- According to an anonymous source, Thomas Markle (81) is thinking about marrying Filipino nurse Rio Caneda (46).
- The two met in late 2025 when Markle was being rehabilitated in the Philippines after a leg amputation.
- Duchess Meghan (44) is said to be concerned about the relationship and fear possible abuse due to the age difference.
Thomas Markle (81) is reportedly thinking about getting married again. That would Duchess Meghan (44) a new stepmother receive.
Her father, with whom she has a difficult relationship, learned this Filipino nurse Rio Caneda (46) met at the end of last year when he was being treated in a rehabilitation clinic in the Philippines. Markle suffered a medical emergency in December 2025 and had to undergo surgery to amputate his left leg.
“He would marry her immediately.”
The encounter with Rio Caneda came at this difficult time. As an anonymous source told the British Daily Express, the former Hollywood lighting director has been transformed since then and is already talking about marriage: “Thomas told me he would marry her immediately. He tells the rest of the family that he is happier than he could ever have imagined at the thought of spending the rest of his life with Rio.”
Thomas Markle is currently recovering in the USA – with his eldest daughter Samantha (61), with whom he had lived in the Philippines since January 2025. He maintains contact with his partner via video calls, the source continued: “He still has to recover for some time and will spend at least a few months in America, where he calls Rio almost every day via FaceTime.”
Meghan is said to be “worried”.
The new relationship is said to have brought no joy to Duchess Meghan, especially since Rio Caneda is only two years older than herself. As the Australian magazine “Woman’s Day” reported a few weeks ago, Meghan is said to have found out about the romance through the media. Prince Harry’s wife (41) is said to be “shocked and finds it sad because, due to the age difference and his condition, it looks as if he is at risk of being exploited.”
What would be the biggest obstacle for you in accepting a new stepmother or stepfather?
Duchess Meghan and her father have had a difficult relationship for many years. Shortly before the wedding to Prince Harry in May 2018, the final break occurred. After his leg was amputated, she is said to have sent him a handwritten letter – it was the last known contact between the two. Thomas Markle has been married twice: from 1964 to 1975 to secretary Roslyn Loveless and from 1979 to 1987 to Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland.
Dario Aeberli (dae), born in 1995, has been working as a people editor at 20 Minuten since October 2023. Previously he was a local journalist and at “Migros Magazine”.
