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Meghan Markle Loses Second Close Staff Member — But Not Because She’s ‘Difficult’
Early last month, Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle’s personal assistant Melissa Toubati quit her job after only six months working for the royal family. Now, just about a month later, reports revealed that another one of Meghan and Prince Harry’s close aides, private secretary, Samantha Cohen, will be leaving her post after the Sussexes have their first child in the spring. However, sources exclusively reveal to Life & Style that Meghan and Samantha already agreed that Samantha would only hold that position temporarily.
Insiders exclusively revealed to Life & Style that Samantha had originally agreed to work for Meghan for six months, starting in June 2018, to help the new duchess with her transition into royal life. That transition time is now over — six months went by pretty quick! Samantha had previously worked directly for the Queen and actually gave her notice prior to working for Meghan and Harry, but she ended up agreeing to stick around for a bit to work for the Sussexes on an interim basis. Though several reports have said Meghan’s demanding attitude as a boss was a driving force in Samantha’s departure, it seems as though this particular instance is actually a lot more innocent in nature.
However, the source went on to explain that even before Harry and Meghan tied the knot, Harry’s friends were wary about Meghan’s “difficult” attitude and how she was already causing drama at the Palace. Clearly, though, Harry was not interested in listening to the advice.
No matter the reason for her departure, Samantha will reportedly be missed at the Palace, as she has been a mainstay quite some time — she’s worked for the royal family for 17 years running, starting as a media assistant back in 2001, according to the Sunday Times. “Sam will be a huge loss,” a source close to Meghan revealed. “Going forward, Meghan might need someone cut from a slightly different cloth to traditional courtiers, who is not a career civil servant or royal insider.” Hey, might not be the worst idea ever. Meghan has proven herself to be an unconventional royal, to say the least, so it might work in her favor to have an unconventional staff to complement her position.
It also seems like it will be hard to find a replacement for Samantha since she was “the perfect aide to help guide Meghan in some of the complexities of protocol,” according to the Sunday Times. It remains to be seen what Meghan will do now that she no longer has such a knowledgeable sidekick at her disposal — it looks whoever’s next in line for this new gig has some big shoes to fill.
Luckily for Meghan, she should have no problem getting the right person for the job, as the source also revealed to the Sunday Times that, “Samantha will assist the couple with finding her replacement in the new year.”
