Meghan Markle makes incredibly rare visit to the UK with fleeting stop in London

Meghan Markle briefly touched down in the UK on her way home to LA from Geneva – marking an incredibly rare visit. 

The Duchess of Sussex, 44, has not spent prolonged time in Britain since 2022, when she attended the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth II with Prince Harry. 

However, she may have stopped briefly for occasional stopovers when passing through, with reports suggesting she travelled via Heathrow in July 2024 when visiting Nigeria. 

Celebrating her eighth wedding anniversary with Harry on Tuesday, Meghan shared a handwritten card she received from the British Airways crew on her flight back home from Switzerland, where she gave a powerful address about the dangers of social media for children. 

Alongside a Union Jack emoji, Meghan said: “Thanks to this amazing flight crew for all the love yesterday! Appreciate all your memories and kind words @british_airways.”

Meghan’s special flight home 

Messages signed by the captain and crew were marked with the flight number, BA269, which goes from London Heathrow to LAX, showing that Meghan must have passed through the UK on her way back from Switzerland. 

The card read: “Dearest Harry and Meghan, Wishing you a wonderful wedding anniversary. With love, the whole British Airways family.”

Ed French, the captain, wrote: “Lovely to have you onboard. Congratulations on the anniversary.”

A source later told PEOPLE Magazine that Meghan was presented with a bottle of champagne and British sweets for Harry and the children, leaving her “so touched”. 

The 12-hour flight departed 26 minutes late, according to flight records, meaning Meghan arrived back in LA at 7.25pm. There are no direct flights from Geneva to LA.

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Afterwards, Meghan shared a slew of unseen photographs from her 2018 wedding to Prince Harry, gushing: “Eight years ago today…”

HELLO! has reached out to representatives for Meghan for comment. 

Why do Harry and Meghan not usually visit the UK?

Meghan has not visited the UK properly since 2022, though Harry has made rare solo visits. 

Most recently, he visited to attend his privacy case at the High Court against Associated Newspapers Limited, the publisher of the Daily Mail. In April, he stopped in the UK on his journey to Ukraine, but only to transit through, HELLO! understands. 

Since 2020, Harry and Meghan have faced issues over their security when visiting the UK, as the Metropolitan Police stopped providing taxpayer-funded protection when they stepped down as working royals. 

The Sussexes are now responsible for their own security, with Harry losing a legal bid to have his protection reconsidered last year. 

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It means that they have not brought their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, to the UK since 2022 for the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, and they are believed not to have seen their grandfather, King Charles, since then. 

In 2023, Harry published a written witness statement to the High Court, saying: ”The UK is my home. It is central to the heritage of my children and a place I want them to feel at home as much as where they live in the US.

”That cannot happen if it’s not possible to keep them safe when they are on UK soil. I cannot put my wife in danger like that and, given my experiences in life, I am reluctant to unnecessarily put myself in harm’s way.”