“At one point they even made an emergency dash to the hospital in the middle of the night thinking Meghan was in labour, only to be checked out and given the all clear.”
Understandably, Harry was concerned about his heavily pregnant wife travelling to Morocco.
But, says New Idea’s source, Meghan was “determined” to carry out her last overseas royal duty before the arrival of their first child.
While a doctor wasn’t included on the official list of staff accompanying Meghan and Harry, official sources told Hello! magazine that “medical provisions have been made” and our insider confirms they had a team of doctors with them.
Despite obviously being in the very late stages of pregnancy – with rumours of a multiple birth – the airline they travelled on, Royal Air Maroc, allows women to travel up until their eighth month – in line with royal protocol, palace officials haven’t confirmed Meghan’s due date, except to say that the baby is due in spring, which in the northern hemisphere begins on March 20.
However, many royal watchers have suggested that the duchess is further along than the palace claimed.
“She’s absolutely about to pop,” insists the source. “Apart from the constant Braxton Hicks [contractions], doctors have said that the baby has engaged and she’s showing all the signs that the baby will be here sooner rather than later.”
It’s always been palace tradition to deflect media attention from expectant royal mums by suggesting the baby’s arrival is further along than the real due date.
However, in the past this has backfired – for instance with the Duchess of Cambridge’s first baby, Prince George, who arrived two weeks late, meaning his arrival coincided with the palace’s suggested due date.
Similarly her second child, Princess Charlotte, also arrived later than expected, meaning they had to extend parking restrictions at the hospital.
“Even though the official palace statement said the baby wasn’t due until April, the
actual due date is a few weeks before that – senior royals just wanted to give Meghan and Harry a bit of breathing room with all the attention on her pregnancy,” says the royal source.
Confusing matters even more, there are suggestions palace officials nearly revealed Meghan’s recent baby scare to the world. Last week an eagle-eyed royal fan screengrabbed what appeared to be an official statement tweeted – and quickly deleted – by Kensington Palace, announcing that Meghan had been admitted to the Lindo Wing of St Mary’s Hospital in the early stages of labour.
Meanwhile, Meghan’s friends have been lending their support. Serena Williams appeared to send her pregnant friend a coded message when she talked about “the heartache that comes with sacrificing love for career … or career for love” during her Oscars speech.
Similarly, Meghan’s long-time friend, stylist Jessica Mulroney, seemed to allude to Meghan when she posted a poem to her Instagram account that appeared to encourage her friend to remain strong and to “keep your capacity for joy”.
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