homemaker – feels unusually abrupt.

"Martha has spent a lifetime turning cooking and entertaining into an empire. When she looks at Meghan filming in a designer kitchen and calling it a lifestyle brand, she's bound to ask if there's real substance behind the gloss.

"That's where her skepticism comes from – it's about credibility, not personal animosity, and her questioning of Meghan's credentials has left her shaken."

Another source familiar with Markle and Stewart's recent meeting said: "What struck people at that dinner was how fresh Meghan's palace visit still felt to her. She was back in California but still talking about tea at Highgrove and time with the King and Queen. Martha's reaction was essentially to wonder how you reconcile that world – royal protocol and global scrutiny – with the very curated, aspirational domesticity she's now selling on screen."

Markle and Harry's latest trip to Britain drew attention partly because it marked the first time Charles had seen his daughter‑in‑law and grandchildren since 2022, amid continuing tensions within the Royal family.

Buckingham Palace confirmed the Sussexes met King Charles and Queen Camilla for tea at Highgrove, while Harry separately attended engagements including the Invictus Games in Birmingham.

Reports suggested he had initially planned to bring Markle and the children for the full five‑day trip, before traveling alone and later being joined by his family privately due to ongoing security concerns following his dispute with the Home Office over taxpayer‑funded protection.

During their stay, Markle shared photographs appearing to show Harry and the children visiting the childhood home of Diana, Princess of Wales, who died in 1997 aged 36, reinforcing the couple's connection to Harry's late mother.

Other reports indicated they traveled on to Portugal, where Harry and Meghan are said to be buying a second home near Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank, extending their European footprint beyond the UK.

Back in California, Markle this week marked her 45th this week by posting a video of herself dancing around the kitchen in pyjamas and a tiara as Harry could be heard saying: "Oh dear."

The couple was understood to have spent the day with Archie and Lilibet at their Montecito home, with Markle earlier thanking followers for the "birthday love" after sharing images of herself jumping into a swimming pool.