Meghan Markle will be assisted by Palace adviser Samantha Cohen (above), who had planned to leave Buckingham Palace this summer
Meghan Markle will be assisted by an adviser who had planned to leave Buckingham Palace this summer.
Samantha Cohen, 49, the Queen’s assistant private secretary, had given notice of her resignation last September following the ousting of Lord Geidt, 56, the Queen’s private secretary, who announced last July he was leaving after 15 years of royal service.
Ms Cohen has now agreed to stay on as interim private secretary to the Duke and Duchess at Kensington Palace, the Times reported.
It is believed that Meghan will spend six months learning how to be an effective member of the royal family.
Ms Cohen is expected to be a temporary replacement for Edward Lane Fox, Prince Harry’s departing private secretary, until next spring.
Meghan has already made her first outing as the Duchess of Sussex this week as she and Prince Harry arrived at Prince Charles’s 70th birthday party at Buckingham Palace, where she was given a warm welcome.
The garden party saw more than 6,000 people, all from the charities and military associations most closely linked with the Prince, descend on the grounds of Buckingham Palace for music, speeches – and, of course, a customary cup of tea and cucumber sandwich.
Ms Cohen, 49, the Queen’s assistant private secretary, had given notice of her resignation last September following the ousting of Lord Geidt, 56, the Queen’s private secretary, who announced last July he was leaving after 15 years of royal service. She has agreed to stay on as interim private secretary to the Duke and Duchess at Kensington Palace